by SS Arjan Kaur Khalsa, Mexico City, Mexico 2023 (Third Quarter) It is easier to give an opinion, question, judge, point out or belittle, than—on the contrary—to guide individuals towards values, appreciate their vulnerability, recognize their innate courage, and reveal their magnificence. To understand the human condition is a complicated process. This is not a concept that can be analyzed, nor an object that can be possessed. It is knowing the infinite tints, weights and gradients of the differences between people, accepting them and seeing the totality. Creation is CHANGE CHANGE CHANGE. Therefore I venture to say that a synonym
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Posts by Executive Assistant
Contemplations on the Challenges and Gifts of this Moment
Finding Inner Calm and Reaching Out
by MSS Guru Raj Kaur Khalsa, Vancouver, Canada 2023 (Third Quarter) Dear Ministers, How are you doing after these last few years of the revelations about Yogi Bhajan, and from our children, oh, and the isolation of COVID?? How ARE you doing? I am asking you heart to heart. It is so important at this time to be authentic; that we do the inner work as well as the re-connection work. Finding Inner Calm Here are some thoughts on how to find inner calm as well as re-connect to the people in our lives, whom we love and whom we
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Ways to Bring Our Community Together
by MSS Sat Hari Singh Khalsa, Boizenburg, Germany & Guru Ram Das Aquarian Academy 2023 (Third Quarter) Sat Nam, I’d like to talk about our experience in Germany. As a part of the former Guru Ram Das Ashram and Sangat in Hamburg, we were searching for more than 20 years for a Home for the Teachings. We projected always for the combination of a beautiful Gurdwara with a Yoga Centre. In 2016, we had been alerted that in the countryside of East Germany a former Synagogue (founded in 1799 and being used until 1886,
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Minister News & Notes (2023 Third Quarter)
Two new Ministers were ordained in August 2023: SS Inderpal Singh Bola of Berkshire, UK and SS Manjot Singh Khalsa of Gotland, Sweden. Inderpal Singh took his vows in-person at the European Yoga Festival in France, on August 12. Manjot Singh was ordained at his beautiful new home Gurdwara in a Virtual Vows ceremony on August 27. These new Sikh Dharma Ministers were ordained in the presence of the Siri Guru Granth Sahib. SS Sukhdev Kaur Khalsa of Estonia performed the vows and oath of a Sikh Dharma International Minister for Inderpal Singh, at the direction of the Secretary of
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Secretary of Religion Column (2023 Third Quarter)
Dear Ministers, Throughout my many years of counseling, I have always shared with clients that everything that happens is purposeful. Yes, even those events that one might call “atrocities.” I certainly have experienced these in my own life many times over. In the midst of the challenge, it is hard to make sense of it, let alone grasp its purpose. However, oftentimes in hindsight the purpose becomes crystal clear, and the growth that comes from having navigated the challenge will have helped one to expand in consciousness, awareness, and strength of character. The “never-ending election” is finally over. Some sangat
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#89 – 2023 Newsletter (Third Quarter)
The concept of Collective Efficacy posits that together we can make meaningful change in our community, whether or not we agree on everything. Working together, anything is possible. Our 2023 Ministry Newsletter series features this concept front and center. What we have collectively experienced in our international sangat mirrors the model of what occurs when an individual undergoes the disruption and dysregulation of a traumatic event. To address this, in the four issues of the newsletter we will share with our readers the progressive arc of the resolution of trauma. For our February issue, we shared tools that Ministers have
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In Memoriam – SS Harbhajan Singh Khalsa
September 13, 1950 – November 23, 2022 by Hearts and Hands 2023 (Second Quarter) SS Harbhajan Singh Khalsa, formerly of Taos and a longtime member of our sangat at Hacienda de Guru Ram Das in Espanola, passed away on November 23, 2022. He was living in Argentina with his wife, Ramesh Deep Kaur at the time of his passing. He will be remembered for his longtime healing practice and his ability to bring laughter and joy wherever he went.
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In Memoriam – SS Gian Kaur Khalsa
1949 – 2023 by Guru Mander Kaur Khalsa 2023 (Second Quarter) SS Gian Kaur Khalsa, woman, teacher, mother, grandmother and friend. She was a Kundalini Yoga Lead Trainer and a first-generation student trained by Yogi Bhajan. Gian Kaur discovered Kundalini Yoga in Amsterdam in 1973. She and her family came to the US in 1976 to meet Yogi Bhajan for the first time; he assigned her to move to Mexico in order to help Baba Ji run the ashram in Mexico City. That same year, she helped organize the first White Tantric Yoga (WTY) course ever held in Mexico. Later
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Miri Piri Academy Women’s Camp at Anandpur Sahib
by SS Shanti Kaur Khalsa, Espanola, New Mexico 2023 (Second Quarter) After several years of isolation due to the pandemic, women from around the world gathered in February at Dashmesh Sadan in Anandpur Sahib, India, for a ten-day retreat organized by Miri Piri Academy (MPA) of Amritsar. Head Principal Japjeet Kaur was an elegant host for the camp, taking care of all the details and allowing us to dive deeply into study, meditation, and experience. We began and ended our time together at the MPA campus in Amritsar, which provided us with ample opportunity to explore the campus, visit the
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What Remains When All is Gone…
by SS Sat Sansar Singh Khalsa, Santiago, Chile 2023 (Second Quarter) In 2018 I wrote an article for the Ministry Newsletter entitled, “What does it mean to be a Sikh Dharma Minister?” In the last paragraph I wrote, “To me it is a profound manifestation of destiny to experience this human life as a Sikh Dharma Minister, to support others on their own life’s journey, to share with them the teachings and practices of Sikh Dharma, and to work together with brothers and sisters to create a future for Sikh Dharma globally.” These words hold true for me now, as
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