HEALTHY, HAPPY, HOLY ORGANIZATION (3HO)

HEALTHY, HAPPY, HOLY ORGANIZATION (3HO) . In 1969, Harbhajan Singh Puri (b. August 26, 1929), now known as Yogi Bhajan, came to California. A Sikh from India, he started teaching Kuṇḍalinī Yoga and founded the Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization, also called the 3HO Foundation.

Yogi Bhajan had worked as a customs officer before he moved to North America in 1968. After a brief stay in Canada, he traveled to Los Angeles where he began teaching yoga at the YMCA and the East-West Cultural Center. His classes attracted students, some from the counterculture, who were in the process of seeking alternative lifestyles and higher consciousness.

Several of these early students joined with Bhajan to establish an ashram (center) in Los Angeles and to found 3HO. Bhajan encouraged students to become Kuṇḍalinī Yoga teachers themselves and to establish new ashrams. Early ashram sites were established in New Mexico, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vancouver, and Washington, D.C., as well as a number of California locations. By 1972 there were ninety-four ashrams. Residents practiced yoga, community living, and a healthy lifestyle. Yogi Bhajan traveled to the new centers, teaching yoga and lecturing at nearby universities and colleges. Some of his students soon began teaching on college campuses as well. Students were typically in their teens or early twenties—the "baby boomer" generation. Most of the early ashrams offered communal housing, and residents often worked together in businesses started by other students.

A few of Yogi Bhajan's Los Angeles students began to study the Sikh religion because of his example, and in 1970 a group traveled with him to India, where some became baptized Sikhs, taking part in the traditional Amrit ceremony, khanḍe di pahul, at the Akal Takhāt, the seat of the Sikh religion. Yogi Bhajan met with officials of the major Sikh administrative body there and received official recognition. Sikh studies and practices rapidly spread through the ashrams, and students created their first gurdwara (place of worship) in Los Angeles in 1972. Devotees began to read the Gurū Granth Sāhib, the Sikh sacred text, in translation, and many also began to learn Punjabi and to read Gurmukhī, the script in which the Granth Sāhib is written. Bhajan established a ministry for Sikh Dharma. New ministers take vows, which include the worship of only one God, bowing only to the Granth Sāhib as the word of God and not worshiping any person or personality as gurū. They practice vegetarianism, monogamy, and abstinence from alcohol, tobacco, or drugs (unless prescribed by a physician).

The early and mid-1970s were a period of rapid expansion, but growth tapered off toward the end of the decade. The organization sought to solidify its base, and members focused on deepening their understanding of and their practice of Sikh beliefs and traditions and on creating individual "prosperity consciousness." More members created community-oriented businesses. Others furthered their formal education, several entering the health-care profession. Many married and started families.

In 1973 Harbhajan Singh Puri (his legal name became Harbhajan Singh Khālsā Yogiji in 1976 after obtaining U.S. citizenship) legally incorporated the Sikh Dharma Brotherhood. Regional governing units and a central Khālsā Council were established in 1974 and added to the corporation's legal structure.

Sikh Dharma and 3HO were, and are, separate organizations. Although membership overlaps, there are many 3HO practitioners who are not Sikhs. 3HO sponsors classes in yoga, meditation, and nutrition, as well as summer and winter solstice celebrations, preschools and Montessori schools, and summer camps for youth and for women. Sikh Dharma is incorporated under the laws of the United States as a recognized religion. It consists of congregations, an ordained ministry that has grown to more than four hundred ministers, regional authorities, and the Khālsā Council, its advisory body.

In the 1980s, ashrams were consolidated and many people relocated from urban to suburban or rural locations as new parents sought space and safety for their children. Individuals and families grew more autonomous and communal arrangements less common. Many children of grade-school age went to India for their schooling.

Worldview and Beliefs

While the Punjab region of India is the home and major center of the Sikh religion, Sikhs have a history of migration and a strong presence in both Canada and the United States. They have established gurdwara s and a number of support organizations. The Sikh religion is based on the teachings of ten gurū s. The first, Gurū Nānak, lived from 1469 to 1539. His was a devotional approach to the divine, an approach that called for meditation on the divine name (nām simran ) and an understanding of divinity as timeless and beyond all categories or descriptions. Gurū Nānak is often depicted as a gentle mystic, but he was also a practical leader who established a community of believers and discouraged withdrawal from the world. Gurū Arjan (1563–1606), the fifth gurū, himself a poet, compiled the hymns of Gurū Nānak and the other gurū s, his own compositions, and other writings, creating the Ādi Granth, the primal scripture of the Sikhs. The tenth gurū, Gurū Gobind Singh (1666–1708), established initiatory rites. Today, those who receive these rites are referred to as the Khālsā ("the pure ones") or Khālsā Sikhs. Gurū Gobind Singh added to and finalized the compilation of writings that Sikhs look to as their living gurū. Members of Sikh Dharma have adopted the basic Sikh beliefs and prayers, and many have been initiated into the Khālsā.

Yogi Bhajan's students refer to him as Yogiji and consider him to be the Mahan Tantric, or "Master of White Tantric Yoga." He teaches courses referred to as Kuṇḍalinī Yoga classes and courses in "White Tantric Yoga." Kuṇḍalinī Yoga can be practiced daily and may be taught to the public by 3HO members, but only Yogi Bhajan leads White Tantric Yoga.

In a White Tantric Yoga course people sit in long lines, and each faces a partner. Participants are guided in various physical yoga postures, use deep-breathing techniques, chant mantras, and use mudrā s (yogic hand positions). White Tantric Yoga is said to purify the consciousness and, in the words of a 3HO teacher, Shakti Parwha Kaur, in Kundalini Yoga: The Flow of Eternal Power (1996), to "accelerate the psychological transformation of the individual, dissolving deep-rooted subconscious neuroses" (p. 179).

The goal of the yoga postures and breathing techniques employed in Kuṇḍalinī Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan is to raise kuṇḍalinī energy, which is said to reside at the base of the spine. It should rise up through the central energy channel of the spine, stimulating energy centers or chakra s, and over time the practice should culminate in a life of higher consciousness. The yoga is said to cleanse and heal, especially by strengthening the nervous system and balancing the glandular systems, and to empower the practitioner to manage his or her own energy wisely. Additionally, different yoga kriya s (sequences of postures, breath, and sounds; in 3HO these are intended to manifest a particular state of mind) are said to perform various practical functions, such as easing stress, enhancing stamina, and improving digestion.

There is a strong group culture with distinctive values and beliefs. Sikhs born in the West have espoused orthodox Sikh traditions and incorporated yogic traditions, but have also included American middle-class norms, New Age perspectives, and lingering counterculture values. Values include "keeping up," empowerment, healthy living, and service in a difficult time of transition. "Keeping up" refers to maintaining a positive attitude and persevering when faced by challenges and adversity, and, in general, 3HO practitioners and Sikh Dharma adherents aim to be proactive in their lives and to control and alter their environments for the better. They seek to maintain fitness, mental clarity, and spiritual awareness through yoga, diet, and avoidance of caffeine, alcohol, and tobacco. The group has retained the New Age idea that the world is moving into the Aquarian Age. Yogi Bhajan says that this is a very difficult transition and urges people in 3HO and Sikh Dharma to strengthen themselves through spiritual and yogic practice in order to survive it and help others to weather it.

Practices and Rituals

Daily sādhana (spiritual practice) is the central practice. It should include prayer, meditation, and exercise. Devotees are encouraged to rise before dawn and give the early morning hours to God. Sādhana may be performed individually or in a group, although a group sādhana is considered more desirable. It will typically begin with recitation of Japjī (a prayer introduced by Gurū Nānak), Kuṇḍalinī Yoga, and the chanting of mantras, and then progress through meditation, deep relaxation, and devotional singing (kīrtan ). People in Sikh Dharma have also established daily and weekly Sikh gurdwara services and provide langar, a traditional shared vegetarian meal, for all attendees.

3HO sponsors solstice gatherings in New Mexico and in Florida. These provide an opportunity for yoga students from all over the world to gather. Participants focus on spiritual practices and participate in White Tantric Yoga (now presented on video). Since 1987 there has been an Interfaith Peace Prayer Day celebration sponsored jointly by Sikh Dharma and 3HO at the time of summer solstice.

Clothing and naming are important aspects of identity. Members of Sikh Dharma are readily identifiable. They frequently wear white clothing (said to have a pure vibration) and have adopted their own version of Punjabi garb. Both men and women wear turbans, although in the Punjab it is generally only men who wear them. The women sometimes wear a chuni (a long flowing scarf) over the turban, for formal attire. Both men and women have taken the last name of Khālsā, and the women, like Sikhs in the Punjab, have the middle name of Kaur (princess) while the men, again like their Indian Sikh counterparts, use Singh (lion).

Sikhs emphasize family life. In the early days, many of their marriages were arranged. Yogi Bhajan suggested a spouse for an individual, or two people asked for approval when they wished to marry. Marriage ceremonies follow the traditional Sikh form.

Gender Roles

As is the case in many of the new religions, gender roles tend to be traditional. While both genders work, women generally have primary responsibility for the domestic sphere. Though women are said to be nurturing by nature, they are also expected to be strong and to complement the partnership with their husbands. Women are understood to be more intuitive, spiritual, and changeable than their male counterparts. Their role as mothers is said to render women especially creative. They are called shakti s, a term referring to the female aspect of divinity, "God's power in manifestation." Men are thought to be the more steady and consistent sex. They are expected to be active in the world, although their role as fathers is also emphasized. Both men and women are said to have suffered from aspects of American culture—men from too much pressure to achieve and succeed, and women from a general disrespect for their gender and the tendency of the American media to turn women into sex objects. This treatment is said to have alienated women from their natural spirituality, grace, confidence, and self-respect. Many of the teachings about women were developed at the time of the women's movement and led to the establishment of the Khālsā Women's Training Camp, which is intended to offer women a break from routines, with time to focus on spiritual growth and to pursue personal interests. Activities include regular yoga, workshops that enable participants to pursue a variety of interests in fields such as dance, counseling, and religious practices, gatka (a martial art), and meditation. Both men and women serve as ministers, as yoga teachers, and on administrative councils, and women hold leadership positions in businesses.

Controversies and Issues

Historically, there has been tension between older established Sikh organizations and Sikh Dharma. Ethnic Sikhs have criticized the linking of the Sikh religion to yoga. They have criticized the hierarchical nature of Sikh Dharma with its variety of titles and positions. Many question the devotion that Yogi Bhajan receives from his students. Members of Sikh Dharma, in turn, have criticized ethnic Sikhs for bringing caste and politics into their gurdwara s, or for laxity in their practices. These tensions were more prominent in earlier years than they are now, however.

Sikhs have experienced discrimination based on their mode of dress. People in Sikh Dharma have successfully gone to court in order to be able to wear the turban in their daily occupations in industries with strict dress codes.

As in other new religions, there have been instances of businesses and individuals indicted for dishonest practices. Yogi Bhajan was accused of sexual misconduct in a suit that was filed in 1986, but the suit was dropped.

Recent History

Sikh Dharma has evolved and grown since its founding, as has the 3HO Foundation, which now has trained over three thousand teachers living in more than thirty-eight countries worldwide. Although the Indian Sikhs do not have an organized ministry, Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere does, adhering to legal requirements for an organized religion in the United States.

Despite opposition, a group of Sikh American women, seeking to open such opportunities to their gender, performed seva (service) at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, in 1996. Karen Leonard reports that the relevant authority (the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee) ruled that women would in the future be allowed to serve such functions as priests and hymn singers (1999, p. 281).

As of 2002 there were major centers in the United States, Canada, and Europe, and smaller ones in other locations. A center for meditation and the training of yoga teachers has opened in India. Larger businesses, begun and operated by Western Sikh entrepreneurs, include a successful security firm and tea and cereal companies. Sikh individuals also thrive as doctors, attorneys, accountants, writers, landscapers, artists, and counselors, and in other occupations. A new generation has reached maturity, married, and started families. Youth are a major focus of attention, with mentoring programs and expanded educational facilities being planned. About one hundred students (grades one through twelve) representing eleven countries attended Miri Piri Academy in Amritsar, India, in 2003.

See Also

Sikhism.

Bibliography

Bailey, Raleigh Eugene, Jr. "An Ethnographic Approach toward the Study of a Spiritually Oriented Communal Group in the USA: The Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization." Ph.D. diss, Hartford Seminary Foundation, 1973. An account of three early ashrams (Brooklyn, New York; Montague, Massachusetts; Hartford, Connecticut) as they adopted the Sikh religion. An excellent source on the early history of the group.

Brooks, Douglas Renfrew. The Secret of the Three Cities: An Introduction to Hindu Sakta Tantrism. Chicago, 1990. A scholarly and helpful discussion of Tantra.

Callahan, Jean. "Leaving the Ashram." Common Boundary 10, no. 4 (1992): 32–39. An account of an ashram director's decision to leave 3HO.

Dusenbery, Verne A. "Of Singh Sabhas, Siri Singh Sahibs, and Sikh Scholars: Sikh Discourse from North America in the 1970s." In The Sikh Diaspora: Migration and Experience beyond Punjab, edited by N. Gerald Barrier and Verne A. Dusenbery, pp. 90–119. Delhi, 1989.

Dusenbery, Verne A. "On the Moral Sensitivities of Sikhs in North America." In Divine Passions: The Social Construction of Emotion in India, edited by Owen M. Lynch, pp. 239–261. Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1990. This article compares cultural assumptions of ethnic Sikhs and those in Sikh Dharma and describes misunderstandings between Punjabi Sikhs and converts in Vancouver.

Dusenbery, Verne A. "Punjabi Sikhs and Gora Sikhs: Conflicting Assertions of Sikh Identity in North America." In Divine Passions, edited by Joseph T. O'Connell, Milton Israel, and Willard G. Oxtoby, with W. H. McLeod and J. S. Grewal, pp. 334–355. New Delhi, 1990. A thoughtful comparison of cultural understandings about the nature of persons and groups among Punjabi Sikhs and the Sikhs of 3HO/Sikh Dharma.

Elsberg, Constance Waeber. Graceful Women: Gender and Identity in an American Sikh Community. Knoxville, Tenn., 2003. An examination of women's lives and gender identities in 3HO/Sikh Dharma. Looks at long-term members and at women who have exited.

Gardner, Hugh. The Children of Prosperity: Thirteen Modern American Communes. New York, 1978. Includes an account of an early 3HO ashram (Maharaj) in New Mexico. Covers the years 1970 to 1973.

Jacobs, Janet L. Divine Disenchantment: Deconverting from New Religions. Bloomington, Ind., 1989. A good general look at the reasons individuals leave new religions. Some former 3HO members were included in the sample.

Kent, Stephen A. From Slogans to Mantras: Social Protest and Religious Conversion in the Late Vietnam War Era. Syracuse, N.Y., 2001. A study of the circumstances that led political activists to convert to new religions and a look at the ways in which this occurred. Includes a section on 3HO.

Khālsā, Kirpal Singh. "New Religious Movements Turn to Worldly Success." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 25 (1986): 233–247. Academic article on "prosperity consciousness" written by a member.

Khālsā, Premka Kaur, and Sat Kirpal Kaur Khālsā, eds. The Man Called the Siri Singh Sahib. Los Angeles, 1979. A commemorative volume compiled by members of 3HO in honor of Yogi Bhajan. This volume consists of memoirs, historical accounts, and tributes written by members.

Khālsā, S. K. The History of the Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere. Espanola, N. Mex., 1995. History written by a member of Sikh Dharma.

Khālsā, Shakti Parwha Kaur. Kundalini Yoga: The Flow of Eternal Power. Los Angeles, 1996. Written by one of the first of Bhajan's converts. Sets out 3HO beliefs in a number of areas.

Leonard, Karen. "Second Generation Sikhs in the US: Consensus and Differences." In Sikh Identity: Continuity and Change, edited by Pashaura Singh and N. Gerald Barrier, pp. 275–297. New Delhi, 1999. Includes interviews with second generation Punjabi and non-Punjabi Sikhs.

Maple, Michele Schwartz. "Commitment and De-Idealization: A Study of Symbol and Process in a Community of American Converts to Sikhism." Ph.D. diss., University of California, Los Angeles, 1992. A dissertation based on participant observation in a California ashram.

Tobey, Alan. "The Summer Solstice of the Healthy-Happy-Holy Organization." In The New Religious Consciousness, edited by Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, pp. 5–30. Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1976. An early account of White Tantric Yoga as practiced at a solstice celebration.

3HO and Sikh Dharma sponsor several websites, including the organization's homepages at http://www.yogibhajan.com and http://www.3ho.org and SikhNetwork at http://www.sikhnet.com. There are also a number of 3HO publications, including annual compilations of Bhajan's lectures at the Khālsā Women's Training Camp, available from the organization. For general information on the Sikh religion, the reader is referred to such authors as W. Owen Cole, J. S. Grewal, Gurinder Singh Mann, W. H. McLeod, Nikky-Guninder Kaur Singh, and Pashaura Singh. Gurinder Singh Mann's Sikhism (Upper Saddle River, N.J., 2004) is a concise overview of Sikh beliefs, practices, history, and society.

Constance W. Elsberg (2005)