3HO
Encyclopedia
3HO (est. 1969) is a non-profit organization
dedicated to sharing the teachings of Kundalini Yoga
as taught by Yogi Bhajan, founder of the group.
The stated mission of 3HO is to "share the lifestyle, yoga and meditation practices of Kundalini Yoga
," claimed by its practitioners to be the most powerful and accessible form of yoga. This yogic lifestyle practice includes Kundalini yoga, meditation, diet, clean living, and yogic philosophy. The 3HO Foundation serves as the central organization for a global community of yoga teachers, students, and everyday people who practice and share the Kundalini yoga and lifestyle teachings of Yogi Bhajan. Their goal—centered and grounded in a philosophy of compassion and kindness—is
that they may serve, inspire, and empower humanity to be healthy, happy, and holy.
3HO describes itself as a spiritual community welcoming of all religions and lifestyles. Teaching Kundalini Yoga does not require belief in Sikhism
, however many followers of Harbhajan Singh Yogi choose to follow a Sikh way of life. The associated Sikh Dharma movement, based in Española, New Mexico, considers itself a Sikh
sangat
, and its followers observe the five K's. Men and women each wear large white dastaar. The movement's gender politics are egalitarian.
To support the community of yoga teachers and students, the 3HO Foundation offers on-line resources and events world-wide featuring the teachings of Yogi Bhajan. Twice a year Summer or Winter Solstice Sadhana Celebrations with three days of White Tantric Yoga, Women's Camp, a KRI Teacher Training event, and Sat Nam Rasayan training are all offered.
and karma
yoga, selfless service of others, is also discussed in texts and on the 3HO website.
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
dedicated to sharing the teachings of Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini yoga
Kundalini yoga is a physical, mental and spiritual discipline for developing strength, awareness, character, and consciousness. Practitioners call Kundalini yoga the yoga of awareness because it focuses primarily on practices that expand sensory awareness and intuition in order to raise individual...
as taught by Yogi Bhajan, founder of the group.
The stated mission of 3HO is to "share the lifestyle, yoga and meditation practices of Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini yoga
Kundalini yoga is a physical, mental and spiritual discipline for developing strength, awareness, character, and consciousness. Practitioners call Kundalini yoga the yoga of awareness because it focuses primarily on practices that expand sensory awareness and intuition in order to raise individual...
," claimed by its practitioners to be the most powerful and accessible form of yoga. This yogic lifestyle practice includes Kundalini yoga, meditation, diet, clean living, and yogic philosophy. The 3HO Foundation serves as the central organization for a global community of yoga teachers, students, and everyday people who practice and share the Kundalini yoga and lifestyle teachings of Yogi Bhajan. Their goal—centered and grounded in a philosophy of compassion and kindness—is
that they may serve, inspire, and empower humanity to be healthy, happy, and holy.
3HO describes itself as a spiritual community welcoming of all religions and lifestyles. Teaching Kundalini Yoga does not require belief in Sikhism
Sikhism
Sikhism is a monotheistic religion founded during the 15th century in the Punjab region, by Guru Nanak Dev and continued to progress with ten successive Sikh Gurus . It is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world and one of the fastest-growing...
, however many followers of Harbhajan Singh Yogi choose to follow a Sikh way of life. The associated Sikh Dharma movement, based in Española, New Mexico, considers itself a Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
sangat
Sangat
Sangat is a Sikh term with its origin in the Sanskrit word 'sangh', which means company, fellowship and association. In Sikh vocabulary, the word has a special connotation. It stands for the body of men and women who meet religiously, especially in the presence of the Guru Granth Sahib...
, and its followers observe the five K's. Men and women each wear large white dastaar. The movement's gender politics are egalitarian.
To support the community of yoga teachers and students, the 3HO Foundation offers on-line resources and events world-wide featuring the teachings of Yogi Bhajan. Twice a year Summer or Winter Solstice Sadhana Celebrations with three days of White Tantric Yoga, Women's Camp, a KRI Teacher Training event, and Sat Nam Rasayan training are all offered.
Beliefs and practices
3HOs practices are based on the yogic practice of Kundalini Yoga as first taught in the Western Hemisphere by Yogi Bhajan. As the Aquarian Age replaced the Age of Pisces on November 11th, 2011 at 11:30AM Western Standard Time. The dated marked the beginning of the new golden era of compassion—for this purpose 5 Aquarian Age Sutras and 7 Steps to Happiness form part of the basis of the philosophy. Through practice of yoga and meditation, habits are created or broken via regular daily practice. A nutritional vegetarian diet is served, as there is unhealthy impact from meat upon a person when consumed. Regular enjoyment of the trinity roots (garlic, onion, and ginger) is encouraged. The importance of sevaSelfless Service
Selfless service is a commonly used term to denote a service which is performed without any expectation of result or award for the person performing it.-Religious significance:...
and karma
Karma
Karma in Indian religions is the concept of "action" or "deed", understood as that which causes the entire cycle of cause and effect originating in ancient India and treated in Hindu, Jain, Buddhist and Sikh philosophies....
yoga, selfless service of others, is also discussed in texts and on the 3HO website.
Critics
Time Magazine wrote an article critical of 3HO and Yogi Bhajan who created the organization. Their piece, published September 5, 1977 under the title http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,915413,00.html“Yogi Bhajan's Synthetic Sikhism” was supported by Dr. Trilochan Singh a prominent Sikh scholar and historian and followed up with a book titled http://www.gurmukhyoga.com/forum/index.php?mode=page&id=1"Sikhism and Tantric Yoga" (1977) which was highly critical of 3HO, Yogi Bhajan and his yoga techniques calling them unSikh like and "a sacrilegious hodgepodge." Looking at these works critically, they are written from a perspective holding onto a fearful/prejudicial view resenting the spread of Sikhism to people outside Indian decent.Further reading
- Elsberg, Constance. Graceful Women: Gender and Identity in an American Sikh Community. University of Tennessee Press, 2006.
- Laue, Thorsten. Kundalini Yoga, Yogi Tee und das Wassermannzeitalter. Bibliografische Einblicke in die Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization (3HO) des Yogi Bhajan. Tübingen, 2008. [in German]
- Laue, Thorsten. Kundalini Yoga, Yogi Tee und das Wassermannzeitalter. Religionswissenschaftliche Einblicke in die Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization (3HO) des Yogi Bhajan. Münster, 2007. [in German]
External links
- 3HO Foundation - 3HO
- Kudanlini Research Institute - KRI
- International Kundalini Yoga Teachers Association - IKYTA
- White Tantric Yoga - Worldwide group yogic meditations and events
- Sat Nam Rasayan - Guru Dev Singh Khalsa, Master of Sat Nam Rasayan