President Bush has issued a “proclamation” honoring the leader of a small fringe group of unorthodox “Sikhs” Associated Press and KOBTV in New Mexico.
One thousand of the faithful converged on Santa Fe to pay their last respects to the dead leader Harbhajan Singh Puri, known to his followers as “Yogi Bhajan.”
Bhajan died a few days ago from heart failure at 75.
The guru died a rich man and controlled numerous lucrative companies run by his devotees, including AKAL Security, which was launched from his New Mexico ashram.
Akal now boasts a billion dollars in government contracts.
It seems somewhat sordid that some prominent politicians seem to think they owe something to the old guru, who was accused of sexual assault and battery and considered by many of his former followers to be something less than a “holy man.”
However, the likes of no less than two New Mexico governors and now a sitting US President have honored the man many called a “cult leader.”
The group the guru started in a Los Angeles garage in the 1970s known as the “Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization (3HO) has little more than a few thousand faithful and has been dwindling for years.
Nevertheless “Yogi Bhajan” got quite a sendoff, offering proof that political patronage, repeated campaign contributions and savvy business deals is what really counts amongst many politicians in America.
Note: See previous story about the life and times of “Yogi Bhajan”
no comment untill now