Sam Farr: “I rise today, as the whole House of Representatives rises also, to honor the exemplary life of Harbhajan Singh Khalsa…”

“I rise today, as the whole House of Representatives rises also, to honor the exemplary life of Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogiji. He died on October 7th 2004, just several weeks after his 75th birthday. Though he gained notoriety as a great yoga teacher, throughout his life he wore many hats; that of a successful business man, an author and a diplomat who bridged the boundaries of culture and religion. The man we know as Yogi Bhajan was born Harghajan Singh Puri on August 26th, 1929 in a part of India that later became Pakistan. He spent his youth attending Catholic convent school and studying yoga from the age of eight years old. At just sixteen his teacher, Sant Sazara Singh, proclaimed him to be a Master of Kundalini Yoga. The rest of his life was punctuated by selfless leadership and teaching to people from all walks of life. After working in the Indian government for some time, in 1968, Yogi Bhajan left India for Canada to focus on teaching yoga. This began his ascent to popularity throughout the world.”