The Degradation of Yogi Bhajan & Yogi Tea (a forward)

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam all,

First, for a little history, listen to Guru Singh's podcast

"What's Your Story . . .

How Do You

Narrate Life?" from 12/20/08

which I've posted at...... http://church-mouse.com/Guru-Singh/What%27s_Your_Story.mp3

Guru Singh elaborates on

the origins of

Yogi Tea at 24:38 mark. It's important to understand Yogiji's intent.

 

Sat Nam,

Dharam

www.gongsongs.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michael Lancaster <njlancaster

Michael Lancaster <njlancaster

Fri, 3 Apr 2009 10:39 am

Yogi Ji & Yogi Tea

 

I regret having to write this, however, I feel that each of us [should]

take the time to comment. Yogi Tea, a division of Golden Temple

Products, in Eugene, OR, has taken away the name "Yogi Tea," and

removed all 'evidence' of Yogi Ji from the product. They now just call

it "Yogi." They still have his quotes and his teachings on the box,

but no mention of this very important person who gave them their

foundation. Furthermore, they have erased (scrubbed) their website

www.goldentemple.com of anything identifying Yogi Ji.

 

They claim this is all about graphic design, but being a graphic

designer, I know that the branding is the same "Yogi" and the box and

it's graphics are merely an evolution. It is the scrubbing or

eschewing of the very being who brought them the tea, Ayurveda, and all

the teachings that led to their success that is so appalling.

 

They are open to comments and I ask that you forward this letter to all

on your networks, whom you think might have an interest and ask them to

call the company and comment to customer service. They may also call

the stores where they buy it and let them know; primarily Whole Foods

(Wild Oats Bread & Circus) and Trader Joe's. Yogi Tea's number is

below.

 

Yogi Tea

1-800-964-4832

1-541-461-2160

 

Thank You,

 

Michael Lancaster

www.studio98B.com

njlancaster

505-474-7564

98B Gold Mine Rd

Cerrillos, NM 87010 --

 

And this from

Gurubachan Kaur Khalsa, Albuquerque, NM

 

Dear Ones,

 

I got this email today & it may me more sad than I already was to

see how not only people in our Dharma understand what Yogi Tea &

what the peace Cereals meant & why they were produced & how

this hand full of people are trying to destroy everything that Siri

Singh Sahib build for our future.

Please send your comments & your feelings so this can be recorded

& action can be taken.

Please forward this email to as many people as you can that care about

what Yogi Ji taught us & what he stood for.

 

Just remember he always told us this businesses were build for our

future.

 

"We are the Khalsa Mighty Mighty Khalsa every where we go people want

to know who we are so we tell them"

 

Through these products he had the vision, that so many people can be

reached to learn & expand.

Please stand together & don't let his legacy be forgotten.

 

Many Blessings

 

S.S. Gurubachan Kaur Khalsa --

 

HS

[Guest guest]

But is this not odd? What would motivate such behavior? It seems to me non-sensical (sp?) and pointless.

 

However, thanks for letting readers know and I will, indeed, call Yogi Tea and complain to customer service.

 

Ananda KaurAnne Leggett Walker, MBACell: 214 629 5662Fax: 1 866 271 9890anne_leggettwalker

[Guest guest]

As suggested, I wrote a letter to Customer Service at Golden Temple Enterprises. I received the following response from Valerie Crowley, Customer Service Dept., which did not address my concerns.Thank you for the email. Here is the response from our marketing department: "The Teacher and His Tea" story has been replaced by the Yogi Principles. Inspired by Yogi Bhajan, the Yogi Principles describe the high standards that inspire us as we select and blend our teas, standards that reflect the teachings of Yogi Bhajan in a meaningful and relevant manner.Here's the letter I wrote:Dear Yogi Tea/Golden Temple, I am writing to you because I find it very confusing and weird that you have changed your branding to just "Yogi" on your boxes of tea and have removed all traces of Yogi Bhajan, the founder of Yogi Tea, from the package. On your Web site I notice that you still refer to your product as Yogi Tea. Do you want people to recognize your product as "tea" at the store? Why not call it what it is? It's obvious that the reason you have changed the name is to get around some legalities. If you are going to call your product "Yogi" then why not have the Yogi's picture on the box? Those of us who have been in 3HO for a long time understand the history behind this wonderful beverage. We made Yogi Tea by counting out all the spices by hand many years before it went to market. Without Yogi Bhajan's bringing this recipe to us, you would not exist. Therefore, please show him some respect and acknowledge the source and wisdom from which your product came. By the way, I think the new packaging is terrible. The colors are washed out and it looks boring. It's barely noticeable on the shelf next to all the other much more dynamic packaging in stores. I loved the original with the beautiful, distinctive tea cups. Now you can barely tell each flavor of tea apart from the others. I am not a visual artist but I am a consumer, and I hope you will take this feedback to heart. I hope you will change your marketing direction to reflect the history and quality of your product. Respectfully yours,Sahib-Amar K. Khalsa I enjoyed Guru Singh's recounting of the history of the Yogi Tea company. I'm not sure when that happened but I do know that around 1974-1975, we had a cottage industry bagging Yogi Tea at the ashram in Montague, Mass. I have pictures to prove it. The ashram was an old farmhouse in rural western Mass. For our evening entertainment we would sit around a long, low dining room table, counting out cardamom pods, peppercorns, etc. and putting them in baggies. These were sold somehow - I'm not sure how it got past the Health Department. The first packaging of boxed Yogi Tea featured the smiling face of Gurushabd Kaur, the ashram co-director at the time. I think the company in Eugene got started later.Sahib-Amar Kaur

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam Sat Avtar Kaur,

Re the post on Yogi Tea, the origin of this issue is the Unto Infinity

Board, which made the decision to remove Yogiji's picture from Yogi Tea.

What I have seen transpire in this regard is described at

http://www.yogagems.com/untoinfinityhukams.html.

 

The Khalsa Council Executive Committee recently narrowed their focus to

two options for the upcoming April Khalsa Council meetings as described

in this email to me from a member of the Mother Ashram in Espanola.

 

" It is not too late for anyone in the to sign one of the

petitions toward restoration of conscious leadership for our 3HO

businesses and nonprofits:

 

Link to Herndon Petition:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/sikhdharmaleadership?e

 

Link to Espanola Petition:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/SadhSangatOfSikhDharmaDemands

 

 

 

 

 

March 28^th there was a meeting of the Khalsa Council

Executive Committee. At this meeting a nearly unanimous vote carried a

motion (with only one member opposing and one member abstaining). The

Committee vote carried a motion that the Khalsa Council in the April

2009 session will address whether to approve a Statement of No

Confidence or a Demand of Resignation for all of the Members of the Unto

Infinity Board.

 

 

 

This is do in large part the Petitions from the Espanola,

Herndon and Los Angeles communities as well as a considerable number of

Position Papers.

 

 

 

Your voice has made an impact. Now there is a short window

of opportunity to express to the Khalsa Council how you want to be

represented before they meet on April 22nd. We have two major tools

available to us. First are the Petitions, by signing it has shown the

Khalsa Council, the Unto Infinity Board and the World at Large where you

stand.

 

 

 

There are currently 100 signers on the Espanola Petition and

92 signers on the Herndon Petition. I am calling on everyone who has

signed to find 5 more Sangat Members to sign also. A goal of 500

signatures has been set.

 

 

 

Second, there has been a Legal Fund established.

Contributions are being accepted from $5 to $108. More than the dollar

amount, more than signing the Petition it shows verifiable commitment to

see this through. A goal of 100 contributions of $108 and 100

contributions of $5 or more has been set.

 

 

 

To contribute reply in e-mail I will send you instruction.

 

 

 

As you have signed already the petition, you understand this.

 

 

 

If we ignore all the Legal argument, ignore what may or may

not be rumor and conjecture, we are left at one point. Can we continue

to have an Organization with a basis of Sikh Dharma if our leaders are

not living as Sikhs?

 

 

 

If we can not expect the Rahit of Guru Gobind Singh from our

Leaders, we can not expect that from anyone in our community. If we can

not expect this code of conduct anywhere in our Organization, we can no

longer exist as an Organization with Sikh Dharma as the Base.

 

 

 

We can not have a Dharma led by people who do not believe in the Dharma.

 

 

 

Humbly,

 

Mukhtiar Singh Khalsa

 

505 450 2802

 

 

 

If there is any way I can help serve you in this please call on me. "

[Guest guest]

NOT being Sikh and yet in gratitude to Yogi B do not make the issue

about being or not being Sikh or Sikh Darhma.

By doing this you are creating a great Divide, this was not his intent.

This is about Honoring a man whos contribution were and continue to

be great & at the same time it is about buisness.

And again refer to his teaching his voice and you will find he made

it clear it was not about him it is about the coming times.

So if the owner of said buisness wants to make a choice he/ she sikh

or not sikh has that choice.

This is starting to sound a lot like Jesus and his said followers/

the church Hmm???

 

peace to all

narayan

www.narayanbeauty.com

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam, My question at the moment is: What have the Unto Infinity board said about all of this hoopla? If nothing then that underscores the real problem: No transperancy and no open communication. I know they have created a stewardship group but but can they be objective?

 

Even the President of the US has a constituency but it appears that thus far the Unto Infinity Board could care less about we, the people.

 

Dharma Singh Khalsa, MD New Deals on Dell Netbooks - Now starting at $299

[Guest guest]

Dear Kristi,

 

" This is about Honoring a man whos contribution were and continue to be great &

at the same time it is about buisness " quote from your post.

 

Exactly. This is about HONORING his business and clearly written protocol for

business operations.This legal format is required whether or not you are Sikh,

Catholic, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, Sufi, etc.The religion thing is a red herring.

 

The business integrity or lack thereof is the real issue here and has been

addressed as such. (see subject heading)

 

Satnam.

 

Kind regards,

 

Siri Bandhu

Humble Moderator

 

 

 

 

--

 

 

 

 

In Kundalini-Yoga , Kristi Marie Jones <kristimariejones

wrote:

>

> NOT being Sikh and yet in gratitude to Yogi B do not make the issue

> about being or not being Sikh or Sikh Darhma.

> By doing this you are creating a great Divide, this was not his intent.

> This is about Honoring a man whos contribution were and continue to

> be great & at the same time it is about buisness.

> And again refer to his teaching his voice and you will find he made

> it clear it was not about him it is about the coming times.

> So if the owner of said buisness wants to make a choice he/ she sikh

> or not sikh has that choice.

> This is starting to sound a lot like Jesus and his said followers/

> the church Hmm???

>

> peace to all

> narayan

> www.narayanbeauty.com

>

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam,

The 3H0 businesses started out in peoples homes and in our self-started

ashrams, often at low or zero wages. Siri Singh Sahib took on such

businesses under his umbrella to provide employment to those on the

spiritual path. Yes, it is about money, but it is more about honest

labor, sharing with others, honoring the teachings and giving the best

of ourselves.

 

The Master left an administrative body in place knowing they were going

to fall from their practice. He set it up for us to retrieve our legacy,

to wake us up from our stupor once he is gone. The vacuum of leadership

on his death was not filled by a successor. That successor is all of us,

living in the power and sacredness of the teachings.

 

Loving Blessings on the path of your soul,

Guru Prem Kaur

http://www.yogagems.com

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam,

A group of our youth visited with UI board members individually, for it

is their future that is at stake. The main message they picked up from

these interviews is that the members all have different view points.

They are not united. Regarding the board's silence, board members are

not required by their bylaws to talk to or answer to us.

 

Go to http://www.yogagems.com/untoinfinityhukams.html to learn what has

been transpiring, hooked up with Hukams from the Golden Temple to

illuminate the underworkings.

 

Loving Blessings,

Guru Prem Kaur

www.yogagems.com

[Guest guest]

Yes, it is similar to Jesus and his followers/church after Jesus died...and one

which normally happens when a founder dies...what is unique is that Yogi Bhajan

knew this would happen and spent much time and effort before he died to set up a

system with checks/balances/standards/etc....a way that he thought would keep

the teachings authentic.

 

The " battle " (if you know a better word, I am willing to) is between those who

believe what Unto Infinity is doing organizationally and personally is within

their power given by Yogi Bhajan's succession plan and those who believe what

Unto Infinity is doing is not within Yogi Bhajan's succession plan.

 

At the core of this family disagreement is the issue of keeping all aspects of

his teachings unity and those who are stewards of his teachings…living the

teachings.

 

His teachings are vast and include much not on this so sometimes it

difficult to understand the entire picture…and this has been brewing for years

with talk, discussion and dialog inside the secret tea pots of Kundalini Yoga

and Sikh Dharma… & #9786; both true, simple trying to make light of a hellarious

situation.

 

My understanding with the yogi tea issue and other issues mentioned is that…it

does affect you now and will affect you in the future so you have an opportunity

to do something…whatever that happens to be.

 

Sat Ganesha

" share, participate, contribute "

 

 

Kundalini-Yoga , Kristi Marie Jones <kristimariejones

wrote:

>

> NOT being Sikh and yet in gratitude to Yogi B do not make the issue

> about being or not being Sikh or Sikh Darhma.

> By doing this you are creating a great Divide, this was not his intent.

> This is about Honoring a man whos contribution were and continue to

> be great & at the same time it is about buisness.

> And again refer to his teaching his voice and you will find he made

> it clear it was not about him it is about the coming times.

> So if the owner of said buisness wants to make a choice he/ she sikh

> or not sikh has that choice.

> This is starting to sound a lot like Jesus and his said followers/

> the church Hmm???

>

> peace to all

> narayan

> www.narayanbeauty.com

>

[Guest guest]

Dear All

 

Sometimes the obvious is not obvious. Part of this action was to put more of his

teachings on the tea so people would have more of the teachings to sustain them

during these times.

 

Businesses make business decisions but the people making these decisions are

also students and teachers of this great way of life

 

Change is usually uncomfortable and challenged, look at facebook and what

happened when they made changes Yikees! This is for us and our students to have

more while they are reading that box of tea as they sip the wonderful healing

brew inside, which is really why most people buy tea of any kind to drink it.

 

I hope this helps sooth the soul and calm the mind of those feeling unsettled.

Now go have a great cup of your favorite yogi tea and tell us why you love that

one.

 

Blessings

Gurutej

 

Blessings

Kundalini-Yoga , " siribandhu " <siribandhu wrote:

>

> Dear Kristi,

>

> " This is about Honoring a man whos contribution were and continue to be great

& at the same time it is about buisness " quote from your post.

>

> Exactly. This is about HONORING his business and clearly written protocol for

business operations.This legal format is required whether or not you are Sikh,

Catholic, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, Sufi, etc.The religion thing is a red herring.

>

> The business integrity or lack thereof is the real issue here and has been

addressed as such. (see subject heading)

>

> Satnam.

>

> Kind regards,

>

> Siri Bandhu

> Humble Moderator

>

>

>

>

> --

>

>

>

>

> In Kundalini-Yoga , Kristi Marie Jones <kristimariejones@>

wrote:

> >

> > NOT being Sikh and yet in gratitude to Yogi B do not make the issue

> > about being or not being Sikh or Sikh Darhma.

> > By doing this you are creating a great Divide, this was not his intent.

> > This is about Honoring a man whos contribution were and continue to

> > be great & at the same time it is about buisness.

> > And again refer to his teaching his voice and you will find he made

> > it clear it was not about him it is about the coming times.

> > So if the owner of said buisness wants to make a choice he/ she sikh

> > or not sikh has that choice.

> > This is starting to sound a lot like Jesus and his said followers/

> > the church Hmm???

> >

> > peace to all

> > narayan

> > www.narayanbeauty.com

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Maybe so, but my Baby Boomer eyes need it to be in bigger print! Cheers, Sahib-Amar Kaur Dear All Sometimes the obvious is not obvious. Part of this action was to put more of his teachings on the tea so people would have more of the teachings to sustain them during these times. Businesses make business decisions but the people making these decisions are also students and teachers of this great way of life Change is usually uncomfortable and challenged, look at facebook and what happened when they made changes Yikees! This is for us and our students to have more while they are reading that box of tea as they sip the wonderful healing brew inside, which is really why most people buy tea of any kind to drink it. I hope this helps sooth the soul and calm the mind of those feeling unsettled. Now go have a great cup of your favorite yogi tea and tell us why you love that one. Blessings Gurutej