Dr. Steven Hassan with Els Coenen: Unmasking the Kundalini Yoga Cult of Yogi Bhajan

Els Coenen earned a Ph.D. in nuclear physics in 1985 and subsequently established a career in the banking, IT, and telecom sectors within her home country, Belgium. However, her life took a transformative turn in 2007 at the age of 49, when she attended her first Kundalini Yoga class taught by Yogi Bhajan and was instantly captivated. She went on to become a devoted Kundalini Yoga instructor, teaching yoga, assisting and organizing Kundalini Yoga teacher training programs in Belgium, neighboring countries, and East Africa. For a decade, she also presided over the Belgium Kundalini Yoga Federation.
In 2018, following several unsettling events, she decided to distance herself from the Kundalini Yoga community. However, when allegations of half a century of concealed abuse and criminal actions by Bhajan and his associates came to light in early 2020, that impacted the lives of hundreds of his followers and their children, she felt compelled to return and assist in revealing the truth. In 2021, she created the website Abuse in Kundalini Yoga, a platform aimed at exposing and addressing the sexual abuse, child abuse, homophobia, exploitation, business fraud, and drugs and arms trafficking within the community. Els served as a member of an advisory group for the Compassionate Reconciliation Program until December 2022. She recently released a book titled Under the Yoga Mat: The Dark History of Bhajan’s Kundalini Yoga, which brings together the stories of many survivors and draws a picture of the extent and variety of abuses and crimes.
#drstevenhassan #stevenhassan #cults #mindcontrol #brainwashing #BITEmodel #freedomofmind
#kundalini #cultsurvivor #yogibhajan #yogacult #religiouscult #religioustrauma
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[@Estee.Ar.6869]

Thank you Steven and Els. This interview was fascinating. This Yoga Cult used very similar techniques that the JWs used.

[@darshansingh4375]

Thanks for this great video , exposing yogi Bhajan ‘s toxic cult. I also converted to Sikhism, from Roman Catholic background. Fortunately I didn’t discover the Sikh faith through yogi Bhajan. My first contact with Sikhism was during my first visit to India where I traveled overland in 1976 , returning to France 1977 . I spent 10 years in Southall UK , to be with the Sikh community . Yogi Bhajan visited that place when I was there, and I wanted to confront him about the fact that what he was teaching had nothing to do with Sikhism. A Sikh friend advised me not to do so, as yogi Bhajan was well known for humiliating and even abusing people who didn’t agree with him in front of the congregation. Some Sikhs of Punjabi background did,though, and he gave them some aggressive answers. The basics of Sikhism is to earn our living honesty, be grateful to God and remembering his name, and sharing with others, . Accepting humanity with all its diversity regardless of caste creed colour gender or community. Yogi Bhajan was a money grabber, and to my knowledge he never opened free kitchens for the poor. Something he should have done with his business empire. He was a sexual predator, who got away with his multiple crimes. God knows how many women have been sexually abused, and are left to cope with their trauma. Yogi Bhajan was close to Indira Gandhi, responsible for the storming of the golden temple, And he was also close to the RSS .

[@treespirit2000]

Great critical analysis. Thanks, also, for anecdotes from your England experience.

[@juliaainley2889]

UNDER THE YOGA MAT EXPLAINS THE REAL SIKH compared to YOGI BHAJANS 💧💧💧💧💧💧💧💧💧💧🍁

[@beabove]

I live in Santa Fe and his followers are often seen here at Whole Foods and the various healthy restaurants. Their energy is, shall we say, not particularly gentle. I would call it (to make a blanket statement, which is probably not fair) in general more entitled than spiritual. I stopped buying Yogi Tea personally after reading Premka's book. Also I knew someone who was born into the cult and sent to India for school and had a LOT of trauma from the whole experience.

[@efrenjf7685]

So its a commun thing apparently, I recently started dating with one of his. I didnt know he was into this at first then he started to talk more and more about it, all i can say about him its... he isnt really a nice person, he is sometimes but he is full of ego. Also, yeah... he has a lot of trauma from his past (all of us) so i can see why they got him into this BS.

[@forestsnow6508]

I used to enjoy that tea, but heard it is high in metal contamination

[@christianrokicki]

Great work! I hope you will investigate/expose New Kadampa Tradition soon... they are now targeting children for so-called 'introductory meditation' classes... sad and disturbing...

[@treespirit2000]

No, Tantric Yoga did not bring us into a state of ecstasy; spaced-out, yes, for sure, but not a transcendental state. Also, for the record, we were not drug-fueled at that time. Thanks for the contribution you're making!

[@kmb1479]

Thanks!

[@ahocka]

Thank you for increasing awareness. I've been tempted to visit them and now know better. I still do kundalini yoga DVDs; it makes me feel great and look very young for my age. I'd like to know how Yogi Bhajan came up with the exercises. I believe it was plagiarized.

[@forestsnow6508]

I started similar, dvds, books, found some teachers, and eventually completed their teaching program. There's so much more information and resources available now compared to 25 years ago. I'm currently studying the works of John Woodroffe as well as Neven Paar, who has authored Serpent Rising, truly a must-have reference. Did the man we refer as The Christ practice yoga? Is Kundalini Rising actually discussed in the Bible? Consider Kelly-Marie Keer's books for that narrative.

[@nykkoll5089]

Great interview! Thank you so much for spreading the truth.

[@de_cre_vi]

Very sad when the actual truth itself isn't good enough for people and they decide they have to abuse their power. Kundalini yoga is very powerful and real, and the truth is held within it, but there is really no need for cult leaders or any sort of big, centralized leadership for kundalini yoga.

[@treespirit2000]

No, the truth is NOT held within Kundalini Yoga, essentially an occult practice.

[@de_cre_vi]

Really?? An occult practice? That's interesting because I have never practiced any occult rituals or anything occult-related in my life. I was raised as a Baptist Christian, then was agnostic for years until a spontaneous Kundalini awakening. Call it a spiritual awakening, call it an NDE, it's all the same.@@treespirit2000 I'm curious what you would say the truth is, and how you know it to be the truth?

[@nykkoll5089]

Kundalini Yoga the way Yogi Bhajan taught it was his invention. He invented it to manipulate people, not to help them. It's a scam.

[@oksureright]

​@@treespirit2000I suggest you look up the meaning of the word "occult"

[@forestsnow6508]

​@treespirit2000 The bible is occultism. Mathew 17:21 basically means As Within, So Without. Stop believing what you are told, and start researching it for yourself.

[@juliaainley2889]

AKAL SECURITY SOLD BY DIRECTION OF YOGI BHAJAN a USA man called GURU TEJ SINGH KHALSA WHO IS BASED ABROAD NOWset it up under the advise of bhajan ALSO BHAJAN MET up with GORBOCHOV & K UNDALINI teachers were sent to RUSSIA NEARLY 30 YRS AGO TO SET UP SHOPUNDER THE YOGA MAT EXPLAINS A LOT kundalini is a mish mash of stuff from Bhajan the meditations from SIKH are too

[@NickysMix]

Thanks!