Breath of Fire

I was part of this group till I recognized that something was "fishy" about letting one man dictate my life. I got out in the mid 80's. Later I got my children out as well.

I became a trauma therapist to help others who fell into a spiritual abuse situation.

It is a good overview of how a cult works and what to avoid. Now I can see other cults out there, past and present.

It has former members telling their stories for pain and betrayal. Some of them I knew. Their stories are riveting. Stories that illustrate how a narcissist can pull followers to follow and eventually control all aspects of their lives.

This series is extraordinarily well done and manages to avoid the usual sensationalism that is a standard feature of most documentaries about cults. In large part this is due to the interviewing style of Hayley Pappas, whose compassionate and empathic approach elicited heart-felt and deeply moving responses. There were a couple of things that might have enhanced the series. I thought the "comic relief" of the bit explaining Kundalini Yoga was a bit silly, and the use of models and dancers dressed up to look like female yogis struck me as odd and unnecessary. The producers also left out a huge piece of the Kundalini Yoga culture, which was the music. Granted, the musical sound track was quite good, but for many in the cult, the music was a large part of the appeal. Overall, however, I give the producers high marks.

This series covers both the Bhajan Cult and the RA MA Subcult very well.

In 2017 I was happily doing Iyengar yoga and was a Hatha teacher. I just wanted my spouse to do it with me. When she discovered RAMA and Katie Griggs ( AKA Guru Jagat ) she suddenly wanted to do yoga. I regrettably did not do any research as I usually do. So we were sucked into this Bhajan yoga cult big time. I was happy to be practicing yoga with my spouse ... Granted gfs and her elitist style and better than you attitude appeals to my spouse ...

I was attracted to all the great ordinary people practicing ...

This series really covers the bases well and i recommend people also check out the companion podcast temple of steal. It will prevent you and others getting sucked into this cult. I still teach yoga but not Bhajan yoga...

Thanks to the producers the crew and all the people who shared their experiences in this series ... amazingly well done... most of the negative reviews are posted by cult members so use your critical thinking... there are things one could critique about the series but I believe it gives a great general overview in a well produced way. Thanks.

Breath of Fire is a fine, fascinating and frightening 4 part documentary about a lineage of Kundalini Yoga Masters. They get their students to wear white clothes and huff and puff, while pumping their arms every which way. This causes Yogi Bhajan's Kundalini yogis to get very stoned and gullible.

Kundalini Yoga students pay lots of money, and offer their labor for free, to experience Kundalini Crack. This cult is still going strong. It is a huge, global yoga mafia, with a history of lots of crime and horrible abuse of women and children. The founder, Yogi Bhajan, was pure evil.

To make it even worse, the cult members pretend to be Sikhs, but they aren't.

Of course, at some level all cults are the same, but this one deserves to be exposed and brought down. Sharing "Breath of Fire" is a great way to help that cause. It is NOT boring one bit.

Breath of Fire takes on the daunting challenge of trying to convey the dysfunction, enabling, and vast criminality of a man named Harbhajan Singh Puri, who later re-imagined himself as Yogi Bhajan.

The focus of Breath of Fire is Katie Griggs aka Gurujagat Kaur, who was emblematic of many of Yogi Bhajan's manipulative techniques, which they both used effectively to dupe their followers. Her teacher, Harijiwan Singh is mentioned only briefly, and is another nefarious "guru" who is still leading what remains of Gurujagat's followers.

I would have preferred to hear more of the stories of the victim/survivors and far less from talking-heads who had only a peripheral knowledge of the community.

Katie Griggs mother, Nansy Steinhorn-Galloway, was especially heartbreaking to witness as she comes to terms with all that transpired.

The early followers of Yogi Bhajan, Peter Blachly and Leah Lamb-Allen were particularly compelling, painting a rich picture of the early days of the 3HO organization and what they found attractive about this new lifestyle that Yogi Bhajan was offering.

Mahani Khalsa's story was gut-wrenching to hear. So many of the children, born to the first wave of devotees, were brutally harmed. They deserve their own documentary to begin to adequately tell the world what happened to them.

At times, the use of weird, circus-like music, screaming yogis with horror music, and glib commentary, was strange and unnecessary. The stories held their own without all that nonsense.

I recommend this documentary for its truth-telling and for its exposure of the hypocrisy and grift that is rampant in "new age-well-being" spaces.

It has reached a worldwide audience, which is cause for celebration.