22. Spilling The Tea: Cult in a Cup

When you think of tea, you might think of a nice herbal blend, or a smooth Earl Gray. I'm partial to raspberry myself. You probably don't think about abusive yoga cults, arranged marriages, or the Vietnam War -- but that's exactly what we're here to talk about today.

It all starts with this guy named Harbhajan Singh Khalsa -- aka Siri Singh Sahib, or as he's most commonly known, Yogi Bhajan... Dude had a lot of names I guess. He came to LA from New Delhi in 1968, at a time where a lot of people were horrified by the Vietnam War, and were instead seeking "peace and love" type rhetoric and spirituality. Bhajan began teaching Kundalini yoga, a holistic practice that claimed movement and concentration was "a pathway to achieving altered consciousness".

He started out teaching in small groups from an LA antique store, but soon worked his way up to founding the "3HO Foundation", using the organization to further spread his practices. It seems fairly innocuous at first -- but now, years later, his former followers are speaking up about their experience.

Bhajan convinced his followers to give up their birth names and cut ties with anyone outside of the 3HO community, as most cults tend to require. He arranged marriages between members, and built 3HO-run schools in India and New Mexico, which members were "coerced" to send their children to. These schools were reportedly overrun with lice, disease, extreme physical punishments, gross neglect, horrid living conditions, and malnutrition. At one point, the schools also implemented an "exercise" meant to "cultivate non-attachment", in which they would rehome children to complete strangers. A group of former students, now adults, have actively filed a lawsuit against the school for sexual abuse.

Bhajan, despite what he preached, had no interest in non-attachment for himself. He had a taste for the lavish lifestyle, lived on a massive estate, and collected jewelry and luxury cars. He was openly misogynistic, forcing female staff to wear matching white dresses and turbans, and explicitly taught that marital rape and battery were acceptable. Bhajan claimed he was celibate and loyal to his wife, but the list of sexual assault allegations against him from both adult and child followers is... lengthy. In addition, members were also financially exploited, being coerced into working for little or no pay under the guise of "spiritual growth".

Bhajan expanded 3HO into a network of interconnected enterprises, including (drumroll) Yogi Tea. Bhajan died in 2004, and the company is now owned by East West Tea Company -- however, it's a bit unclear as to whether this is a separate company that purchased the brand, or whether Yogi simply rebranded themselves to avoid controversy. I'm leaning toward the latter, as East West Tea Company's facebook page says this: 

"Our company name is East West Tea Company!  In the past, we have referred to ourselves as "Yogi" - which was the only tea brand we produced.  Now that we also have the Choice Organics tea brand, we are excited to support both equally.  We switched the sign on the front of the building so we could better represent both brands under our original company name."

The website linked in their bio still has "yogiproducts" in the web address, and the site still shows the Yogi logo and branding. It states that the company is a "well-being company" focusing on Ayurvedic medicine and practices. Bhajan did have two sons and a daughter, but it's unclear whether they have any involvement in the business currently -- his daughter's husband is apparently skeptical of the survivors' claims, saying, "IF he had a dark side, that should not negate the fact of all the good."

After Bhajan's death, a lawsuit was filed by former members of his organization over "misconduct and misappropriation of funds" by Golden Temple, the parent company of Yogi Tea. The plaintiffs claimed that the management team siphoned monies back into Golden Temple that were meant for Bhajan's non-profit, and thus avoided compensating his staff and family. They also sold ownership back to themselves (under the new name of East West Tea Company, I assume) for a mere $100. In December of 2011, the court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and the defendants had to repay $30 million they had taken.