HBO's "Breath of Fire" Exposes the Kundalini Yoga Scam
A new series examines the rise and fall of Kundalini Yoga and one of it's modern celebrity gurus.
Be Scofield is a prominent cult reporter whose work is cited by the NY Times, Rolling Stone, People, Netflix, and more. She exposed the Love Has Won cult which led to the hit HBO series. Be is the author of Hunting Lucifer: One Reporter's Search for Cults and Demons.
By BE SCOFIELD
11/4/24
***** FIVE STARS
HBO's latest cult docuseries "Breath of Fire" is a riveting account of the rise and fall of Kundalini Yoga. The four-part series focuses largely on the female teacher Guru Jagat, a student of Yogi Bhajan's senior disciple Hari Jiwan. She died suddenly in 2021 but not without controversy.
The Guru Magazine first exposed Yogi Bhajan's numerous sexual and physical abuses, drug smuggling, and other fraudulent endeavors in 2020. Guru Jagat recreated aspects of his Kundalini cult with her Los Angeles based Ra Ma Institute. The charismatic young female guru garnered a large following of mostly female students in L.A. and online. She even attracted celebrity students like Alicia Keys over the years.
Breath of Fire artfully weaves the two sides of Guru Jagat portraying her as a complex and troubled figure. She was a beloved spiritual teacher and an abusive guru. Jagat was a much-loved daughter; the series features her parents emotional observations which humanizes her. During the pandemic she spiraled into conspiracy theories warning of lizard people and alien wars. Jagat even passed around Ivermectin to people. She platformed David Icke and other controversial figures on her podcast.
Jagat employed marketing and business savvy to build her yoga business into a mini-empire. The series illustrates how she scammed her staff and students while doing so, charging exorbitant amounts for trainings and asking that people tithe 10% of their income to her. Staff were only paid $300-$800 per month for full-time work. Meanwhile she was buying expensive jewelry and fancy clothes.
Breath of Fire picks up emotional steam in part 3 when the details of Yogi Bhajan's abuses are laid out. We hear powerful testimony from his sexual abuse victims first-hand. Other former staff explain how he defrauded and abused countless followers. Jagat was so deep into the Kundalini cult that she took an extreme response by denying outright the allegations against him. To her, Bhajan was a saint.
The series is a powerful and interesting look at one of the largest modern spiritual empires and its fall from grace. While some viewers may find it slow to start its worth the wait as the story develops.
Ironically both Jagat and Bhajan died in poor health despite being supposed wellness experts. Both were overweight and had stressed their bodies. A former staff member said Bhajan never practiced yoga. Jagat thought she could eat anything and be immune while Bhajan's favorite food was Taco Bell. It's one of the many ironies and contradictions that plague Kundalini Yoga.
