Upon departing this earth for the higher cosmic plane, the late Yogi Bhajan, leader of the Happy, Holy, Healthy Organization (3HO), left not only his spiritual legacy but also a range of holy business endeavors such as Akal Security and the Yogi Tea line. The YogiÂ’s contribution to our holistic well-being now receives its due recognition from the authorities of the secular realm, to the elation of the Indian press, always on the lookout for such triumphs:
In a rare gesture, the New Mexico State Transportation Commission has renamed a state highway — Highway 106 — as ‘Yogi Bhajan Memorial Highway’ in memory of the late Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogiji. An Indian-American, he was known to his followers as Yogi Bhajan.
State Highway 106! One imagines, perhaps, a shimmering strip of tarmac stretching into the pristine New Mexico wilderness, amid a cascade of desert wildflowers, lightning storms illuminating the majestic silhouette of the Sangre de Cristo mountainsÂ… A place of peace and insight, as befits the YogiÂ’s life work and the wisdom of the counsel he afforded the leaders of the land:
New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson in his remarks on the occasion said: “Yogiji was not only a spiritual leader, but was a business and social leader as well. And he kept a hand in politics too. I know many of the elected officials here today often sought his counsel in professional and personal matters, as I did many times…”
With a view to traveling this mighty roadway myself (I can use all the spiritual help I can get) I turned to my atlas to locate its terrestrial coordinates. Imagine my disappointment when I found that State Highway 106 is, in fact, nothing more than a mile-long connector on the outskirts of Española, N.M., national capital of lowriding and a town known for its scrappy vatos, with whom the Yogi’s followers, who make their headquarters here, live in what one hopes is peaceful co-existence.
Perhaps thereÂ’s a Mutineer out there who can inform us first-hand whether State Highway 106, now re-christened, feels in real life like a special place. One Indian-American, however, was moved to great heights of emotion, duly relayed to an eager sub-continent by the press:
Founder of sikhpoint.com Bicky Singh, who was invited to attend the function, said, “It was one of the greatest moments for Indians in the US. To have a highway where thousands can see the name of an Indian-American overwhelmed me. Being the only Indian-American present made me feel even more honoured.”
Good on you, Bickyji. Chalk up another great victory for the race!
i know New Mexico is visually stunning, but am going to have to make a trip there one day to see what it is about the place that attracts followers from a diversity of religions. PBS once had this great piece on this, they covered Sikhs, Muslims, Christians of varying denominations, Hindus, Buddhists, Shintos and others.
WGIIA,
and don’t forget extra-terrestrials too!
“WGIIA, and don’t forget extra-terrestrials too!”
Siddhartha, true, how could i have been so remiss! (i’ll blame it on PBS since they didn’t cover extraterrestrials). especially after watching so many x-files episodes. now i definitely have to go there and see what the allure is.
I believe that there is a Temple of Sekhmet there too. (Or is that Arizona…)
I used to live in New Mexico and I’ve been to Espanola and the Gurudwara with my parents. The town itself isn’t all that great but the outskirts are very pretty. I think high rates of crime, poverty, and all that good stuff aside, New Mexico sunsets just might make it the prettiest place ever 🙂 The Gurudwara itself is beautiful and the grounds are really quiet, it was a great place to sit and think. Especially when you’re a confused college senior wanting to know what to do next 🙂