Miri Piri Academy

Miri Piri Academy is shared by Soorya Kaur (staff member of Yogi Bhajan. She shared these words and this photo on page 64-65 of her book YogiJi – The Light of Our Souls, written in 2005

The Miri Piri Academy (MPA), a boarding school for children in Amritsar, India, was established by Yogiji for two basic reasons. The first reason: to take these unusual children with their turbans, different lifestyle and belief system, away from the regular American schools. In those schools they might be exposed to ridicule and to the drug-sex scene that was prevalent. The second reason was to give them an identity that they could be proud of. And to have them live the life of a Gursikh, with everything that it entailed.

At the school, besides their regular studies, they practice sadhana, perform seva at the Golden Temple, study the Siri Guru Granth Sahib, learn Gatka (martial art of sword fighting) and Kirtan. The academy has its own Gurdwara (the place where the Siri Guru Granth Sahib resides) where they serve and which they manage. Every child graduating from MPA leaves with a teacher-training certificate in Kundalini Yoga. Very recently, I took my friend Neesha, an Indian Sikh to Amritsar. When she visited the Golden Temple and the school Gurdwara, she said that both experiences were at par. She was so moved by the children and humbled by them at the Gurdwara. She said they were the true Sikhs and she felt like a pretender.

Soorya Kaur share her Blessings

I wish to thank God for many, many blessings, but in particular, for my good friend Neesha Singh.  I could never have done this book without her editing and writing skills, and innate sense for photography.  We forged a partnership that made this book a reality in an extremely short period of time.

While I was working on the idea of this book, my pictures (I always attempted to make him smile for me) opened a floodgate of the intimate memories that I share here with you.  If I may humbly say this, I don’t think of this as “my book”. Because Guru Ram Das and Yogiji saw me through it, and it took on a life of its own.

It is difficult to decide whether Guru Ram Das adopted Yogiji or Yogiji adopted Guru Ram Das.  Every morning he performed Seva (selfless service) washing the floors of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India. Yogiji heard Guru Ram Das’ Bani (prayers).  During this period, he was enlightened by a miraculous spiritually elevating experience. He and his bond with Guru Ram Das was sealed forever.  Guru Ram Das became his and our patron Guru.  We learn to call upon him to take our pain, to sort out our problems, to be there for us, to produce a miracle when needed, and he always delivered.