Hari Krishan Kaur, SS

A Life Celebrated
September 21, 1955 – March 11, 2015

Born in Saint Andrews/Kingston, Jamaica, Harikrishan Kaur and her family moved to New York in 1966.  At a young age Harikrishan Kaur realized that her soul was born to be free.  Her Ivy League education served as an initiation into the civil rights movement; she kept up with her academics while participating in sit-ins and other peaceful protests.  Her time at Cornell University also opened the door to an exploration of her spiritual freedom through the technology of Kundalini Yoga and the path of Sikh Dharma.  With 40 years of unwavering devotion to the teachings of the Siri Singh Sahib Yogi Bhajan, she embodied a caliber of excellence that earned her the unique distinction of prevailing as wife and mother to the only African-American Khalsa family in the world.

Harikrishan Kaur brought the grace and light of Guru Ram Das to some of the earth’s most forgotten places and people.  Earning a Masters in Counseling Psychology, she devoted her career to healing and advocating for prisoners and youth in detention and rehabilitation.  She served as a Sikh Minister and devoted mother to many of the children of the Dharma, who affectionately referred to her as “Mataji”.

When the Siri Singh Sahib gave her the name Harikrishan Kaur, he made it clear that he was naming her after his own dear mother.  Harikrishan Kaur’s name is also in honor of Guru Harkrishan, the eighth Sikh Guru, a great healer and humanitarian.  In the sacred poetry of the Sikhs, Guru Harkrishan is invoked in the words “Siri Harkrishan dhiaeeyai, jis ditte sabh dukh jaye,” which means “Meditate on Guru Harkrishan; upon seeing him all your sufferings depart.”

May Harikrishan Kaur’s legacy of unwavering grace, dignity, beauty, and spiritual sovereignty live on forever through her lineage, and through all the children she loved and nurtured. 

Wahe Guru Ji Ka Khalsa!  Wahe Guru Ji Ki Fateh!