Kirpal Singh Lineage: Thakar Singh & Ruhani Satsang
Michael Turner
http://home.att.net/~h.kight/index.htm
(c) November/December 1996
UNBROKEN CHAIN (PART 6):
RUHANI SATSANG, SANT THAKAR SINGH
AND KNOW THYSELF AS SOUL
- by Gregory Michael Turner
The Kirpal Singh Lineages
After Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj died in 1974, there
was nobody clearly appointed as His successor. As a result,
there were several claims made for the mantle of successorship,
four of which were/are particularly significant: Sant Darshan
Singh (Kirpal's son), Sant Thakar Singh, Sant Ajaib Singh and
Soami Divyananda. It is neither my place, nor intent, to lend
credence - or cast aspersions - toward any particular claimant.
Each of them has shown devotion to both the path of Surat
Shabd Yoga and their Master and, in addition, has a strong
support network among their students who are absolutely
convinced of their respective Master's authenticity. The only
purpose here is to offer brief sketches of current teachers/
lineages of the Holy Light and Sound.
All of Kirpal's major eastern successors and groups
offer the traditional single Panch Naam initiation, require
2-3 hours of mediation per day, along with adherence to a
lacto-vegetarian diet, refraining from tobacco and all intoxicants,
and an essentially celibate lifestyle. They also all strongly
recommend the use of the self introspection diary which Kirpal
devised helping students lead more spiritually balanced lives.
I might add that, in addition to the Kirpal Lineage
offshoots, there is also Ruhani Satsang proper in the U.S.
which maintains its neutrality and simply serves to offer Sant
Kirpal Ji's books and tapes to the public. They also offer
bimonthly mailings of booklets which are transcripts of Sant
Kirpal Ji's Satsangs. They can be contacted at, Ruhani Satsang,
2618 Skywood Place, Anaheim, CA 92804-2122.
* * * * * * *
Following Sant Kirpal Ji's passing, there was a bit of
controversy regarding the existence of a will appointing a
successor. Since one was never revealed, and many satsangs
were dubious about the validity of a will in the first place
(particularly appointing a member of His own family as
successor, as Kirpal's purported to do with His son, Darshan
Singh), a new spiritual leader was sought from within its own
ranks. Relatively quickly, one of the senior initiates at Sawan
Ashram, Madame Hardevi ("Tai Ji") put her support behind
another prominent Satsangi, Thakar Singh. I don't know many
of the details of this event, but it reminds me quite a bit of Paul
Twitchell's widow, Gail, naming Sri Darwin Gross as Paulji's
successor.
Sant Thakar Singh was born on March 26, 1929, into a
Sikh family. Like so many well-schooled Indians at this time,
Thakar got a degree in engineering and obtained a job as a civil
servant in the Punjab water works department. Throughout His
youth and adulthood, Thakar was a devout seeker of God, striving
to understand the inner meaning of the Sikh scriptures with which
He had been raised. His devotion to the Lord paid off in 1965
when He met Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj and received Holy
Naam Initiation from Him.
Sant Thakar Ji expressed His enduring love for His
Master in a recent issue of Sat Magazine,
If you have love for someone, you will
not live without him. You will yearn day and
night for finding that person. Whenever you
are at a little distance, at once you feel that you
die without it. That is love. The lesson of love
is to be learned from One Who is Himself love.
This I could find from my Master. He was the
embodiment of love.
For the next nine years, Thakar Singh meditated deeply
on the mysteries of Naam and was a devoted student of His
Master. Following Kirpal's death in August 1974, Thakar spent
nearly a year-and-a-half in contemplation, before finally
emerging on February 6, 1976, (Kirpal's birthday) to begin
serving as Satguru at Sawan Ashram.
A few years later, Sant Thakar Singh left Sawan Ashram
and started a separate ministry called Kirpal Light Satsang.
Kirpal Light Satsang has its U.S. headquarters in New York
as well as an ashram (Manav Kendra) in Oregon, and has a
very strong following both in the United States and Germany.
Further information on the work of Sant Thakar Singh
Ji Maharaj can be obtained from: Know Thyself as Soul, RR1
Box 125, Kinderhook, NY 12106-9720. You may also reach
them via their web page (http://www.he.net/~naam/) or E-mail
address (na...@he.net)
Peace and Spiritual Unity,
G. Michael Turner
Spiritual Freedom Satsang
m.tu...@worldnet.att.net
http://home.att.net/~h.kight/index.htm