Editing Yogi Bhajan (section)

=== Early life ===

Harbhajan Singh Khalsa was born on August 26, 1929 into a [[Sikhs|Sikh]] family in Kot Harkarn, [[Gujranwala district]] in the [[Punjab (British India)|province of Punjab]] (now in Pakistan). His father, Dr. Kartar Singh Puri, served the [[British Raj]] as a medical doctor. His mother was named Harkrishan Kaur. His father was raised in the Sikh tradition and young Harbhajan was educated in a Catholic school run by nuns. Singh learned the fundamentals of [[Sikhism]] from his paternal grandfather, Sant Bhai Fateh Singh. Theirs was a well-to-do landlord family, owning most of their village in the foothills of the [[Himalayas]].<ref>Sardarni Premka Kaur Khalsa,''The Man Called Siri Singh Sahib'', Sardarni Premka Kaur Khalsa and Sat Kirpal Kaur Khalsam (editors), Los Angeles: Sikh Dharma, 1979, pp. 18-24.</ref>

Singh's schooling was interrupted in 1947 by the violent [[partition of India]], when he and his family fled to [[New Delhi]] as refugees. There, Harbhajan Singh attended Camp College – a hastily put together arrangement for thousands of refugee students – and was an active member of the Sikh Students Federation in Delhi.<ref>Shamsher Singh, "The Fruits of Inner Searching ''The Man Called Siri Singh Sahib'', Sardarni Premka Kaur Khalsa and Sat Kirpal Kaur Khalsam (editors), Los Angeles: [[Sikh Dharma]], 1979, pp. 44-46; Harbans Lal, "Celebrating the Life of Yogi Harbhajan Singh Ji", ''The Sikh Review'', October 2007, p.&nbsp;52.</ref> Four years later, he graduated with a master's degree in economics.<ref>Shanti Kaur Khalsa, ''The History of Sikh Dharma of the Western Hemisphere'', Espanola, New Mexico: Sikh Dharma, 1995, pp. 3–4; Gurcharn Singh Khalsa, ''The Man Called Siri Singh Sahib'', Sardarni Premka Kaur Khalsa and Sat Kirpal Kaur Khalsam (editors), Los Angeles: Sikh Dharma, 1979, pp. 34–35</ref>

In 1953, Singh entered the service of the Government of India. He served in the Revenue Department, where his duties took him all over India. Eventually, Harbhajan Singh was promoted to a customs inspector at [[Indira Gandhi International Airport|Delhi Airport]].<ref>Gurcharn Singh Khalsa, p.&nbsp;36</ref>

In his final years in India, he also learned from Baba Virsa Singh at Gobind Sadan Institute.<ref name="Deslippe-2012">{{cite journal |last=Deslippe |first=Philip |title=From Maharaj to Mahan Tantric: The Construction of Yogi Bhajan's Kundalini Yoga |date=2012 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271568190 |journal=Sikh Formations |access-date=March 2, 2021 |doi=10.1080/17448727.2012.745303|s2cid=144988035 }}</ref>

In 1968, Singh emigrated to [[Toronto]], Canada equipped with an endorsement from that country's High Commissioner to India, [[James George (diplomat)|James George]], who was also a student of his.<ref>Sardarni Premka Kaur Khalsa,''The Man Called Siri Singh Sahib'', Sardarni Premka Kaur Khalsa and Sat Kirpal Kaur Khalsam (editors), Los Angeles: Sikh Dharma, 1979, p. 33.</ref> Harbhajan Singh made a considerable impact in the predominantly Anglo-Saxon metropolis. In three months, he established classes at several [[YMCA]]s, co-founded a yoga centre, was interviewed for national press and television, and helped set in motion the creation of eastern Canada's first Sikh temple in time for [[Guru Nanak]]'s five hundredth birthday the following year.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hampton |first=Edna |title=Yoga's Challenges and Promises |newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=November 28, 1968 |page=W11}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Edmonstone |first=Wayne |title=Sikhs open first temple in Toronto |newspaper=[[Toronto Star]] |date=August 25, 1969 |page=B5}}</ref>