Looking out my studio window this morning I can see Joshua Trees, spiky cholla cactus, and yucca shrubs lit up in golden white spikes in the penetrating first light of day. As a 3rd generation 3HO Kundalini Yogi who grew up in Española, New Mexico… the desert is familiar territory to me. However, there’s something different about being here in this place… in Joshua Tree, that opens me up wider; that asks me to look closer at my life, at what I want, at who I am. Though these answers continue to unfold, I can feel a firmer grasp now on the threads of these timeless questions and am slowly weaving them into the patterns that make a picture of a life that is truly and authentically ME.
I arrived in this desert when Saturn “returned’. This meant saying goodbye to one cycle of my life and embracing (with great relief!) a new one.
You may have heard this term Saturn Return floating about and wondered what the hell that is… Well, it wasn’t until a reading with an astrologer that I became aware of what Saturn Return was and also what I was about to go through.
Saturn Return is a window where the planet Saturn makes its way into the same position relative to the Sun as it was when you were born, an orbit that takes approximately 27-29 years. During that 2 year period where Saturn swings closest to this birth position, a time of huge change, pressure and challenge is often felt. Saturn is referred to as “The Teacher”. It is known for teaching us through challenge and confrontation, which,, if we embrace this challenge, can rocket us forward by leaps and bounds. Yogi Bhajan, in fact, often referred to himself as a “Saturn Teacher” as opposed to a “Jupiter Teacher”, explaining:
“The planet Saturn is the only planet with rings. The rings provide limitation and constriction. The Saturn teacher is all about discipline. He specializes in always doing the unexpected and he “carries a stick” so he can suddenly “whack” any student who gets out of line. His role is to give the discipline and the limits. It is through limitation that we gather our strength and become potent and powerful.
The planet Jupiter is large, expansive, and full of wisdom and blessings. The Jupiter teacher acknowledges every student’s radiance and always blesses and expands everyone. The Jupiter teacher is a fountain of happiness, enthusiasm, love, and joy.”
©The Teachings of Yogi Bhajan. Reprinted from Aquarian Times, Winter 2005
Saturn, the Teacher, was teaching me some hard lessons, forcing me to look at things I did not want to see, did not want to change. But knowing that I was going through this for a reason, that this time of tumultuous change was “normal”, did help!
After my other band (electronica/mantra duo FEATHERandDOT) made The Lost Kriya video with Guru Singh a few years ago, I thought… “I wonder if Guru Singh also knows about a Saturn Return Kundalini Yoga set?!” I reached out to him about the idea and… sure enough… they do exist!! Yogi Bhajan taught these sets to his students in the 1970s, the early adopters of the teachings who were at that time going through their own Saturn Returns. Guru Singh most graciously agreed to teach this set for our film crew and it’s now available to all for FREE on my website as part of the Saturn Return Survival Toolkit with other information and resources that I’ve found to help anyone going through it themselves.
Saturn Return is a time of rebirthing that can happen two or three times in life (27-30, 57-60, 87-90). For any of my brothers & sisters out there going through it, I hope that this offering can serve you to embrace the challenge and slingshot out of this period to greater heights and deeper connection to your divine self. These tools are here for a reason and I’m so happy to help gather and share them along with this album which is a sort of road companion for the journey!
With much love and gratitude.
Viva, Sat Nam, Amen, Love…!
Hargobind Hari Singh – aka HARGO
