HBO today revealed the official trailer for the upcoming four-part docuseries, Breath of Fire, chronicling the life of the late, controversial Kundalini yoga teacher, Guru Jagat.
Directed by Hayley Pappas and Smiley Stevens (White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch), the series will premiere on October 23 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and will be available to stream on Max. New episodes will debut Wednesdays through November 13.
Claiming to be the anointed successor of the late Yogi Bhajan, a Punjabi Sikh who created and popularized a version of Kundalini in America in 1969, Guru Jagat leveraged social media and her charismatic online presence to capitalize upon Kundalini’s multi-million-dollar spiritual empire. Positioning herself as the embodiment of divine femininity and a sanctified seeker, she attracted a growing base of followers, including many celebrities and loyal, fee-paying devotees, with promises of prosperity, physical health, and spiritual fulfillment.
The synopsis reads, “In 2013, Katie Griggs, a millennial YouTube astrologer, rose to fame as the face of Kundalini yoga, opening the RA MA Institute in Los Angeles, donning a white turban, and reinventing herself as Guru Jagat. Breath of Fire explores Guru Jagat’s evolution while chronicling the shocking secret history of Kundalini through its origins in the 1960s to its expansion in the United States and its presence in wellness circles today. Based on the Vanity Fair story by Hayley Phelan, The Second Coming of Guru Jagat, Breath of Fire illuminates the culture of modern spirituality revealing complicated themes of cultural appropriation and the dangers of self-proclaimed gurus.”
Told through conversations with family, students, former employees, and followers, the series weaves together the stories of two of Kundalini’s most prominent figures – Yogi Bhajan and Guru Jagat. Including a wealth of footage of Yogi Bhajan, clips of Guru Jagat’s online preaching at the RA MA Institute, and revealing audio interviews with Griggs herself, the film reveals the darker facets of wellness industry figureheads driven by a desire for power and profit.
Featured participants in the docuseries will include: Former employees at RA MA Institute Nicole Norton, Charlotte Medlock, and Elizabeth Grignon; religious scholar and yoga historian, Philip Deslippe; Sikh activist and journalist, Sundeep Morrison; Vanity Fair writer Hayley Phelan; journalist Stacie Stukin; author of “Cultish,” Amanda Montell; Griggs’ childhood friend, Laura Burhenn; Griggs’ mother Nansy Steinhorn-Galloway and stepfather Rabbit Galloway; followers of Yogi Bhajan and Kundalini including Peter Blachly, Leah Lamb, Mahankirn Khalsa, Mahani Khalsa, bodyguard Siri Khalsa, and Jules Hartley.
Watch the official trailer for Breath of Fire below.
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