Stories written by

Philip Deslippe

Disciples of Truth, diplomas of fraud: The tumultous tale of the ‘Anglo Saxon Sikhs’ of Oklahoma

Led by spiritual seeker Homer Bradshaw, The Disciples of Truth had a brief, failed tryst with a religion they understood little of. Then came a second act.

Philip Deslippe
· Dec 15, 2024 · 11:30 am
The many lives of Mohan Singh, a pioneering aviator who conned America as a yoga guru

A singular early South Asian immigrant to the US, Singh repeatedly reinvented himself, becoming a butler, aviator, chauffeur, investor and dubious guru.

Philip Deslippe
· Apr 01, 2019 · 11:30 am
Forgotten histories: Yoga’s popularity in the US long predates hippies and bead-wearing hipsters

By early 20th century yoga was a crowded field in the US. There were so many yoga teachers around the country that they began stealing students from each other.

Philip Deslippe
· May 21, 2018 · 11:30 am

Why a glass-eating yogi fled to India just when he had Hollywood on the mat

In the 1950s, Yogi Rao counted among his students several movie celebs and two of the richest women on the planet. Ten months later, he was back in India.

Philip Deslippe
· Sep 27, 2015 · 03:30 pm