I am Sundeep Kaur Sitara.
Yoga teacher, Senior Law Lecturer, Examiner, Founder of The Temple in Sussex & Trustee of the Little Blind People Charity
I was born into a Punjabi family where Nāad Yoga, the yoga of sound, formed the backdrop to everyday life.
My Father: A Legacy That Shaped British Sikh History
My father, Ustad Sital Singh Sitara, blind since the age of three, was a world-famous Kirtaniyan and professor in music. He authored, from memory, two definitive books on classical Kirtan that are used as curriculum studies from beginner level through to MA. Throughout his life, he taught approximately 25,000 students across three generations. He devoted his life to preserving and teaching the tradition of Gurbani Kirtan in its purest form. As a founding member of the British Punjabi community, he played a vital role in keeping our heritage and culture alive. He became one of the greatest teachers of his generation, passing on a living tradition with extraordinary discipline, resilience, and integrity.
His selflessness extended beyond music. Alongside fellow visually impaired friends, he founded the Guru Nanak Mission Netarheen Birdh Ashram (Little Blind People Charity) in Phagwara, Punjab, India.
My father’s legacy continues to shape my own path, reminding me each day to pray, to embrace Gurbani Kirtan, to be resilient, to show commitment, and to have awareness that we are simply conduits for the divine.
My Mother: The Unwavering Foundation and Finesse of The Family
My mother, Perminder Kaur Sitara, is the foundation upon which our entire family has survived, thrived, and succeeded. Born in Kenya, East Africa, she raised five children from humble beginnings, selflessly facilitating my father’s work while carrying a burden far greater than one woman would usually bear alone. She is a celebrated cook, seamstress, and designer of everything from clothing to interiors. Breaking all traditional boundaries, she also mastered roles historically reserved for men: building house extensions, fixing cars, and tending the land.
Due, in part, to her upbringing in rural Africa, she has a deep love for nature, This has translated into a unique and special gift for gardening, landscaping, and growing.
Known for her unconventional style and fiercely independent streak, she raised her children to embrace a similarly empowered stance.
Her life is entirely committed to helping and supporting others, whether they are family, community members, friends, or complete strangers; there is simply no limit to her generosity of spirit. Her wisdom and connection with the divine springs from a deeply natural place, and she continues to be guided by a profound intuition and alignment with God. Without my mother, absolutely nothing I have achieved would have been possible.
Before Sunrise
Amrit Vela translates literally to the ‘time of divine nectar’ and is drawn from the Sanskrit amṛta (immortal/nectar of life) and velā (time or season). It is a window of profound spiritual potency. Many traditions across the globe consider the stillness just before dawn to be a sacred threshold, ripe for creativity and deep connection with the divine. This is especially true within the Sikh tradition, where these ambrosial hours are treasured as a direct, unhurried dialogue with God. Within my own practice, the day begins long before the first light breaks. Amrit Vela is the foundation upon which everything else rests. I step into the silence, anchoring myself by listening to the rhythm of my breath, before allowing that breath to open up into Kirtan. In this space, breath, sound, and silence weave together to guide me. From that place, movement unfolds. Then, as the sun gradually rises and floods the temple with amber light, I bear witness to the birth of a new day.
Interwoven Disciplines
I have been working within the legal profession for over thirty years, first as a practicing lawyer and then as a law lecturer for the University of Law. The discipline of having studied, practiced, and taught law has helped shape the way I engage with yoga, breathwork and my other practices. Underpinning all of these disciplines is a deep curiosity, a constant questioning, and an endless exploration.
They are all adventures to find things out and to follow paths to wherever they may lead.
Rather than being something separate that I do, I have discovered that teaching law, and teaching yoga, breathwork, and meditation, all carry within them the very same thread of inquiry.
May your journey be guided by breath, strengthened through living practice and illuminated by the wisdom that already lives within you.