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The Divine Light Mission (DLM) (Divya Sandesh Parishad) was an organization founded by guru Shri Hans Ji Maharaj in 1960 to organize his followers in northern India. During the 1970s DLM went on to gain some prominence in the West under the leadership of his youngest son, Guru Maharaj Ji (Prem Rawat). The movement, which some sources say was influenced by the Bhagavad Gita and the Sant Mat tradition, was, in the West, often labeled as a new religious movement, a sect or a cult. Officials of the DLM said it was not a religion.

When Shri Hans Ji Maharaj died in 1966, he was succeeded as guru by his eight-year old fourth son, despite rival claims from other family members. Although Prem Rawat was accepted as his father's successor, because of his age his family retained effective control of the DLM. In 1971, Rawat defied his mother by travelling to the U.K. and the U.S., where local branches of DLM were established and rapidly expanded. By 1973 DLM had an estimated 6 million followers in India, and tens of thousands of followers in the West, along with dozens of ashrams and hundreds of centers.

As Rawat grew older he began to take a more active role in the movement, and when he turned sixteen, following the financially disastrous Millennium '73 festival, took administrative control of the U.S. branch. His increasing independence and his marriage to a non-Indian in 1974 caused a permanent rift with his mother and two of his brothers. They returned to India, where his eldest brother Satpal Maharaj gained control of the Indian DLM.

In the early 1980s, Rawat began disbanding the western DLM. He closed the ashrams and eliminated the remaining Indian influences from his presentation to make it independent of any specific culture or religion. In the U.S., U.K., France, and Australia, Elan Vital was formed to replace the DLM in supporting Rawat in his role as teacher.

History

Founding and early years in India

Shri Hans Maharaj Ji, initiated by the Sant Mat guru Sri Swarupanand Ji, began teaching in the Sind and Lahore provinces of India in the 1930s. In 1950 he began initiating Mahatmas, followers who could themselves initiate devotees, and formed a magazine called "Hansadesh."

In 1960 in the city of Patna, he founded the Divine Light Mission (Divya Sandesh Parishad) to organize followers across Northern India. At the time of his death on July 19 1966, the Divine Light Mission had six million members in India.

During the customary 13 days of mourning, his mother and senior officials of the organization discussed the succession. Both Mata Ji and eldest son Satpal were suggested but before they could nominate Satpal as successor, Prem Rawat addressed the crowd and was accepted by them as their teacher and "Perfect Master". On July 31 after an improvised ceremony, Mata Ji and his elder brothers touched Rawat's feet as a sign of respect. Because of his age, effective control of the DLM was shared by the whole family.

International expansion

In 1971, Rawat, then known as Guru Maharaji Ji, travelled to the West against his mother's wishes. DLMs were established in the U.S. and the U.K. The U.S. branch was headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It was registered there as a non-profit corporation and in 1974 was recognized as a church by the United States Internal Revenue Service under section 501(c)(3).

By 1972 DLM was operating in North and South America, Europe and Australia. By 1973, DLM was operating in 37 countries, tens of thousands of people had been initiated (become premies) and several hundred centers and dozens of ashrams formed in the U.S. and the U.K. DLM said it had 8,000 devotees and forty ashrams.

In the United States, the staff at the headquarters grew to 125, and Telexes connected the headquarters with the ashrams . Social service facilities, including a medical clinic in New York City, were opened. A Women's Spiritual Right Organization dedicated to reaching out to persons in prisons, mental institutions and hospitals, was organized. The U.S. DLM published two periodicals, And it is Divine and Divine Times. The World Peace Corps (WPC) was established as a security force to provide protection for Rawat, but became the organizing agent of meetings and businesses. A variety of businesses were founded under US DLM auspices including laundromats, used clothing stores, a plane charter agency ("Divine Travel Services"), a repair service, and the "Cleanliness-is-Next-to-Godliness" janitorial service.

On August 8 1973 while Rawat was at the Detroit City Hall to receive a testimonial resolution praising his work, a reporter from Detroit's underground newspaper Fifth Estate slapped him in the face with a shaving cream pie. Rawat responded by saying that he did not want his attacker arrested or hurt, but the reporter was seriously injured a few days later by two members of the DLM. When local members heard of the incident they notified Rawat in Los Angeles who extended his regrets and condolences to Pat Halley's family and requested that DLM conduct a full investigation. The suspected assailants, one of them a mahatma, were located and held for the police, but the police chose not to arrest them.

Millennium '73

In November 1973, the U.S. Divine Light Mission held "Millennium '73", a three-day event celebrating the birthday of Rawat’s father at the Houston Astrodome. Billed as "the most significant event in human history" it was said to herald "a thousand years of peace for people who want peace", the idea being that peace could come to the world as individuals experiencing inner peace. The event featured spectacular staging, a 56-piece rock band and a giant video screen that showed a barrage of shots from the tumultuous 1960s.

Rennie Davis, well known as one of the defendants in the Chicago Seven trial, attracted extensive media coverage as a spokesperson for Rawat. At the event Davis declared that "All I can say is, honestly, very soon now, every single human being will know the one who was waited for by every religion of all times has actually come." In an interview at Millennium Rawat denied being the Messiah and when asked by reporters about the contradictions between what he said about himself and what his followers said about him, Rawat replied, "Why don't you do me a favor ... why don't you go to the devotees and ask their explanation about it?" While Rawat's brother Satpal was nominally in charge of the festival, Davis was the "General Coordinator" and go-to man.

Expectations for the event were very high with predictions that it would attract more than 100,000, or even as many as 400,000 people from Satpal. Davis privately said he thought 22,000 was a more realistic estimate and reserved 22,000 hotel beds. There was even talk about a space in the parking lot reserved for a flying saucer to land. When Satpal heard about the flying saucer he said, "If you see any, just give them some of our literature". The actual attendance was estimated at 35,000 and 10,000 by police. Though it was not covered by the national television news, it did get extensive coverage in the print media. The premies were reported to be "cheerful, friendly and unruffled, and seemed nourished by their faith". To the 400 premie parents who attended, Rawat "was a rehabilitator of prodigal sons and daughters". Other reporters found a "confused jumble of inarticulately expressed ideas." It was depicted in the award-winning U.S. documentary "Lord of the Universe" broadcast by PBS Television in 1974. The event was called the "youth culture event of the year".

At the festival Larry Bernstein, a prize-winning, 41-year-old architect described a "Divine City" to be built from the ground up starting the following year. It was to feature translucent hexagonal plastic houses stacked on concrete columns and connected with monorails. Polluting vehicles would be replaced by electric vehicles, and solar power would be used to provide energy. Cards would replace cash. The use of advanced technologies to ensure pollution-free air, Rennie Davis told a journalist, would be a practical demonstration of what it means to have Heaven on Earth. Two sites were suggested: either the Blue Ridge Mountains or somewhere near Santa Barbara, California. The former president and vice president of the DLM later said that Prem Rawat had spoken frequently of building such a city. Plans for the city were dropped amid the fiscal crisis following the Millennium festival.

According to Thomas Pilarzyk the Millennium economic deficit was partially the result of poor management by the "holy family", Rawat's mother and three older brothers as well as the much lower than anticipated attendance. DLM incurred a debt estimated between $600,000 and over $1 million, severely damaging its finances. Event-related expenses were covered by short-term credit based on the expectation that contributions would pour in following the free festival.DLM's post-Millennium financial troubles forced it to close ashrams, sell its printing business and real estate, and to drop the lease on its IBM computer. Monthly donations fell from $100,000 to $70,000. By 1976 it was able to reduce the debt to $80,000.Consequently, the festival necessitated policy shifts within the movement organization.

Also in 1973 the British DLM, with Prem Rawat's mother acting on behalf of her son, organized the "Festival of Love" at the Alexandra Palace in London. While it drew thousands of attendees, Rawat began receiving hostile press coverage, partly due to his showing up late, or not at all, to scheduled appearances. The large membership had grown up very rapidly but the organizers had no clear idea where to lead the following, nor did they have the financial resources to maintain so many full-time workers.

Marriage and rift

Owing to Prem Rawat's age, Mata Ji, his mother, had managed the affairs of the worldwide DLM with the help of her eldest son, Satpal Rawat. As Prem Rawat approached sixteen he wanted to take a more active part in deciding the direction and management of the movement. According to Downton, "this meant he had to encroach on his mother's territory and, given the fact that she was accustomed to having control, a fight was inevitable". In December 1973, when he turned 16, Rawat took administrative control of the Mission's U.S. branch and began to assert his independence from his mother who returned to India with Satpal.

In May 1974 Prem Rawat applied to become an emancipated minor and, in direct defiance of his mother's wishes, married Marolyn Johnson, who was a follower and his secretary. Several sources say that Rawat declared her to be the incarnation of Durga. Rawat's biographer Andrea Cagan writes that Rawat, following Indian tradition, gave her the Indian name Durga after a goddess seen as the embodiment of feminine and creative energy.

Rawat's decision to marry a Westerner, rather than the Indian woman his mother had planned on, precipitated a struggle for control of DLM. His mother claimed that Rawat had broken his spiritual discipline by marrying, becoming a "playboy" and appointed Satpal as the new head of DLM India but the Western premies remained loyal to Rawat. The marriage led to a permanent rift with his mother and it was also credited with causing a profound disruption in the movement. Many followers left the ashrams to get married, and the base of support inevitably shifted from the ashrams to the wider premie community. Others felt "almost betrayed", in part because he had championed celibacy, one of the requirements of ashram life, before getting married himself. The setbacks caused by the bad press from the festivals, along with the rift caused by Prem Rawat's marriage in 1974, marked the end of the movement's growth phase.

In 1975 Prem Rawat returned to India in an attempt to gain control of the Indian DLM. A court-ordered settlement resulted in his eldest brother Satpal retaining control of the Indian DLM, while Rawat maintained control of the DLM outside of India. In the United Kingdom Mata Ji, Prem Rawat's mother, maintained her control of the DLM but the organizing center was shifted to the Divine United Organization by Rawat's followers.

Westernization

Following the rift with his mother, Rawat announced that he was replacing the predominantly Indian image with a Western one and began to wear business suits instead of his all-white Indian attire. The Indian mahatmas were replaced with Westerners, and Indian terminology fell from use. Rawat encouraged premies to leave the ashrams. According to estimates, the worldwide membership had declined from 6 million to 1.2 million by 1976, and in the U.S. the 50,000 claimed initiates had dwindled to 15,000 regular contributors. A spokesman for the Mission explained in 1976 that the higher numbers had been inflated due to poor record-keeping. One estimate had from 500 to 1200 members living in ashrams in the mid-1970s. By the end of the 1970s, the movement had lost an estimated 80% of its followers in the U.S. Bromley and Hammond attribute the decline of groups including the Divine Light Mission to internal factors, but also in part to the news media's "discrediting reports about their activities", accounts which created a "wide-spread public perception of 'mind control' and other 'cult' stereotypes."

The Divine Light Mission also attracted the attention of the anti-cult movement. Some members were violently kidnapped and deprogrammed. Some former members became outspoken critics of the organization and attacked the group with standard anti-cult charges of brainwashing and mind control. In reference to ex-followers, Anctil said that "A lot of people were just on a trip in the beginning. They felt they had to be 'hyped', and some didn't stay long enough to get beyond that. But we've changed as our understanding has changed." Bob Mishler, the founding president of the DLM in the U.S., left the organization in 1977 and gave an interview in 1979, along with the former vice president, in which he said he was concerned that the DLM was becoming a "tax evasion for the guru", and said he feared a repeat of Jonestown. Mishler's charges found little support and did not affect the progress of the Mission.

In the 1980s, the DLM became more Western as Prem Rawat removed the Indian trappings from his message and adopted a more universal style. Prem Rawat was no longer to be venerated as a god or regarded as a Perfect Master. The ashrams were closed, as were the Denver headquarters (1979), and the organisation's name was changed to Elan Vital in 1983, by filing an entity name change. Similar name changes occurred in the U.K. (in 1991), Australia, and France (in 1987). Since then the Elan Vital has been "virtually invisible." Rawat stopped granting interviews and making public announcements of his visits.

According to Ron Geaves, a follower and religious scholar:

Maharaji has chosen a route of perpetual transformation in which organizational forms are created and utilized and then destroyed, thus providing flexibility to deal with rapidly changing social attitudes, to provide pragmatic solutions to internal problems, and above all to keep his students focused on the core message rather than the peripheral requirements of organizational forms.

According to the Encyclopedia of American Religions, the mission was disbanded Prem Rawat personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion, to make his teachings independent of culture, beliefs and lifestyles. Prem Rawat asked to be referred to as "Maharaji" instead of "Guru Maharaj Ji." At the close of 2007 he was continuing to write, lecture, and tour actively.

DLM in India

In 1975 Mata Ji took control of the DLM in India as a result of the rift and installed her eldest son, Satpal Rawat, as its head. A lawsuit in India resulted in his brother Satpal gaining control of the Divine Light Mission in India, and Rawat continuing to lead DLM in the rest of the world.

Satpal Rawat, now known as Shri Satpal Ji Maharaj, teaches "Manav Dharam" (the "Dharam of Mankind"). He is also a politician and former Union Minister in India, and founded Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti, which he describes as "an all-India registered voluntary social welfare and charitable organization", that is also "making freely available the spiritual Knowledge which is the essence of all religions." Satpal Rawat's supporters now assert that he is the rightful successor to his father, Hans Ji Maharaj. Scholars that have written about the succession report that Satpal and the rest of the family accepted and supported Prem's declaration of succession for eight years.

The Divine United Organization (DUO) was an organization registered under the Societies Registration Act 21 of 1860 with the Registrar of Delhi in 1977, to disseminate the teachings of Prem Rawat in India. DUO was replaced in recent years by the Raj Vidya Kender (Center for the King of Knowledge), in New Delhi, India.

Beliefs and practices

According to some scholars, Shri Hans was influenced by both the Sant tradition and the Bhagavad Gita. Reinhart Hummel wrote that from the former came the reduction of Hinduism to the inner realization of the divine and the veneration of the guru, and from the latter the emphasis on the practical life. Hummel also noted that the DLM never developed a systematic doctrine, either during Hans' time or Prem Rawat's time. Hummel further asserted that the influence of the North Indian Sant tradition was dominant in Hans' eclectic thinking, and that from the Sant tradition also came the rejection of outward rituals and ceremonies; the rejection of asceticism in favor of life as a householder; the rejection of veneration of idols, and the focus on the guru as the manifestation of the divine. Hummel also noted that the four meditation techniques are of central importance to Prem, as they were to Hans.

No rules or regulations were imposed, and no beliefs or ethical practices were taught. The fundamental practices of inner peace were embodied and experienced through satsang, service and meditation, the sum of which is an experience called "Knowledge." Members of the DLM meditated formally twice daily and attended discourses on the Knowledge (known as satsang) when possible. According to Marc Galanter (MD) "satsang could be delivered to active members or to those with only a casual interest. It was something of a polemic interspersed with parables, and because members were bright and sophisticated, these discourses tended to be engaging, making use of both Hindu mythology and Western philosophy". In a study by Flo Conway and Jim Siegelman former followers said that they had spent 32.9 hours per week in group-related processes and ritual and 19.9 hours in additional study or indoctrination (lectures, seminars, workshops etc). Vegetarianism was encouraged but not enforced except in ashrams and Divine Centers.

Five "commandments" were part of the Divine Light Mission's teachings:

1. Do not put off until tomorrow what you can do today.
2. Constantly meditate and remember the Holy Name.
3. Leave no room for doubt in the mind.
4. Never delay attending satsang.
5. Always have faith in God.

In the United States, the early years of the Divine Light Mission were marked by the rapid growth of loosely affiliated local ashrams, united mainly by a shared devotion to Guru Maharaj Ji. As the DLM became more and more structured and centralized, leadership and power came to be concentrated in the Denver headquarters. According to scholars, Prem Rawat's desire to consolidate his power and authority over the U.S. movement led to increasing formalization, with rules and regulations for ashram living, standards for recruited "candidates," and pressure towards certification of the movement's teachers. According to scholars Foss and van der Lans, the teachings of Hans Ji Mataraj were minimized after 1975, and followers were expected to accept Prem Rawat as their personal savior.

David V. Barrett noted that the DLM movement was often criticized for emphasizing the superiority of subjective emotional experience over intellect. The sociologists Ralph Larkin and Daniel A. Foss made similar observations in 1978. In response, the religious scholar Ron Geaves, himself a member of the movement, accused Foss and Larkin of bias.

A 1981 article based on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission stated that the DLM had little philosophical background and that the all its central creeds and tenets were described in the song associated with the Hindu ritual called aarti.

Members

In a comparison of new religious movements, Gartrell and Shannon noted that people appeared to seek out such religious organizations to get answers to questions about ultimate meaning as well as answers to more prosaic issues. In discussing the differences in recruiting tactics employed by these groups, they placed the Divine Light Mission in the middle ground between movements in which recruits were love bombed, or overwhelmed by waves of intense sentiment, and those in which affective bonds were discouraged. They reported that close ties between newcomers and DLM members developed gradually over a period of three to four months, between initial contact and their attending a "Knowledge session", and the emergent friendships were an important forum in which recruits aired doubts and discussed DLM beliefs. These relationships thus supplemented a very cognitive conversion process, in which active consideration of the movement's ideas and beliefs was encouraged from the outset. They found little evidence to suggest that social rewards were orchestrated by the movement, either in degree or timing.

The sociologist James V. Downton, who studied the DLM for five years, reported that the "idealism of these premies was one of the motivating forces behind their conversion . They wanted to create a more caring world". Five years after the subjects of his study became premies he wrote:

"There is little doubt in my mind that these premies have changed in a positive way. Today, they seem less alienated, aimless, worried, afraid, and more peaceful, loving, confident, and appreciative of life. We could attribute these changes to surrender, devotion, and their involvement in the premie community. Each of these undoubtedly had a positive impact, but, if we accept what premies say, none were as critical as their experience of the universal spirit. Meditating on the life-energy for five years, they report having more positive attitudes about themselves."

According to Carroll Stoner and Jo Anne Parke, when they visited an ashram the premies "appeared to be in control of their own lives and seemed to be achieving some measure of peace as a by-product of a lifestyle they feel is constructive and healthy". When the same members attended an appearance by Prem Rawat a week later, "they lost control, sobbed and swayed and knelt to kiss his feet."

According to Foss and van der Lans, members who joined before 1975 tended to be young people from the counterculture who had used psychedelic drugs. Later members, they asserted, were older and more responsible with ordinary jobs who were disillusioned with conventional religions or other Eastern movements.

Ashrams

In India

The Divine Light Mission began creating ashrams in India in the 1960s, starting with a small one in Rajasthan and a larger one called Satlok ("Place of Truth") between Delhi and Haridwar. Khushwant Singh, who visited the Mission's headquarters in Delhi in 1973 described it as being like a fortress with 8-foot-high walls, an iron grilled gate enclosing a courtyard and a complex of buildings capable of housing 100 and with the capacity to feed 50,000 visitors on special occasions. Singh also described "the lavish use of marble, wall-to-wall carpets, chandeliers and modern furnishings" as evidence of affluence.

In the West

Only a small fraction of the overall DLM membership lived in organized ashrams during its short history but several dozen ashrams were formed in the U.S., Britain, Europe and Australia. Ashrams were run by "general secretaries" appointed by the national office. Each ashram had a "house mother" who oversaw cooking, washing, ironing, and food service but the normal isolation of the housewife and cook became a communal, everyone-pitchin-and-help festival. Followers ("premies") who lived in them often worked part or full time at ordinary jobs and gave a sizable portion – sometimes all – of their income to the movement. Ashrams typically had an associated business, such as a Divine Sales outlet and a Divine Service Company. The ashram premies became the core of the Mission in the United States, but the ashrams themselves were not a source of income, never becoming more than self-sufficient.

In Australia in the early 70s a small percentage of premies lived in ashrams. Some premies, choose to live in an ashram for a couple of months, to get into their meditation, and then moved out into households or shared houses. Ashram residents practised celibacy and did not eat meat, drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes or take drugs. Married people, as well as single, lived in ashrams and, in their case, the practice of celibacy means that they had sexual relations only with their marital partner. About three hundred people choose to live in communal houses and almost all households were non-smoking, non-drinking and vegetarian and, in some, the finances and energies were pooled for the good of all. Each household made its own decisions about life styles and often contained students and married couples.

In addition to the ashrams there were many more residences with less formality. "Premie Centers", were households committed to the Mission's activity that donated 30% of their income and followed dietary rules, but that allowed married, non-celibate couples and children, and which weren't subject to orders from the national Mission. "Premie houses" were informal households (with as many as 30 followers) held together by their shared commitments and values. Ashrams served as local coordinating centers for all the local devotees.

Carroll Stoner and Jo Anne Parke, in their 1977 book, All God's Children, wrote of their visits to several ashrams that "there was no persuasion or cajoling for us to become part of this group. We did feel a sense of calm and peace in the ashrams. Marc Galanter, in his 1990 book, Cults: Faith, Healing and Coercion, wrote of his visit to a DLM ashram that –

"The atmosphere in the ashram was indeed quite striking. ... I was greeted in a friendly, even intimate fashion by people who were complete strangers. The intense communality of the members was immediately apparent, a quality that was clearly an important aspect of the group's function. One could sense a closeness among those present, and an absence of the minor tensions that would be expected in a setting where two dozen people were living in tight quarters. ... Caring and intimacy, reflective of the group's cohesiveness, seemed to mute any expression of animosity. ... I was made to feel as if I were entering a supportive envelope, to be protected from the rough edges of relationships in the outside world.

Reception

The Divine Light Mission has been described in various and sometimes conflicting terms. It has been called a new religious movement, a cult, a charismatic religious sect, an offshoot of Sant Mat, an alternative religion or spin-off from other traditional religions, a Radhasoami offshoot, an orthodox Sikh community, an Advait Mat related tradition, a proselytizing religion ("Guru-ism"), and a defunct religious movement. A study of terms used in U.S. newspapers and news magazines, which examined the media's failure to use the more neutral terminology favored by social scientists, found that the Divine Light Mission was referred to as a "sect" in 10.3% of articles, as a "cult" in 24.1%, and as both in 13.8%. It was referred to as a "sect" in 21.4% of headlines, with 0% for "cult".

The president and spokesman of the DLM said in 1977 that "they represent a church rather than a religion".

In some countries, the DLM faced persecution and even banning. In 1972, in Argentina, as part of a crackdown on small religious groups by the military junta, 87 members of the DLM were arrested in Mar del Plata on charges of using drugs and practising their faith. The DLM, the Hare Krisnas and the Jehovah's Witnesses were banned, reportedly at the behest of the Roman Catholic Church. The Government Junta of Chile arrested over 200 members, including 12 foreigners, in 1974. The DLM was banned by Singapore authorities in the late 1980s.

Bromley and Hammond describe the Divine Light Mission as belonging in a "medium tension category", among movements that were seen by the public as peculiar rather than threatening, and to which society responded with watchfulnes and ostracism. Psychiatrist Saul V. Levine wrote that the DLM, along with other groups such as the Unification Church, was widely held in low esteem – families felt their children were being financially exploited while the groups' leaders lived in "ostentation and offensive opulence."

Summarizing his 1985 review of studies of a number of new religious movements, such as The Jesus Movement, the Unification Church, the Children of God group in Europe and the Divine Light Mission, James T. Richardson stated that "life in the new religions is often therapeutic instead of harmful", and that other information would suggest that the young people attracted to these movements were affirming their idealism by their involvement. Richardson asserted that his review found there was little data to support the almost completely negative picture of these groups painted by a few mental health professionals and others.

Ron Geaves states that the Divine Light Mission

...developed into a vigorous new religious movement with its own specific traits that included characteristics of a contemporary North Indian Sant panth (sectarian institution) and nirguna bhakti was combined with intense reverence for the living satguru and millennial expectations of the western counter-culture.

Footnotes

1. J. Gordon Melton, "Encylcopedic Handbook of Cults in America, Revised and Updated Edition", Garland Publishing: New York, 1992, p. 217-218
2. "Whatever Happened to Guru Maharaj Ji? ", Hinduism Today Magazine, October 1983 Available Online (Retrieved March 2008)
3. ^ Cagan, A. Peace is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat. Mighty River Press. ISBN 0-9788694-9-4, Page 83-87
4. Aagaard, Johannes. Who Is Who In Guruism? (1980) "During the first 6 years of the new movement its head was Shri Hans, the father of the young Maharaj Ji, who, at the age of 8 years, succeeded his father in 1966."
5. U. S. Department of the Army, Religious Requirements and Practices of Certain Selected Groups: A Handbook for Chaplains (2001) pp.1-5 , The Minerva Group, ISBN 0-89875-607-3
   Following his death, Shri Hans Ji appointed the youngest of his four sons, Sant Ji as the next Perfect Master and therefore he assumed the head of the Divine Light Mission as decreed by his father."
6. Fahlbusch E., Lochman J. M., Mbiti J., Pelikan J., Vischer L, Barret D. (Eds.) The Encyclopedia of Christianity (1998). p.861, ISBN 90-04-11316-9 "At the funeral of Shree Hans, his son Prem Pal Singh Rawat comforted those who mourned his father's death with the thought that they still had perfect knowledge with them. The son himself had become the subject of this knowledge, the perfect master, in the place of his father, and took the title of "guru" and the name of Maharaj Ji, or great king, a title of respect to which other titular names were added. The honors paid him by his followers gave him the characteristic of a messianic child. These were supposedly his by nature and they helped him to eliminate rival claims from his own family."
7. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat. Mighty River Press. ISBN 0-9788694-9-4, Page 83-86
8. Melton, Gordon J. Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, (1986), pp.141-2 Garland Publishing, ISBN 0-8240-9036-5 "Just six years after the founding of the Mission, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj was succeeded by his younger son Prem Pal Singh Rawat, who was eight when he was recognized as the new Perfect Master and assumed the title Maharaj Ji. Maharaj Ji had been recognized as spiritually adept, even within the circle of the Holy Family, as Shri Hans' family was called. He had been initiated at the age of six He assumed the role of Perfect Master at his father's funeral by telling the disciples who had gathered. Though officially the autocratic leader of the Mission, because of Maharaji's age authority was shared by the whole family."
9. Lewis, James R. The encyclopedia of cults, sects, and new religions. Amherst, N.Y. : Prometheus Books, 1998. ISBN 1573922226 p 301
10. Stephen J. Hunt Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction (2003), pp.116-7, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-3410-8. The leader of the Divine Light Mission, the Guru Maharaji, was 13 years old when he spectacularly rose to fame in the early 1970's. His global tour in 1971 helped to establish a large following in Britain and the USA.
11. http://www.guidestar.org/pqShowGsReport.do?partner=amex&ein=23-7174539#rptlink1
12. Oz in the Astrodome; Middle-class premies find Guru. The guru enthroned by Ted Morgan, New York Times, December 9, 1973, Page 338
13. J. Gordon Melton, Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986; revised edition, pp. 141-145
    "Many were initiated and became the core of the Mission in the United States. Headquarters were established in Denver, and by the end of 1973, tens of thousands had been initiated, and several hundred centers as well as over twenty ashrams, which housed approximately 500 of the most dedicated premies, had emerged."
14. Price, Maeve (1979): "The Divine Light Mission as a social organization". Sociological Review, 27, Page 279-296. "It was an opportune moment for DLM to appear on the scene and, by the summer of 1973, the mission claimed to have a following of 8,000 devotees, or premies, in Britain. From the small beginning of one mahatma in London and a handful of premies, the mission grew, with up to half a dozen mahatmas at any one time giving knowledge, the establishment of Divine Information Centres in most major towns and cities and the setting up of about forty ashrams (designated premie households) throughout Britain by the end of 1973."
15. "Indian Shrewdness Plus American Merchandising Equals Guru", BETTY FLYNN Chicago Daily News
16. Melton J. Gordon Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986 (revised edition), ISBN 0-8240-9036-5, pp. 141-145
17. Messer, Jeanne. 1976 "Guru Maharaj Ji and the Divine Light Mission," in Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, eds. The New Religious Consciousness. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 52-72. ISBN 0-52003-472-4
18. Lewis, James R. Cults in America. ABC-CLIO, Inc. Santa Barbara, 1998. p 83
19. Price, Maeve (1979): "The Divine Light Mission as a social organization". Sociological Review, 27, pp. 279-296. "A special branch of the mission, known as the World Peace Corps (WPC) was established, initially to provide protection for Maharaj Ji. However it soon became the main agent for organizing meetings or 'programs' and securing financial support and it ventured into all kinds of supposedly money-making enterprises such as transport, building and the distribution of vegetarian food and certain Indian products such as incense. "
20. "Guru's 17th birthday observed", KENNETH T. WALSH Associated Press, GREELEY (Colo.) TRIBUNE December 11, 1974 p.16
21. "Indian Shrewdness Plus American Merchandising Equals Guru", BETTY FLYNN Chicago Daily News
22. "Guru Gets Testimonial And Some Pie in Face", "New York Times", Aug 8, 1973 Page 43
23. "15-Year Old Guru Slapped in Face by Shaving Cream Pie", UPI, Los Angeles Times, Aug 8, 1973; pg. 2
24. A-6 Independent (AM) Press-Telegram (PM) Long Beach, Calif., Wed., August 8, 1973
25. J. Gordon Melton Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America (New York/London: Garland, 1986; revised edition, Garland, p 380
26. Page 2 - Section B – Sun News – Las Cruces, New Mexico - Wednesday, August 22, 1973
27. Guru Goons Loose Fifth Estate Magazine Article - December 1973 - Volume 8 No. 18 the Guru immediately requested that the Divine Light Mission conduct a full investigation ... As a result of this investigation the assailants were located, confessed their part in the incident, and offered to turn themselves in. The local authorities were immediately notified but apparently made no effort to arrest.
28. "Get Your Red-Hot Panaceas!", Ken Kelley, New York Times, January 19, 1974
29. "Under the Astrodome: Maharaj Ji – The Selling of a Guru", Gregg Kilday, Los Angeles Times, Nov 13, 1973 So when the DLM's annual Hans Jayanti festival drew near, although it has been traditionally held in India, the decision was made to move the show to America.
30. ^ “Guru's Followers Cheer 'Millennium' in Festivities in Astrodome", by Eleanor Blau, New York Times, November 12, 1973
31. J. Gordon Melton Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America (New York/London: Garland, 1986; revised edition, Garland, pages 141-145
32. "Maharaji Ji: The Selling of a Guru, 1973", by Gregg Killday, Los Angeles Times, November 13, 1973, p. D1
33. ^ "TV: Meditating on a Young Guru and His Followers", by John O'Connor, New York Times, February 25, 1974
34. ^ "Oz in the Astrodome", by Ted Morgan, New York Times, December 9, 1973
35. "Houston's Version of Peace in Our Time" GREGG KILDAY, Los Angeles Times Nov 25, 1973 p. S18
36. "Kent, Stephen A. From Slogans to Mantras Syracuse University Press, 2001. p 52
37. RollingStone Magazine Issue N°156 - March 14, 1974 (Page 36-50)
38. Sophia Collier.Soul Rush'The Odyssey of a Young Woman of the '70s', New York: Morrow, 1978. From the first he had taken a great interest in the festival, and sometime in the early summer Maharaj Ji had put him "in charge" of the festival effort. Despite the title though, it was commonly understood that Rennie Davis, going under the more humble billing of "General Coordinator," was the person to listen to on any nuts and bolts issues involving the event.
39. "A LOOK BACK AT THE '70S" HENRY ALLEN, Los Angeles Times Dec 16, 1979; p. K30
40. Sophia Collier. Soul Rush – The Odyssey of a Young Woman of the '70s, New York: Morrow, 1978. p. 159 "I know that even though BB claimed 400,000 (or 200,000, depending on the day) would come to the festival ...and Rennie carefully noted this down as if he believed BB, Rennie would then quietly reserve hotel rooms for only 22,000. From my tours to promote the festival and my previous experience organizing this sort of event, I know 22,000 is all we can count on. It's a reasonable figure,"
41. "Kent, Stephen A. From Slogans to Mantras Syracuse University Press, 2001. p 156
42. Oz in the Astrodome; Middle-class premies find Guru. The guru enthroned by Ted Morgan, New York Times, December 9, 1973, Page 338
43. "Worshiping the Absurd: The Negation Of Social Causality Among The Followers of Guru Maharaj Ji", Daniel A. Foss, Ralph W. Larkin, Sociological Analysis, 1978, 39, 2:157-164 "in fact attended by a maximum of 35,000
44. Collier, p. 176
45. "Oz in the Astrodome" Ted Morgen New York Times
46. "Videotape Explorers on the Trail of a Guru" by Dick Adler, Los Angeles Times, February 23, 1974 p. B2
47. Worshipping the Absurd 'The Negation of Social Causality among the Followers of Guru Maharaj Ji.' Article by Daniel Foss and Larkin in Sociological Analysis, 1978.
48. Kopkind, Andrew. The Thirty Years' Wars: Dispatches and Diversions of a Radical Journalist, Verso, United States, 1995, ISBN 1859840965 p. 234
49. "Kent, Stephen A. From Slogans to Mantras Syracuse University Press, 2001. p 156
50. "Two ex-cult officers see possible Guyana repeat", UPI, Newport Rhode Island Daily News November 25, 1978. p. 8
51. ^ Larson, Bob (2004). Larson's Book of World Religions and Alternative PUBLISHER: Tyndale House Publishers. Wheaton, Ill: Tyndale House Publishers. pp. p.151. ISBN 0-8423-6417-X. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
52. "New Religious Movements Turn to Worldly Success", Kirpal Singh Khalsa, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, Vol. 25, No. 2 (Jun 1986), pp. 233–247
53. Carroll Stoner & Jo Anne Parke All God's Children, Chilton Book Co ISBN 0801966205
54. Sophia Collier. Soul Rush – The Odyssey of a Young Woman of the '70s, New York: Morrow, 1978. p.166 "Our debts were not long-term notes, either; everything came due right after the festival ... 'But Millennium is going to be big, really big. People are going to give us money afterward. ...'"
55. ^ "Guru following down; tactics changing", UPI, Waterloo Courier Nov. 25, 1976
56. "Growing Pile of Unpaid Bills Beneath Guru's Spiritual Bliss", Deborah Frazier, UPI, March 23, 1975, Lincoln, Neb., Sunday Journal and Star
57. Pilarzyk, Thomas, The Origin, Development, and Decline of a Youth Culture Religion, Review of Religious Research, Vol. 20, No. 1. (Autumn, 1978), pp. 23-43.
58. Price, Maeve (1979): "The Divine Light Mission as a social organization". Sociological Review, 27, Page 279-296. "In Britain there was the Festival of Love at Alexandra Palace which drew thousands of premies and seekers, and where the unpredictable behaviour of Maharaj Ji antagonized the British press who had waited for hours for his scheduled appearance. ... A large membership had grown up very rapidly but the organizers had no clear idea where to lead the following, nor did they have the financial resources to maintain so many full-time workers ... Guru Maharaj Ji's habit of arriving late, or not at all, for public programmes in Britain was doubtless a factor in his receiving an increasingly hostile press coverage which, in turn, may have contributed to the decline in recruitment which took place after the Alexandra Palace festival.
59. Downton, James V. (1979). Sacred Journeys: The Conversion of Young Americans to Divine Light Mission. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-04198-5.Chapter 12 Changes in the Movement
60. Geaves, Ron, Globalization, charisma, innovation, and tradition: An exploration of the transformations in the organisational vehicles for the transmission of the teachings of Prem Rawat (Maharaji), 2006, Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies, 2 44-62
61. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat. Mighty River Press. ISBN 0-9788694-9-4, Page 197
62. Melton J. Gordon Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986 (revised edition), ISBN 0-8240-9036-5, pp. 141-145
63. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat. Mighty River Press. ISBN 0-9788694-9-4, Page 200
64. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat. Mighty River Press. ISBN 0-9788694-9-4, Page 198
65. Ron Geaves in New Religions: A Guide: New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities pp.201-202, Oxford University Press, USA (2004) ISBN 978-0195220421
66. Melton J. Gordon Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986 (revised edition), ISBN 0-8240-9036-5, pp. 141-145
67. Melton J. Gordon Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986 (revised edition), ISBN 0-8240-9036-5, pp. 141-145
68. Price, Maeve (1979): "The Divine Light Mission as a social organization". Sociological Review, 27, Page 279-296. "When Maharaj Ji began to assert his independence from his mother, both as an individual and as a leader, the mission entered a period of crises, internal conflict and consequent recession. In May 1974, Maharaj Ji married an American girl, Marolyn Johnson (now called Durga Ji), in direct defiance of his mother's wishes and the event shook the mission to its foundations. This marriage brought about an exodus from the ashrams, the stable core of the mission which had been a vital means of social control, as premies flocked to get married and began to produce their own children, within customary marriage structures. It was an important turning point for the mission. The followers seemed to grow up overnight into adults with normal family responsibilities and ties. The base of support inevitably shifted from the ashrams to the wider premie community. This meant that central control was very much weakened and that the ordinary, non-ashram premie began to play a more important role in determining the mission's fortunes. At the same time, many premies were shaken by the marriage and felt almost betrayed by their leader. It is apparent that the marriage was responsible for a loss of morale and therefore of support for the mission by many premies. "
69. Richardson, James T., in Encyclopedia of Religion and Society, William H. Swatos, ed., Rowman Altamira 1998 p.141 ISBN 0761989560 "Also, the guru married his Caucasian secretary in 1974 when he was 17, shocking many of his followers (he had championed celibacy until his marriage) and leading to many defections."
70. Olson, Carl. The Many Colors of Hinduism: A Thematic-Historical Introduction. 2007 Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0813540682 p. 345 "The movement split after Guru Maharaj Ji married his American secretary and broke his vow of celibacy. "
71. Pilarzyk, Thomas, The Origin, Development, and Decline of a Youth Culture Religion, Review of Religious Research, Vol. 20, No. 1. (Autumn, 1978), pp. 23-43.These were cultic establishments organized by premies who wished to live a semi-religious life but independent of the jurisdiction of the larger DLM organization. Members in these living arrangements made their own rules and regulations rather than accepting dictates from the Divine United Organization. For example, many premie houses across the country in 1975 did not adhere to the celibate life, one of the requirements of ashram life.
72. "Guru Maharaj Ji." Religious Leaders of America, 2nd ed. Gale Group, 1999. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008
73. "Guru Maharaj Ji." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology, 5th ed. Gale Group, 2001. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008.
74. Price, Maeve (1979): "The Divine Light Mission as a social organization". Sociological Review, 27, Page 279-296.
75. Carole Stoner & Jo Anne Parke. All Gods Children: The Cult Experience--Salvation or Slavery? Chilton Book Co (May 1977) ISBN 0801966205 ISBN 978-0801966200
76. Lewis, James R. The encyclopedia of cults, sects, and new religions. Amherst, N.Y. : Prometheus Books, 1998. ISBN 1573922226 p 301
77. Price, Maeve (1979): "The Divine Light Mission as a social organization". Sociological Review, 27, Page 279-296. "In Britain a long wrangle ensued over the legal control of DLM as Maharaj Ji was not yet of age, but Mata Ji was out-manoevred by Maharaj Ji's supporters who by-passed the officially registered Divine Light Mission and used Divine United Organization (DUO) (which had already been established in 1973 to co-ordinate the mission's activities) and this became the mission's operational headquarters."
78. Melton J. Gordon Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986 (revised edition), ISBN 0-8240-9036-5, pp. 141-145
79. Downton, James V. (1979). Sacred Journeys: The Conversion of Young Americans to Divine Light Mission. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-04198-5.Chapter 12 Changes in the Movement
80. ^ "Guru's cult changing style" GEORGE CORNELL, AP Religion Writer
81. "Guru Maharaj Ji To Launch World Tour To Aid Mission" UPI, PLAYGROUND DAILY NEWS, April 15,1976-Page 3E "As for membership, which has dropped to under 15,000 in the United States, Anctil said record keeping was at fault for the original figures which were inflated."
82. Bomley and Shupe, 1981, p. 43
83. Lewis, James R. Cults in America. ABC-CLIO, Inc. Santa Barbara, 1998. p 83
84. ^ Bromley, Hammond, 1983: 113-4, 227
85. "Cult Deprogrammer Patrick Sentenced to Year in Kidnaping", JACK JONES. Los Angeles Times Sep 27, 1980, pg. SD_A1
86. Melton, Gordon J. Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, (1986), p. 219–222 Garland Publishing, ISBN 0-8240-9036-5
87. "FIRM LOYALTY: Guru's Sect: Misgivings in Malibu" MARK FORSTER Los Angeles Times Jan 12, 1979; pg. A1.
88. "Two ex-cult officers see possible Guyana repeat", UPI, Newport Rhode Island Daily News November 25, 1978. p. 8
89. Melton J. Gordon Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America. New York/London: Garland, 1986 (revised edition), ISBN 0-8240-9036-5, pp. 141-145
90. Lippy, Charles H. Pluralism Comes of Age: American Religious Culture in the Twentieth Century p.114, M. E. Sharpe (2002), ISBN 0-7656-0151-6
    "The Divine Light Mission, for example, in the 1980s became Elan Vital and dropped most of its Asian trappings."
91. Lewis, James R. Cults in America. ABC-CLIO, Inc. Santa Barbara, 1998. p 83
92. Miller, Tomothy. America's Alternative Religions, 1995, SUNY Press ISBN 0791423972 p. 364
93. Melton, Gordon, Encyclopedia of American Religions 7th edition. Thomson (2003) p.2328 ISBN 0-7876-6384-0 "In the early 1980s, Maharaj Ji moved to disband the Divine Light Mission and he personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion, disbanding the mission, he founded Elan Vital, an organization to support his future role as teacher." Maharaji had made every attempt to abandon the traditional Indian religious trappings in which the techniques originated and to make his presentation acceptable to all the various cultural settings in which followers live. He sees his teachings as independent of culture, religion, beliefs, or lifestyles, and regularly addresses audiences in places as culturally diverse as India, Japan, Taiwan, the Ivory Coast, Slovenia, Mauritius and Venezuela, as well as North America, Europe and the South Pacific.
94. Colorado Secretary of State, Business Center.
95. Elan Vital FAQs - About Elan Vital, Inc. Available online (Retrieved May, 2006)
96. Abgrall, Jean-Marie . Soul Snatchers: The Mechanics of Cults Algora Publishing 2000 ISBN 189294104X p. 285
97. Melton, Gordon J. Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, (1986), pp 221 222 Garland Publishing, ISBN 0-8240-9036-5
98. Geaves, Ron, From Divine Light Mission to Elan Vital and Beyond: An Exploration of Change and Adaptation, Nova Religio The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions, March 2004, Vol. 7, No. 3, Pages 45-62.
99. Melton, Gordon, Encyclopedia of American Religions 7th edition. Thomson (2003) p.2328 ISBN 0-7876-6384-0
    "In the early 1980s, Maharaj Ji moved to disband the Divine Light Mission and he personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion, disbanding the mission, he founded Elan Vital, an organization to support his future role as teacher." Maharaji had made every attempt to abandon the traditional Indian religious trappings in which the techniques originated and to make his presentation acceptable to all the various cultural settings in which followers live. He sees his teachings as independent of culture, religion, beliefs, or lifestyles, and regularly addresses audiences in places as culturally diverse as India, Japan, Taiwan, the Ivory Coast, Slovenia, Mauritius and Venezuela, as well as North America, Europe and the South Pacific.
100. Melton, Gordon, Encyclopedia of American Religions 7th edition. Thomson (2003) p.2328 ISBN 0-7876-7702-7
     "In the early 1980s, Maharaj Ji moved to disband the Divine Light Mission and he personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion. Disbanding the mission, he founded Elan Vital, an organization suited to his future role as teacher." Maharaji had made every attempt to abandon the traditional Indian religious trappings in which the techniques originated and to make his presentation acceptable to all the various cultural settings in which followers live. He sees his teachings as independent of culture, religion, beliefs, or lifestyles, and regularly addresses audiences in places as culturally diverse as India, Japan, Taiwan, the Ivory Coast, Slovenia, Mauritius and Venezuela, as well as North America, Europe and the South Pacific.
101. "Contact Info - Events". contactinfo.net. Retrieved 2008-04-19.
102. J. Gordon Melton, Christopher Partridge (Eds.), New Religions: A Guide. New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities. pp.201-202, Oxford University Press, USA (2004) ISBN 978-0195220421.
     "As Maharaji began to grow older and establish his teachings worldwide he increasingly desired to manifest his own vision of development and growth. This conflict resulted in a split between Maharaji and his family, ostensibly caused by his mother's inability to accept Maharaji's marriage to an American follower rather than the planned traditional arranged marriage."
103. Downton, Sacred Journeys. "Nearly sixteen, he was ready to assume a more active part in deciding what direction the movement should take. This of course meant that he had to encroach on his mother's territory and, given the fact that she was accustomed to having control, a fight was inevitable."
104. name="thomsonwife">"Guru Maharaj Ji", Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Michigan, Thomson Gale, 2007. The marriage further disrupted his relationship with his mother and older brothers. A lawsuit in India gave control of the Indian branch of the Divine Light Mission to Maharaj's mother and led to a complete break with her son, who maintained the complete support of the Western disciples.
105. "Manav Dharam". 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
106. McKean, Lisa. Divine Enterprise: Gurus and the Hindu Nationalist Movement University of Chicago, 1996. ISBN 0226560090. page 54
107. "Satpal Ji Maharaj". Retrieved April 2008. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
108. Beit-Hallahami, Benjamin The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Active New Religions, Sects and Cults (1997), ISBN 0-8239-1505-0 p.85 "Divine Light Mission". "When the founder died in 1966, the eight-year old Pretap stood up at the funeral to announce his ascent to the throne and became the movement's recognized leader. Maharaj Ji was considered satguru, or the Perfect Master."
109. Melton, Gordon J. Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, (1986), pp.141-2 entry Divine Light Mission Garland Publishing, ISBN 0-8240-9036-5
     "Just six years after the founding of the Mission, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj was succeeded by his younger son Prem Pal Singh Rawat, who was eight when he was recognized as the new Perfect Master and assumed the title, Maharaj Ji. Maharaj Ji had been recognized as spiritually adept, even within the circle of the Holy Family as Shri Hans family was called. He had been initiated at the age of six He assumed the role of Perfect Master at his father's funeral by telling the disciples who had gathered. Though officially the autocratic leader of the Mission, because of Maharaji's age authority was shared by the whole family."
110. U. S. Department of the Army, Religious Requirements and Practices of Certain Selected Groups: A Handbook for Chaplains (2001) pp.11-5 , The Minerva Group, ISBN 0-89875-607-3
     "Following his death, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj appointed the youngest of his four sons, Sant Ji, as the next Perfect Master and thereby the assumed head of Divine Light Mission as decreed by his father. Since that time, Guru Maharaj Ji has inspired a world wide movement and the Mission is active in 55 countries."
111. Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3,
     pp.76-77: :pp.76-77: "Eine systematisch entwickelte Lehre hat die Divine Light Mission weder zur Zeit des Vaters Śhrī Hans noch des Sohnes besessen. Beide haben darin eher einen Vorzug als einen Mangel gesehen. Hatte der Vater sich vornehmlich als »Guru der Armen« verstanden und sich in einer bilderreichen Sprache mehr um praktische Anwendbarkeit als um theoretische Durchdringung bemüht, so blieb doch der Inhalt seiner Satsangs auf dem Hintergrund der Hinduistischen Tradition klar verständlich. Die Satsangs jedoch, die der Sohn im Westen gehalten hat und die mit einem Minimum hinduistischer Terminologie und Konzepte auskommen, müssen für den nichthinduistischen Hörer vage bleiben. Der junge Guru erklärt das konzeptionelle Denken, das auch in deutschen Übersetzungen mit dem englischen Wort »mind« bezeichnet wird, als Hauptfeind der unmittelbaren religösen Erfahrung. So ist es nicht verwunderlich, daß von seinen Anhängern nur wenig Handfestes über die DLM-lehre zu erfahren ist. Anderseits eröffnet ihnen der Mangel an vorgegebenen Konzepten einen Freiraum für Äußerungen einer spontanen Subjektivität, die wohltuend vom unselbständigen Reproduzieren autoritativ verkündeter Lehren absticht, wie man es vor allem bei den Anhängern der ISKCON antrifft. Wie auch immer die Bewertung ausfallen mag – die geistige Konturlosigkeit der Bewegung fällt allen Beobachtern auf. Im Zentrum steht bei Vater und Sohn die vierfache Meditationstechnik, die vier »Kriyas«, die Sri Hans von Svami Sarupanand gelernt hatte. " p. 78: "Innerhalb dieses eklektischen Denkens dominiert der Einfluß der in Nordindien beheimateten Sant-Tradition, der schon in der Geschichte des Radhasoami Satsang wirksam war. Von ihr bestimmt ist die Ablehnung äußerlicher Rituale und Zeremonien und die Forderung, das Göttliche im eigenen Inneren zu suchen; damit verbunden die Polemik gegen den trennenden Charakter der in Äußerlichkeiten erstarrten Religionen und gegen die Kastentrennung; ferner die Ablehnung der Askese zugunsten des Lebens im Stande des Haushalters, wie Sri Hans es selbst geführt hat; die Ablehnung der Bilderverehrung und die Konzentration auf den Guru als die Manifestation des Göttlichen; "
112. Ron Geaves in Christopher Partridge (Eds.), New Religions: A Guide: New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities pp.201-202, Oxford University Press, USA (2004) ISBN 978-0195220421 Maharaji asserts that he is not teaching a religion and there are no particular rituals, sacred days, pilgrimages, sacred places, doctrines, scriptures or specific dress codes, dietary requirements or any other dimension associated with a religious lifestyle.
113. Messer, Jeanne. 1976 "Guru Maharaj Ji and the Divine Light Mission," in Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, eds. The New Religious Consciousness. Berkeley: University of CaliforniaPress. pp.52-72. ISBN 0-52003-472-4 His teaching consists simply of what he calls "giving knowledge," not of any extensive set of moral precepts. Unlike most Eastern religious teachers, he generally refuses to give concrete instructions regarding what one should eat, how one should make a living, or what one's disciplehood should involve.
114. Conway, Flo & Siegelman, Jim. Snapping: America's Epidemic of Sudden Personality Change. Stillpoint Press, New York, 1995, 2nd ed., p. 361
115. McGuire, Meredith B. "Religion: the Social Context" fifth edition (2002) ISBN 0-534-54126-7 Chapter. 5 "The Dynamics of Religious Collectivities", section “How Religious Collectivities Develop and Change’’, sub-section "Organizational Transformations" p. 175 "As Weber pointed out, the long-term impact of a movement hinges on transformation of bases of authority and leadership from a charismatic mode to either traditional or legal-traditional rational structures. When a movement becomes established, there is a strong tendency for the organization to calcify around the memory of the early dynamism; its own tradition becomes the rationalization for why things should be done in a certain way. Early stages of a movement's organization involve simple structures such as the charismatic leader and followers or leader, core followers, and other followers. The transition to legal-rational structures is typically accompanied by the elaboration and standardization of procedures, the emergence of specialized statuses and roles, and the formalizing of communication among members. The early years of the Divine Light Mission in the United States were characterized by rapidly growing, loosely affiliated local ashrams (i.e., groups of devotees, usually living communally), united mainly by the devotion to the ambiguous charismatic figure of Guru Maharaj Ji. As the DLM became increasingly structured and centralized, leadership and power focused in the Denver headquarters. The guru's desire to consolidate his power and authority over the movement in the United States resulted in greater formalization: rules and regulations for ashram living, standards for recruited "candidates", and pressure toward certifying the movement's teachers."
116. Thomas Pilarzyk ‘’The Origin, Development, and Decline of a Youth Culture Religion: An Application of the Sectarianization Theory’’ in "Review of Religious Research" 20, 1:33-37, 1978) Like some of its youth culture counterparts, the Divine Light Mission movement experienced rapid growth from its inception in the United States in 1971. By the summer of 1974, the American movement had grown to a total of 27 ashrams which housed over 1200 of an estimated 50,000 members or "premies." However, its development was not as simple, gradual, consistent, nor as long-lasting as changes within other "Eastern imports" such as the Hare Krsna movement. By July of 1972, the first national conference of DLM leaders took place, and guidelines were laid down which specified certain rules and regulations for U.S. ashrams. DLM officials note that this led to an initial departure of followers who viewed ashram life more as an economic convenience than as a step toward the enhancement of the spiritual path to God-realization.
117. Foss and van der Lans in "Of Gods and Men: New Religious Movements in the West", Eileen Barker, editor. British Sociological Association. Mercer University Press. 1983. ISBN 0865540950 p. 305
118. Barrett, David V., The New Believers: A Survey of Sects, Cults and Alternative Religions (2003), Cassel, ISBN 1-84403-040-7 Page 65
119. Foss & Larkin.Worshipping the Absurd 'The Negation of Social Causality among the Followers of Guru Maharaj Ji.' Article by Daniel Foss and Larkin in Sociological Analysis, 1978.
120. Geaves, From Divine Light Mission to Elan Vital and Beyond, 2004: 45-62
121. Haan, Wim De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding in the the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies/Religious movements in the Netherlands: facts and opinions nr. 3, herfst 1981, edited by Dr. R. Bakker, Dr. C. J. G. van der Burg, Dr. Reender Kranenborg, Dr. J. van der Lans, and Dr. H. C. Stoffels. ISBN 90-242-2341-5 (Mainly based on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Missionh, pp.55-57 contains the text of the aarti song in English. Haan described himself as a member of a critical movement within the Catholic Church at the time of writing this article.
122. Gartrell and Shannon, 1985: 35
123. James V. Downton "Sacred Journeys: The Conversion of Young Americans to Division Light Mission" Columbia Univ Press (July 1979) ISBN 0231041985 Chapter 6: Growing Up/Uncaring Institutions page 87
124. James V. Downton "Sacred Journeys: The Conversion of Young Americans to Division Light Mission" Columbia Univ Press (July 1979) ISBN 0231041985 Chapter 12: Changes Page 210
125. Carroll Stoner and Jo Anne Parke,All God's Children,Chilton Book Co ISBN 0801966205,During the visit and on previous occasions when we visited ashrams as undeclared aspirants, there was no persuasion or cajoling for us to become part of this group. We did feel a sense of calm and peace in the ashrams. Most of the premies seemed sincere and rational. They appeared to be in control of their own lives and seemed to be achieving some measure of peace as a by-product of a lifestyle they feel is constructive and healthy."
126. Foss and van der Lans in "Of Gods and Men: New Religious Movements in the West", Eileen Barker, editor. British Sociological Association. Mercer University Press. 1983. ISBN 0865540950 pp 304-306
127. Hans Jayanti (2000), pp.24-37. DUO, New Delhi, Book published in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Hans Ji Maharaj's birth by Prem Rawat's Indian organization.
128. "The Guru Business", Khushwant Singh, The New York Times, April 8, 1973
129. Pilarzyk, Thomas, The Origin, Development, and Decline of a Youth Culture Religion: An Application of Sectarianization Theory Review of Religious Research, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Autumn, 1978), pp. 23-43
130. Messer, Jeanne, in The New Religious Consciousness. Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, editors. University of California Press, Berkeley 1976. ISBN 0520030834 p. 64
131. Carroll Stoner & Jo Anne Parke All God's Children, Chilton Book Co ISBN 0801966205
132. Kopkind, Andrew. The Thirty Years' Wars: Dispatches and Diversions of a Radical Journalist, Verso, United States, 1995, ISBN 1859840965 p. 234
133. All Mission activities depend entirely on volunteered labor and funds. The knowledge itself, the primary source of satisfaction to devotees, is independent of the Mission proper, and DLM has no power to discipline or enforce agreements. Devotees move in and out of service roles or financial commitments, and DLM has little chance to predict or control income or staffing. Messer, Jeanne 'Guru Maharaj Ji and the Divine Light Mission, in The New Religious Consciousness edited by Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, Berkeley: University of California Press. pp.52-72. ISBN 0-52003-472-4
134. Premies could live in ashrams to devote themselves more fully to Service. Premies often worked part or full time outside the ashram and gave a sizable portion-sometimes all-of their income to the movement. They also practiced celibacy, vegetarianism, and frequent meditation. The focus of this ascetic existence was their religious mission rather than personal pleasure or gain.Galanter, Marc (1999). Cults: faith, healing, and coercion. Oxford : Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-512370-0.
135. Many of the characteristics of the Indian movement founded by Prem Rawat’s father, who had died only in 1966, were imported wholesale into the western environment. Ashrams were established with a lifetime commitment of celibacy expected from those who joined. Members were expected to forswear drugs and alcohol, and adopt a strict vegetarian diet. The closing of the ashrams took away the possibility of a committed workforce and instead Prem Rawat’s activities to promote his teachings became more dependent on part-time volunteer assistance from individuals who were now raising families and creating careers for themselves. Geaves, Ron, Globalization, Charisma, Innovation and Tradition: An exploration of the transformations in the organisational vehicles for the transmission of the teachings of Prem Rawat (Maharaji), 2006, Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies, 2 44-62
136. Messer, Jeanne, in The New Religious Consciousness. Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, editors. University of California Press, Berkeley 1976. ISBN 0520030834 p. 65
137. Many were initiated and became the core of the Mission in the United States. Headquarters were established in Denver, and by the end of 1973, tens of thousands had been initiated, and several hundred centers as well as over twenty ashrams, which housed approximately 500 of the most dedicated premies, had emerged. J. Gordon Melton Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America New York/London: Garland, 1986; revised edition, Garland, pages 141-145
138. While the ashrams have often been self-supporting they have not been a good source of income for the Mission. Unlike the Moonies, the Children of God, or the Hare Krishnas, Divine Light Mission members do not sell anything. They do not solicit on street corners, selling candy, flowers, peanuts, or literature. And unlike the Church of Scientology, Guru Maharaj Ji's group does not charge for the courses or the teaching of the techniques of "knowledge." The group gets its money through gifts and the tithing of its members. The more gainfully employed a premie is, the higher the tithe the Mission receives.
139. Parke, Jo Anne; Stoner, Carroll (1977). All gods children: the cult experience--salvation or slavery?. Radnor, Pa: Chilton. ISBN 0-8019-6620-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
140. Like some of its youth culture counterparts, the Divine Light Mission movement experienced rapid growth from its inception in the United States in 1971. By the summer of 1974, the American movement had grown to a total of 27 ashrams which housed over 1200 of an estimated 50,000 members or "premies." However, its development was not as simple, gradual, consistent, nor as long-lasting as changes within other "Eastern imports" such as the Hare Krsna movement. By July of 1972, the first national conference of DLM leaders took place, and guidelines were laid down which specified certain rules and regulations for U.S. ashrams. DLM officials note that this led to an initial departure of followers who viewed ashram life more as an economic convenience than as a step toward the enhancement of the spiritual path to God-realization. Pilarzyk, Thomas, The Origin, Development, and Decline of a Youth Culture Religion: An Application of Sectarianization Theory Review of Religious Research, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Autumn, 1978), pp. 23-43
141. From the small beginning of one mahatma in London and a handful of premies, the mission grew, with up to half a dozen mahatmas at any one time giving knowledge, the establishment of Divine Information Centres in most major towns and cities and the setting up of about forty ashrams (designated premie households) throughout Britain by the end of 1973. Ashrams played an important part in the mission's structure. Here premies had chosen to live in small communal households, under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. In practice they were under the direct supervision of head office and acted as cadres for the whole movement. A large membership had grown up very rapidly but the organizers had no clear idea where to lead the following, nor did they have the financial resources to maintain so many full-time workers. The ashrams which should have provided a sound financial basis for the mission's operations were not even self-financing and had to be supported from funds. Price, Maeve (1979): The Divine Light Mission as a social organization. Sociological Review, 27, Page 279-296
142. Way Out : Radical Alternatives in Australia By Margaret Smith & David Crossley ( Published by: Lansdowne Press ) 1975 ISBN 9780701803896 THE DIVINE LIGHT MISSION IN AUSTRALIA Derek Harper & Michael McDonald
143. Messer, Jeanne, in The New Religious Consciousness. Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, editors. University of California Press, Berkeley 1976. ISBN 0520030834 p. 65
144. Carroll Stoner and Jo Anne Parke,All God's Children,Chilton Book Co ISBN 0801966205
145. Marc Galanter, Cults: Faith, Healing and Coercion, Oxford University Press (1999) ISBN 0-19-512370-0 Initial Encounters, p. 25
146. Hunt, 2003: 116; Derks and van der Lans Of Gods and Men 1983: 303; Wilson, Social Dimensions of Sectarism, 1990: 209
147. Beckford, Of Gods and Men 1983: 195; Langone, 1995 :41
148. Galanter, 1999: 19
149. Lewis, 2004: 24; Edwards, 2001 :227
150. Guiley, 1991: 152; >Barret, 1996
151. Miller, 474: 364; Juergensmeyer, 1991 :207
152. Sutton, 2005 :44
153. Geaves, 2002
154. Axel Michaels, Barbara Harshav. Hinduism: Past and Present. 2004 Princeton University Press, p. 23. ISBN 0691089523
155. Olson, Roger E., in Miller 1995: 364
156. van Driel, Barend and James T. Richardson. "Research Note Categorization of New Religious Movements in American Print Media". Sociological Analysis 1988, 49, 2:171-183
157. "Miami's startled elite wish the guru, in short, a pleasant stay", By Barry Bearak, Knight-Ridder Service, July 30, 1977. INDEPENDENT PRESS TELEGRAM (Long Beach, CA) A-11 "ACCORDING to Anctil and mission president Bill Patterson, they represent a church rather than a religion."
158. Ferrara, Grace, M., Latin America - 1978, Facts on File.
159. Gill, Anthony (1998). Rendering unto Caesar: the Catholic Church and the state in Latin America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, p.168. ISBN 0-226-29385-8.
160. "Five sect leaders in Chile sent to desert prison camp.", Jonathan Kandell, New York Times, March 24, 1974
161. Mauzy, Diane K., R. S. Milne. Singapore Politics: Under the People's Action Party. Routledge 2002, ISBN ISBN 0415246520 p. 132
162. Levine, 1989: 96, 102
163. Richardson, 1995: 147
164. Geaves, Ron, "Globalization, charisma, innovation, and tradition: An exploration of the transformations in the organisational vehicles for the transmission of the teachings of Prem Rawat (Maharaji)", 2006, Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies, 2 44-62

References

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• Galanter, Marc (1999). Cults: faith, healing, and coercion. Oxford : Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-512369-7.
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External links

• Article by Hinduism Today (1983) Available online
• Premies Versus Sannyasins by the psychologists of religion Dr. Jan van der Lans and Dr. Frans Derks in which they compared the adherents of the Divine Light Mission with followers of the Osho-Rajneesh movement, originally published in Update: A Quarterly Journal on New Religious Movements, X/2 (June 1986)
• Raj Vidya Kender

• Prem Rawat
• Religious organizations based in India
• Religious organizations established in 1960
• Religious organizations based in the United States
• Religious organizations established in 1971