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Prem Rawat, also known as Maharaji (formerly Guru Maharaj Ji) has been a speaker and teacher on the subject of "inner peace" since the age of eight, as well as offering instruction of four meditation techniques he calls Knowledge.

In 1971 Rawat traveled from India to speak in London and Los Angeles and was the subject of substantial media attention. He returned to the West in 1972 with his mother and elder brother, and formed the Divine Light Mission to assist in spreading his message. Tens of thousands of followers were attracted, largely from the hippie culture, and dozens of Indian style ashrams were established. Rawat was frequently criticised by religious scholars on the basis of his youth, his behaviour and his teachings.

Rawat's desire to manifest his own vision brought him into conflict with his mother and family, and his marriage to an American follower in 1974 caused a permanent split. From this point Rawat and his teachings became more Western, and in the early 1980s he abandoned the title and trappings of a guru, closed the ashrams and changed his style to appeal to a Western audience. The Prem Rawat Foundation was established in 2001 to promote his message which is currently distributed in eighty-eight countries on video, print, and television, as well as to spearhead humanitarian efforts.

Childhood

Prem Rawat was born in Haridwar, North India, on Dec 10, 1957. The fourth and youngest son of guru Shri Hans Ji Maharaj and his second wife, Jagat Janani Mata Shri Rajeshwari Devi, Rawat attended St. Joseph's Academy elementary school in his hometown of Dehra Dun. At the age of three, he began speaking at his father's meetings, and when he was six, his father taught him the techniques of "Knowledge". In 1966 his father died, and eight year-old Rawat was accepted by his family and followers, known as "premies", as the new Satguru and leader of the Divine Light Mission. During weekends and school holidays, Rawat traveled and spoke about inner experience in much the same way that his father had.

In the late 1960s, some young Western followers asked him to visit the West. In 1969, he sent one of his closest Indian students (known as Mahatmas) to London to teach Knowledge on his behalf. In 1970, many of his new Western followers traveled to India to see him, and were present when he announced at a gathering at India Gate, Delhi, that he was ready to begin the task of bringing peace to the world. The speech became known as the Peace Bomb, and according to the Dutch religious scholar and minister Reender Kranenborg, it marked the start of Rawat's international work.

Leaving India and the 1970s

Rawat first came to the West during his school holidays on 17 June 1971, visiting the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. He traveled without his family, and reportedly arrived with only twenty-five English pounds in his pocket. He was interviewed by the BBC and spoke at the first Glastonbury Festival, where he again offered people peace. Rawat made brief trips to Paris and Heidelberg, and on 17 July flew to Los Angeles to begin a tour of American cities.

In September 1971, Rawat established the US Divine Light Mission (DLM) in Denver, Colorado, then in October returned to India to celebrate his father's birthday. In 1972, Rawat returned to the West, this time accompanied by his mother and eldest brother, Satpal, and an entourage of mahatmas and other supporters. That year DLM held a multi-day event at Montrose, Colorado attended by two thousand people.

In November 1973, DLM booked the Houston Astrodome for "Millennium '73," a three-day gathering coinciding with Rawat's guru's birthday. Rawat wrote about the gathering - "As you all know Millenium '73 is being prepared for now. This festival has been organized by Divine Light Mission each year since 1967, in the memory of the late Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaji on His birthday. This year the most Holy and significant event in human history will take place in America.”".Rennie Davis, a former member of the Chicago Seven, was a prominent spokesman for the group. The attendance was estimated at twenty thousand and according to Thomson Gale, "the rapidly developing movement ran into trouble, beginning with its inability to fill the Houston Astrodome in a highly publicized event." The event was covered in a documentary film, called Lord of the Universe that was broadcasted by PBS Television nationwide in the USA. Abbie Hoffman, another Chicago Seven member, commented in the film, "If this guy is God, this is the God the United States of America deserves." When asked if he was God, Rawat replied "No. My Knowledge is God". By the early 1970s, DLM had established ashrams in South America, North America, Europe and Australia.

By 1974, the DLM reportely had 60,000 individuals practising the techniques of Knowledge in the U.K. and according to an observer at the time, "it was a successful movement because it stressed access to the inner world, the attainment of peace and certainty ('leave no room for doubt in your mind'), direct experience of God within, and the use of guaranteed methods".

In May 1974 at age sixteen, Rawat married Marolyn Johnson, a twenty-five year old flight attendant and one of his early American students,. According to Andrea Cagan in her 2007 book Peace is Possible, Rawat followed Indian tradition in giving his bride a Hindu name. According to Cagan, he chose Durga Ji, after the Hindu Goddess Durga. According to the biographical entry in Thomson Gale, he described Johnson as an incarnation of the Hindu goddess Durga.

The marriage to a Westerner exacerbated the rift between Rawat and his mother, for what she described as his pursuit of a "despicable, nonspiritual way of life." Rawat took control of the Western DLM; his mother disowned him returning to India with her two elder sons. His mother retained legal control of DLM India and appointed the eldest brother, Satpal, as its leader. The other two brothers split in allegiance, one siding with Prem and one siding with Satpal. Most of the mahatmas in the West either returned to India with his mother or were fired. Rawat later commented to the press on the family rift, saying "They live in India and I think was upset that I married a foreigner. She thought I had married out of my caste or something like that." According to an article in a sociological journal, Maharaj Ji a factor for the rift with his mother may have been that he had then become financially independent through the generosity of his devotees, allowing him to live in the style of an American millionaire, support his family, and finance the work and travel of his staff and mahatmas around the world.According to the follower and religious scholar Ron Geaves, the rift was caused by Rawat’s increasing desire “to manifest his own vision of development and growth.”

In the 1970s Rawat spoke in more than twenty countries and received the keys to the cities of New York City, New Orleans, Monterey, Oakland, Detroit, Miami, and Macon, Georgia in the United States, and Kyoto, Japan.

1980s and 1990s

In 1979, Rawat moved to Miami Beach, Florida with his wife and three children and DLM headquarters relocated there. Rawat returned to India in October 1980 after an absence of five years, and on newly acquired land in Delhi spoke to over 38,000 people. He also returned to South America, visiting Mexico for the first time. He held large, multi-day events for his students in Cartagena (Colombia), Miami, Rome, London, New Delhi, and Kansas City (Missouri), and also spoke at programs in Cancun, Lima, Sao Paulo, and Leicester (UK). Rawat's activities included the development of an executive jet refurbishing facility known as DECA. The first project was the customization of a Boeing 707 for his work. During 1981, Rawat flew the 707 to forty different cities, and spoke on 120 occasions, criss-crossing North America four times and touring South America, Europe, India, Nepal, Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia. DECA was later sold to Aircraft Modular Products (AMP), which in turn was sold in 1998 to B/E Aerospace for US$118 million.

In 1980s, Rawat moved to disband the Divine Light Mission and personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion. He saw his teachings as independent of culture, religion, beliefs or lifestyles and regularly addressed 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.

In 1983 the downsized Divine Light Mission changed its name to Elan Vital, and Rawat closed the last western ashrams, marking the end of Rawat's use of Indian methods for western objectives.

Rawat continued teaching the four techniques of Knowledge and affirmed his own status as a master rather than a divine leader. The original religious movement was essentially defunct. Scholars such as Kranenborg and George D. Chryssides describe the departure from divine connotations, and the new emphasis that the Knowledge is universal, and not Indian. According to America's Alternative Religions, in this new role "he may be reaching more listeners than ever, especially abroad, but his role is that of a public speaker."

Rawat continued to tour internationally throughout the 1980s and 1990s, mostly piloting the leased executive jets himself. He held events in over 40 countries, and in 1990 spoke at over 50 public events across the world. In December 1998, Rawat spoke via a live, interactive global satellite broadcast from Pasadena, California, to 86,600 participants at 173 locations in 50 countries. 1999 saw the commencement of regular satellite broadcasts to North American cities, with similar initiatives started in other regions and countries soon after.

Recent Years

Between 1965 and July 2005 Rawat spoke at 2,280 events around the world. Between January 2004 and June 2005, he delivered 117 addresses in Asia, Europe, and North America. With a more culturally neutral approach, Rawat now concentrates on what he calls a "universal message of peace" and speaks of "self-fulfillment." His message is currently distributed in eighty-eight countries, on video and in print, and is broadcast on TV channels such as Canal Infinito in South America, Channel 31 in Australia, Kabel BW in Germany, Dish Network in the U.S.A, and others.

In 2001, The Prem Rawat Foundation was founded as a Public Charitable Organization, largely for the production and distribution of audiovisual and other materials promoting Rawat's message. It also funds international humanitarian efforts and provides water, food, and medical relief to war-torn and impoverished areas. In 2007, the accountability of the Foundation as a non-profit organization was evaluated by the Better Business Bureau and it was accepted as a member of the "Wise Giving Alliance". Rotary International describes TPRF as being established "to improve the quality of life for the disadvantaged."

TPRF reports that during a tour of India, Sri Lanka and Nepal in March and April 2007, Rawat addressed over 800,000 people at 36 events, with an additional 2.25 million listening in via five live satellite broadcasts.

Beliefs, teachings, and meditation techniques, "Knowledge""

Origins

The four meditation techniques, called Knowledge that Rawat teaches are the same as taught by his father, Hans Ji Maharaj, who in turn learned them from Swarupanand, his teacher.

Kranenborg wrote that the techniques of Knowledge are also known as kriyas and that they originated from the Surat Shabda Yoga or Sant Mat, the Path of the Sound Current. This alleged relationship to Surat Shabd Yoga or Sant Mat is neither denied nor acknowledged in any literature from the organizations that support Rawat's work, or by Rawat himself.

Ron Geaves, Chair in religious studies at the University of Chester and a student of Rawat, asserts that several scholars have placed Rawat's teachings in the Sant Mat revival, best represented by the Radhasoami movement, or related to Surat Shabd yoga movements, but states that Rawat's history is actually linked to the lineage of Advait Mat, a north Indian cluster of movements which perceive themselves as originating from Totapuri, the teacher of Ramakrishna, and that Rawat has referred to this lineage as his own on his website. His paper Globalization, charisma, innovation, and tradition (2006), describes Prem Rawat as having affinities with the medieval nirguna bhakti tradition of Northern India, more commonly known as the Sants, emphasizing universalism, equality, direct experience, lack blind allegiance to religious ritual and dogma, and tendencies towards syncretism. He further writes that Rawat's renewal of a seemingly Sant idiom led many academics to mistake Divine Light Mission for an offshoot of the Radhasoami movement. Relating to the aspects of charisma, Geaves asserts that Rawat does not consider himself to be a charismatic figure, preferring rather to refer to his teachings on the experience of the individual as the basis of his authority, and that although followers in both east and west have asserted that he is either an avatar of the supreme being or one of the avatars of Vishnu, especially Krishna, he has gone to great lengths to assert his humanity and deconstruct the hagiography that has developed around his life.

Descriptions of teachings and changes over the years

According to the sociologist, James V. Downton, who studied the American branch of the Divine Light Mission, pre-existing millennial beliefs during 1971 "were developed in part by the carryover of millennial thinking from the counterculture; by the psychological trappings of surrender and idealization; by the guru's mother, whose satsang was full of references to his divine nature; and partly by the guru, himself, for letting others cast him in the role of the Lord".

During the 1970s, claims of divinity made by the Indian mahatmas, his family, and some followers were reported by the media. Rawat denied these claims in several interviews given to the press and on television. When John Wood's of the Boston Globe asked him "Are you God?" Rawat replied, "No. My Knowledge is God". In 1971 he said "Yes, I am a human...hands, bone, lungs. But guru is greater than God because if you go to guru, guru will show you God."

According to an article in Time magazine Rawat's mother and three older brothers literally worship him, kissing his "lotus feet" whenever they are in his presence. To them as to his other followers, he is the "Perfect Master" and "Lord of the Universe."

In an autobiographical book by Sophia Collier, an early follower who was quite involved with the DLM in the early 70s, she writes, "Premies who believe that Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord have at least some actual basis for their belief. Through the Knowledge, most premies were experiencing an unusually great degree of happiness and peace of mind. Given my own experiences in Knowledge, if I were a religious person, I might easily have thought Guru Maharaj Ji was the Lord. After all, through the Knowledge he had taught me to do something I had wanted to do all my life and had never been able to. He taught me to consciously unlock the kingdom of energy, power, and love inside myself, to get bacl; inside of the East Hampton wave on a permanent basis. Now from all signs, that deepest want in me was satisfied. At any time I wanted to, I could meditate and be right there. For a religious person this could easily seem like adequate proof for identifying a divinity..In the Divine Light Mission there are two groups of people. there are those who sincerely believe that Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord of Creation here in the flesh to save the world. And then there are those who know him a little better than that. They relate to him in a more human way to them he is more of a teacher, a guide, a co-conspirator in their personal pursuit of a more heavenly way of life.", and that he though he has never made a definitive statement on his own opinion of his own divinity, generally encourages whatever view is held by the people he is with." According to Downton, the end of 1973 saw Rawat breaking away from his mother and moving away from Indian cultural traditions to a more secular and westernized direction.

Downton writes that in 1976 the majority of premies saw Rawat primarily as their "spiritual teacher, guide, and inspiration", and quit imputing great powers to him, assuming more responsibility for their own personal growth. He asserts that, since the beginning, Rawat appealed to his followers to give up beliefs and concepts, so that they could experience the Knowledge more fully, but that it did not prevent followers from adopting a "a fairly rigid set of ideas about his divinity and the coming of a new age." According to Downton, Rawat's appearance at an event on December 20th, 1976 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in a Krishna costume he had not worn since 1975, signaled a change in beliefs and practices. Rawat was elevated to a much greater place in the practice of Knowledge, many people returned to ashram life and there was a shift from secular tendencies towards ritual and messianic beliefs and practices. Jan van der Lans and Frans Derks of the Catholic University, Nijmegen, wrote in a 1984 comment on Downton’s book, based on their research of the Dutch branch of the movement, that before 1975 it was sufficient to have a desperate longing for "Knowledge", but that after 1975 prospective members of the DLM "had to accept Guru Maharaj Ji as a personal saviour." Geaves notes that Rawat does not lay claim to any special powers, does not heal and has stated sardonically that the last thing he would want is access to anyone else’s mind and he encourages would-be students to think for themselves, delaying formal teaching of the four techniques for at least five months during which time they should listen and resolve any questions

Kranenborg wrote in a 1982 article that "in Maharaj ji's satsangs one can notice a speaking style that resembles very much some Christian evangelization campaigns: a pressing request, an emphasis on the last possibility to choose before it is too late and a terminology in which one is requested to surrender to the Lord, in this case Maharaj ji himself." The religious scholar and Christian minister, Reinhart Hummel, wrote in a 1980 book that was based on his research of Indian guru movements at the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg that Rawat's satsangs are different from Hindu satsangs, by the demand for faith and the portrayal of himself as as the reincarnation of the eternal "Guru Maharaj Ji". Downton cites an interview with the young Rawat when a premie asked him what he meant when he used the term "Guru Maharaj Ji." Rawat replied "Guru Maharaj Ji that gave me this Knowledge is my guru and that's whom I am referring to. Of course it's not physical. What I am actually referring to is that omnipotent power. The American religious scholar and Methodist minister J. Gordon Melton wrote in 1986 that, "Elan Vital is derived from the Sant Mat (literally, the way of the saints), a variation of the Sikh religion which draws significant elements from Hinduism. It is based on a series of spiritual masters... Hans Maharaj Ji claimed a Sant Mat succession which he passed to Maharaj Ji. Maharaj Ji, as do many of the other Sant Mat leaders, claims to be a Perfect Master, an embodiment of God on earth and hence a fitting object of worship and veneration."The Encyclopedia of American Religions states that in the early 1980s Rawat personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion, and disbanded the DLM, to make his teachings independent of culture, religious beliefs, and lifestyles. Other scholars, such as Kranenborg, George D. Chryssides and Ron Geaves also described a departure from divine connotations. Rawat continued delivering the four techniques of Knowledge which, according to Chryssides, afford self-understanding and self-realization, in a manner that is independent of culture and not bound to the traditions of India.In the early 1980s the late Margaret Singer included the DLM in the list of groups she studied. In 1979, Singer mentioned the Divine Light Movement as one of a set of groups that have "intense relationships between followers and a powerful idea or leader", in an article in Psychology Today. Downton refers to "the classic struggle between the bureaucratic and charismatic forces in history, which Max Weber considered the dynamic of social change. As a type of authority, bureaucracy leans toward order and efficiency, while charisma introduces creative disorder through heroic leaders who demand the personal loyalty of their followers in order to expand their potential to change the world. It was this conflict between the tendencies of order and disorder which Weber saw as the source of fundamental change in society".

According to a 2003 book by the sociologist Stephen J. Hunt, Rawat transformed his initial teachings in order to appeal to a Western context. He came to recognize that the Indian influences on his followers in the West were a hindrance to the wider acceptance of his teachings. He therefore changed the style of his message and relinquished the Hindu tradition, beliefs, and most of its original eastern religious practices. Hence, today the teachings do not concern themselves with reincarnation, heaven, or life after death. The movement now focuses entirely on "Knowledge", which is a set of simple instructions on how adherents should live. This Westernization of an essentially eastern message is not seen as a dilemma or contradiction. Once viewed by followers as Satguru or Perfect Master, he also appears to have surrendered his almost divine status as a guru. Now, the notion of spiritual growth is not derived, as with other gurus, from his personal charisma, but from the nature of his teachings and its benefit to the individual adherents to his movement. The major focus of Rawat is on stillness, peace, and contentment within the individual, and his 'Knowledge' consists of the techniques to obtain them. Knowledge, roughly translated, means the happiness of the true self-understanding. Each individual should seek to comprehend his or her true self. In turn, this brings a sense of well-being, joy, and harmony as one comes in contact with one's "own nature." The process of reaching the true self within can only be achieved by the individual, but with the guidance and help of a teacher. Hence, the movement seems to embrace aspects of world-rejection and world-affirmation. The tens of thousands of followers in the West do not see themselves as members of a religion, but the adherents of a system of teachings that extol the goal of enjoying life to the full. The emphasis is on individual, subjective experience, rather than on a body of dogma. The teachings provide a kind of practical mysticism. Rawat speaks not of God, but of the god or divinity within, the power that gives existence. He has occasionally referred to the existence of the two gods—the one created by humankind and the one which creates humankind. Although such references apparently suggest an acceptance of a creative, loving power, he distances himself and his teachings from any concept of religion. It is not clear whether it is possible to receive Knowledge from anyone other than Rawat. He claims only to encourage people to "experience the present reality of life now."

Van der Lans and Derks, while employed at the Catholic University, Nijmegen.wrote that "participation (in DLM) involves rejection of previous habits and lifestyle" and "...getting free from evil by eliminating the binding forces from one’s life". They further wrote that according to Maharaj Ji, "all evil should be attributed to the mind... the obstacle of freeing oneself from former bonds" and that "DLM’s concept of mind refers primarily to a state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust".

Jeanne Messer, a student of Rawat and a sociologist, writes that "Westerners approaching Eastern teachers from any school are confronted with constant reiteration that the mind is the barrier to enlightenment, whether enlightenment is described as complete nothingness or as perfect bliss or as knowledge of God. Needless to say, that truth could not be accessible to the mind. Westerners are generally accustomed to identifying themselves with the boundaries of their bodies, the thoughts in their minds, and with their emotions, such as depression or ecstasy; to be told that their identity is essentially different is to be informed of nothing. Rawat's devotees claim, however, that it is possible to experience that fact, whether or not the mind is willing to acquiesce.

An article published in the official magazine about religious movements of the Free university of Amsterdam, a private Protestant university, written by Wim Haan, a student of theology at a Pastoral and Theology school in a small town in the Netherlands states that the battle against the mind sometimes degenerated into complete irrationality, that sometimes premies branded every critical and objective approach as "mind", and that they often avoided discussions with outsiders because these discussions could possibly stimulate the mind. Haan wrote that the word "mind" was defined in the premie-community as "being conditioned" that is all alienating influences that made man stray off from his true nature. His article was based Haan's research of the Dutch branch of the DLM during two years.

The sociologist Ralph Larkin with Daniel A. Foss wrote in 1978 that the DLM "emphasized formal structure without substantive content." In response the religious scholar Dr. Ron Geaves, who is a student of Prem Rawat, accused them of bias, pointing to the number of students that were attracted to the DLM.

An article published on December 4 1987 in The Times of India, describes Rawat's mission as explaining to "people in general without any distinction of caste, color, race, stature, or wealth that the source of happiness, peace and contentment lies within one's own self. He is trying to prepare humanity to face and overcome the present day tussle and turmoil prevailing in the world in the name of achieving world peace, on individual basis. In fact what Maharaj Ji is trying to do is not being comprehended by most of the people, with the results that he is included in the category of those persons who have become mere machines to collect wealth, while Maharaj Ji has taken a pledge to complete this huge task without any monetary consideration."

Descriptions of the meditation techniques ("Knowledge")

The Knowledge that Prem Rawat speaks of comprises four techniques that he claims will help his students direct their senses within to experience inner peace. Students often describe the experience as "going within." The Prem Rawat Foundation describes the practice of Knowledge as having no bearing or compatibility problems with peoples' existing religious or spiritual belief system.Jeffrey K. Hadden cites Maharaji in saying that "Knowledge is a way to be able to take all your senses that have been going outside all your life, turn them around and put them inside to feel and to actually experience you... What you are looking for is inside of you."

According to George D. Chryssides, Knowledge was based on self-understanding, providing the practitioner with calmness, peace, and contentment, as the inner-self is identical with the divine, and that Maharaji emphasizes that Knowledge is universal, not Indian, in nature.

The author David V. Barrett writes in his 2001 book The New Believers, that the "the flamboyant and definitively Eastern-inspired Divine Light Mission" has matured into something new, changing its name to reflect a current emphasis as well as to distance itself from the past. Barrett asserts that the fact that Rawat came from a lineage of 'Perfect Masters' is no longer relevant, as that is not where the authority comes from, nor from the recognition of Rawat as the master by his student; rather, this comes from "the nature of the teachings and its benefit to the individual." He also writes that "the Divine Light movement used to be criticized for the devotion given to Maharaji, who was thought to live a life of luxury on the donations of his followers" but a spokesperson "clearly conscious of past criticism, is emphatic that Maharaji has never earned anything from Elan Vital or any other movement promoting his teachings." Barrett continues that "the experience is an individual, subjective experience rather than on a body of dogma, and in its Divine Light days the movement was sometimes criticized for this stressing of emotional experience over intellect."

During the period when the organization was at its largest, a student's access to the techniques was constrained through a layer of intermediaries. A mahatma or, in later times, an instructor would, in a "Knowledge selection" process, decide and choose which aspirants would receive the techniques. Once an aspirant was chosen, he or she would then be granted access to a "Knowledge session" in which the techniques were shown. The approach to receiving Rawat's techniques of Knowledge has become much less onerous since the year 2000. The use of personal mentors and instructors in smaller groups has largely been abandoned in favor of taped or live instruction by Rawat himself via satellite video or cable television programming along with on-line newsletters for information dissemination. Access to the techniques is now governed by a much less restrictive self-paced and self-assessed preparation process, perhaps reminiscent of a more open attitude prevalent during Rawat's initial foray into the West.

As of 2005, there is a self-paced process of preparation, called "The Keys," before a person is taught the techniques of Knowledge. Going through the Keys process involves watching video materials in which Maharaji presents the understanding necessary to learn the techniques of Knowledge. However, students must be at least eighteen years old and of legal age in their country in order to prepare for and be taught the techniques of Knowledge. The sixth Key is the “Knowledge Session”, in which persons ready to learn the techniques are taught by Rawat via a multimedia presentation available in fifty languages. These techniques are taught at no cost.

Criticism

Prem Rawat has at times been the subject of criticism from religious scholars, individuals related to anti-cult movements, articles in the press and media, and former members.

Jan van der Lans, a professor of psychology of religion at the Catholic University of Nijmegen (now Radboud University Nijmegen) wrote about followers of gurus in a book published in 1981 commissioned by the KSGV, a Christian-inspired Dutch association that organizes conferences and publishes articles and books related to faith, religion and mental health. Van der Lans wrote that Maharaji is an example of a guru who has become a charlatan leading a double life. On the one hand, he tried to remain loyal to the role in which he was forced and to the expectations of his students, yet on the other hand, his private life was one of idleness and pleasure, which was only known to small circle of insiders. According to van der Lans, one could consider him either a fraud or a victim of his surroundings. In 1986 van der Lans reported that compared to the educational level of the general Dutch population, high academic levels are overrepresented in Rawat's students

Kranenborg asserted that Jos Lammers, whom he labelled as an "ex-premie", made similar comments as van der Lans about Maharaji's lifestyle in his interview with the Dutch magazine Haagse Post. He further wrote that when Christians get into dialogue with premies that the lifestyle of the guru is of great importance. He argued that a satguru who drives an expensive car and owns a big yacht may not be a problem for premies, but it is a problem for Christians and that they should ask premies why Maharaj ji does not live what Kranenborg considers to be a normal and simple life.

The sociologist Stephen A. Kent described Prem Rawat's message as "banal" based on his personal experience with Rawat in the preface of his book and treats elsewhere in his book the criticism by the countercultural left on him in the 1970s.

The psychiatrist Saul V. Levine, who has published several articles about cults and new religious movements, wrote in an article titled Life in Cults, published in 1989, that public perception is that the Divine Light Mission, the Hare Krishna, the Unification Church, and the Children of God are seen as cults held in low esteem and that families' perceptions "that their children are being financially exploited" is one of the most pernicious and malevolent aspects of these groups, where "the leaders live in ostentation and offensive opulence." He also wrote that " in the Divine Light Mission, members are expected to turn over all material possessions and earnings to the religion and to abstain from alcohol, tobacco, meat, and sex".

Melton reports that "Maharaj Ji, who frequently acted like the teenager that he was in public, was seen as immature and hence unfit to be a religious leader."

An author initiated in Knowledge describes Rawat as being the subject of great controversy in India, "where he is also a major heretic."

Personal

Rawat lives with his wife in Malibu, California in the Unites States. They have four grown children. He is an experienced airline transport-rated and commercial pilot and holds a number of pilot ratings on jet airplanes and helicopters. His résumé discusses skills in computer graphics, computer-aided design, and development of aviation software. He is listed as co-inventor on a U.S. Patent for a world-time watch for aeronautic applications. A U.S. citizen since 1977, he reports that he supports himself and his family as a private investor, and that he has contributed to the success of several startup companies in various industries, including software.

Books by Prem Rawat

• Guru Maharaj Ji The living master: Quotes from Guru Maharaj Ji (1978) published by the Divine Light Mission
• Rawat, Prem Listen to the Cry of Your Own Heart - Something Wonderful Is Being Said, Visions International (1995)
• Rawat, Prem Clarity (2003) Published by The Prem Rawat Foundation 1st edition ISBN 0-9740627-1-5

Footnotes and references

1. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible, pp.200
2. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible, pp.206, 215, 219 and 233
3. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible The Life and Message of Prem Rawat -Mighty River Press -ISBN -10: 0-9788694-9-4
4. Hadden, Religions of the world, pp.428
   "The meditation techniques the Maharaji teaches today are the same he learned from his father, Hans Ji Maharaj, who, in turn, learned them from his spiritual teacher , 'Knowledge', claims Maharaji, 'is a way to be able to take all your senses that have been going outside all your life, turn them around and put them inside to feel and to actually experience you... "
5. Goring, Rosemary (Ed.). Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (1997) p.145, Wordsworth Editions, ISBN 1853263540
6. Melton, Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, pp.141-2 entry Divine Light Mission
   "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."
7. Melton. Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America pp 141-145.
   In 1970 Maharaj Ji announced his plans to carry the knowledge throughout the world and the following year, against his mother’s wishes, made his first visit to the West. A large crowd came to Colorado the next year to hear him give his first set of discourses in America. 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...The teachings of the Mission, particularly the public discourses of Maharaj Ji, were condemned as lacking in substance. Maharaj Ji, who frequently acted like the teenager that he was in public, was seen as immature and hence unfit to be a religious leader.
8. Stephen A. Kent From Slogans To Mantras- "I found his poorly delivered message to be banal".
9. 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."
10. 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.
11. a b Melton, Encyclopedia of American Religions-"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 his future role as teacher".
12. "The Prem Rawat Foundation website".
13. A.Cagan - Peace is Possible - page 3
14. Melton, Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, pp.141-2 entry Divine Light Mission
    "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."
15. 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.
    "There had been a presence in the UK since 1969, located in a basement flat in West Kensington and then in a semi-detached house in Golders Green, North London. This had come about as a result of four young British members of the counter-culture, taking the ‘hippy trail’ to India in 1968 discovering the young Prem Rawat and his teachings and requesting that a ‘mahatma’ be sent to London who could promote the message and show interested individuals the four techniques known as ‘knowledge’.
16. Navbharat Times, 10 November 1970 (from Hindi original)
    "A three-day event in commemoration of Sri Hans Ji Maharaj, the largest procession in Delhi history of 18-miles of processionists culminating in a public event at India Gate, where Sant Ji Maharaj addressed the large gathering" Hindustan Times, 9 November 1970 (English)"Roads in the Capital spilled over with 1,000,000 processionists, men, women and children marched from Indra Prasha Estate to the India Gate lawn. People had come from all over the country and belonged to several religions. A few Europeans dressed in white were also in the procession." Guinness Book of World Records, 1970
17. Kranenborg Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westenpp.64
    English translation "This prediction came true very soon. In 1969 Maharaj Ji sent the first disciple to the West. In the next year he held a speech for an audience of thousands of people in Delhi. This speech was known as 'the peace bomb' and was the start of the great mission to the West." Dutch original "Deze voorspelling gaat al snel in vervulling. In 1969 stuurt Maharaj ji de eerste discipel naar het Westen. In het daaropvolgende jaar houdt hij een toespraak in Delhi voor een gehoor van duizenden mensen. Deze toespraak staat bekend als 'de 'vredesbom' en is het begin van de grote zending naar het Westen."
18. ^ "Maharaj.org". 1999. Retrieved 1999-01-01. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
19. Pryor, The Survival of the Coolest, p. 148.
20. Brown, The Spiritual Tourist, pp. 197-198
21. 'Special Millenium '73 Edition' of the DLM publication Divine Times, page 2, under the heading 'A Festival for the Whole World': A LETTER FROM GURU MAHARAJ JI Bonn, Germany September 31, 1973
    ”As you all know Millenium '73 is being prepared for now. This festival has been organized by Divine Light Mission each year since 1967, in the memory of the late Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaji on His birthday. This year the most Holy and significant event in human history will take place in America.”
22. Prem Rawat September 30, 1973, published in 'Special Millennium '73 Edition' of the Divine Times, page 2, under the heading 'A Festival for the Whole World'
23. Carrol, Nothing Happened, pp. 248
    "Divine light Mission attracted twenty thousand devotees to the Houston Astrodome in November 1973."
24. "Guru Maharaj Ji", Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Michigan., Thomson Gale. 2007.
    Through the mid-1970s the rapidly developing movement ran into trouble, beginning with its inability to fill the Houston Astrodome in a highly publicized event, Millennium 73.
25. Melton Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, pp.141-2
26. Interview with John Wood of the Boston Globe with Guru Maharaj Ji in Newton, Massachusetts, August 3, 1973, published in And It Is Divine ~ Dec. 1973, Volume 2. Issue 2.
    Question: Guru Maharaji Ji, are you God? – Answer: No. My Knowledge is God.
27. Downton, James V. Sacred journeys: The conversion of young Americans to Divine Light Mission,(1979) Columbia University Press. ISBN # 0231041985
28. Ibid. Religious Requirements and Practices p. 1-6
29. Bowker, The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, pp.287
30. Leech, Soul Friend
31. Barret, The New Believers (2003) pp.325
32. Cagan, A. Peace Is Possible, 2007, pp.200: "At the wedding, in keeping with Indian tradition, he gave his new wife a new name — Durga Ji, an Indian goddess seen as the embodiment of feminine and creative energy."
33. "Guru Maharaj Ji", Biography Resource Center, Thomson Gale, 2007: "Then in 1974, Maharaj married his 24-year-old secretary, whom he described as an incarnation of the Hindu goddess Durga."
34. "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."
35. "Guru Tries to Take Control of Mission" in The Ruston Daily Leader, April 9, 1975: "Earlier this month, the guru's mother issued a statement in New Delhi saying she had disowned her son because of his pursuit of 'a despicable, nonspiritual way of life.' Sources close to Rajeshwari Devi said she was upset because of her son's materialistic lifestyle, including a fondness for expensive homes and sports cars, and because of his marriage last year to his secretary."
36. Gawenda, Michael, Guru Maharaj Ji Puts his Case The Age March 24 1982
37. Price, The Divine Light Mission as a social organization. pp.279-96
    "Immediately following Maharaj Ji's marriage a struggle for power took place within the Holy Family itself. Maharaj Ji was now sixteen years old. He had the knowledge that his personal following in the West was well established. It is likely that he felt the time had come to take the reins of power from his mother, who still dominated the mission and had a strong hold over most of the mahatmas, all of whom were born and brought up in India. Another factor may well have been the financial independence of Maharaj Ji, which he enjoys through the generosity of his devotees. Note 27: Contributions from premies throughout the world allow Maharaj Ji to follow the life style of an American millionaire. He has a house (in his wife's name), an Aston Martin, a boat, a helicopter, the use of fine houses (divine residences) in most European countries as well as South America, Australia and New Zealand, and an income which allows him to run a household and support his wife and children, his brother, Raja Ji, and his wife, Claudia. In addition, his entourage of family, close officials and mahatmas are all financed on their frequent trips around the globe to attend the mission's festivals."
38. Geaves, Ron entry “Elan Vital” in the book “New Religions: A Guide: New Religious Movements, Sects and Alternative Spiritualities” pp.201-202, edited by Christopher Partridge, 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.”
39. Partial list of honors The Prem Rawat Foundation website
40. Cagan - page ?
41. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat, pp.229
42. Cagan - Peace is Possible -page229
43. B/E Aerospace to buy Aircraft Modular Products. The South Florida Business Journal, April 1998 Available online
44. Melton, Encyclopedia of American Religions.
    "In the early 1980s, Rawat moved to disband the Divine Light Mission and personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion, disbanding the mission, he founded Elan Vital, an organization 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.
45. Miller, America's Alternative Religions, pp.474
46. Chryssides, George D., Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements pp.210-1, Scarecrow Press (2001) ISBN 0-8108-4095-2
    "Maharaji progressively dissolved the Divine Light Mission, closing the ashrams, affirming his own status as a master rather than a divine leader, and emphasizing that the Knowledge is universal, non Indian, in nature" "This Knowledge was self-understanding, yielding calmness, peace, and contentment, since the innermost self is identical with the divine. Knowledge is attained through initiation, which provides four techniques that allow the practitioner to go within.
47. Miller, America's Alternative Religions, pp.474
48. Cagan, A. Peace is Possible -pp 255, 266
49. http://www.contact-info.net/broadcasts.cfm
50. http://www.tprf.org/prem_rawat.htm
51. Conversation with Prem Rawat, Available online. (Retrieved January 2006)
52. "Words of Peace" by Maharaji receives TV Award in Brazil" Press release.
53. The Prem Rawat Foundation
54. "Young professionals from 42 countries meet in Malmö to promote international understanding". Rotary International. June 7, 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
55. Guidestar report for non-profit organizations.Available online
56. Humanitarian Initiatives The Prem Rawat Foundation (Retrieved January 2006)
57. Prem Rawat Inaugurates First 'Food for People' Facility in Northeastern India (Retrieved March 25 2006)
58. "Charity report". BBB Wise Giving Alliance. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |retrieved= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
59. http://www.tprf.org/Prem_Rawat_press_releases/Prem_Rawat_addreses_over_3_million_in_India_events.htm
60. Hadden & Elliot, ;;Religions of the world: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of beliefs and practices pp.428
    "The meditation techniques the Maharaji teaches today are the same he learned from his father, Hansji Maharaj, who, in turn, learned them from his spiritual teacher , 'Knowledge', claims Maharaji, 'is a way to be able to take all your senses that have been going outside all your life, turn them around and put them inside to feel and to actually experience you... What you are looking for is inside of you.'"
61. Kranenborg, Reender, Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West
62. Geaves, R. R., From Totapuri to Maharaji: Reflections on a Lineage (Parampara), (2002). Paper presented at the 27th Spalding Symposium on Indian Religions, Oxford. March 2002.
63. 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 pp.44-62
64. Downton - Sacred journeys. ”During 1971, there were social forces encouraging the development of millenarian beliefs within the Mission. They were developed in part by the carryover of millennial thinking from the counterculture; by the psychological trappings of surrender and idealization; by the guru's mother, whose satsang was full of references to his divine nature; and partly by the guru, himself, for letting others cast him in the role of the Lord. Given the social pressures within the premie community which reinforced these beliefs, there was little hope premies would be able to relax the hold that their beliefs and concepts had over them....From the beginning, Guru Maharaj Ji appealed to premies to give up their beliefs and concepts so that they might experience the Knowledge, or life force, more fully. This, as I have said, is one of the chief goals of gurus, to transform their followers' perceptions of the world through deconditioning. Yet Guru Maharaj Ji's emphasis on giving up beliefs and concepts did not prevent premies from adopting a fairly rigid set of ideas about his divinity and the coming of a new age.”
65. John Wood's of the Boston Globe in Newton, Massachusetts, August 3, 1973, published in And It Is Divine ~ Dec. 1973, Volume 2. Issue 2. Question: Guru Maharaji Ji, are you God? – Answer: No. My Knowledge is God.
66. Richard M. Levine, The Seventies, 2000, p. 104
    "Reporter: "Are you the Messiah foretold in the Bible?; Maharaji Ji: Please do not presume me as that. Respect me as a humble servant of God trying to establish peace in this world"
67. Tom Snyder, The Tomorrow Show, 1973
68. Grenley, Peter Friday, September 3 1971 News Journal, Mansfield, Ohio. "I Was A Teen-Age Guru ...Story Of Maharaji Of India" Newspaper Archive.com
    When he is specifically asked whether or not he considers himself a human, however, he pauses, as though figuring out the answer. "Yes, I am a human," he says finally. "Hands bone, lungs. But guru is greater than God because if you go to guru, guru will show you God."
69. Time Magazine 2 November 1972 Junior Guru"
70. Collier, Soul rush
    "Premies who believe that Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord have at least some actual basis for their belief. Through the Knowledge, most premies were experiencing an unusually great degree of happiness and peace of mind. Given my own experiences in Knowledge, if I were a religious person, I might easily have thought Guru Maharaj Ji was the Lord. After all, through the Knowledge he had taught me to do something I had wanted to do all my life and had never been able to. He taught me to consciously unlock the kingdom of energy, power, and love inside myself, to get bacl; inside of the East Hampton wave on a permanent basis. Now from all signs, that deepest want in me was satisfied. At any time I wanted to, I could meditate and be right there. For a religious person this could easily seem like adequate proof for identifying a divinity..In the Divine Light Mission there are two groups of people. There are those who sincerely believe that Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord of Creation here in the flesh to save the world. And then there are those who know him a little better than that. They relate to him in a more human way... to them he is more of a teacher, a guide, a co-conspirator in their personal pursuit of a more heavenly way of life. I have always been in this second group of people... as charming and wise as Guru Maharaj Ji has seemed to me on occasion, I have never found any basis on which to nominate him Lord. Guru Maharaj Ji, though he has never made a definitive statement on his own opinion of his own divinity, generally encourages whatever view is held by the people he is with." Guru Maharaj Ji, though he has never made a definitive statement on his own opinion of his own divinity, generally encourages whatever view is held by the people he is with. Addressing several hundred thousand ecstatic Indian devotees, prepared for his message by a four-thousand-year cultural tradition, he declares, 'I am the source of peace in this world . . . surrender the reins of your life unto me and I will give you salvation.' On national television in the United States he says sheepishly, with his hands folded in his lap, 'I am just a humble servant of God.' "
71. Downton, "Sacred Journeys" "The end of 1973 saw Guru Maharaj Ji breaking away from his mother and his Indian past... he became more fully westernized... many of the movement's Indian traditions and rituals were eliminated...the Mission was moving in a more secular direction."
72. Downton. Sacred Journeys pp.199
    Although there were still residues of belief in his divinity, in 1976, the vast majority viewed the guru primarily as their spiritual teacher, guide , and inspiration. Having quit imputing great powers to Guru Maharaj Ji by the end of 1976, premies assumed much more responsibility for their own spiritual growth. From the beginning Guru Maharaj Ji appealed to premies to give up their beliefs and concepts so that the might experience the Knowledge, or life force more fully Yet Guru Maharaj Ji's emphasis on giving up beliefs and concepts, did not prevent premies from adopting a fairly rigid set of ideas about his divinity and the coming of a new age.
73. Downton, James V., Sacred journeys: The conversion of young Americans to Divine Light Mission, (1979) Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-04198-5 - page 211 - "To the surprise of everyone who had come to the Atlantic City program at the close of 1976, Guru Maharaj Ji appeared in his Krishna costume, a majestic looking robe and crown he had not worn since 1975. The sight of him in his ceremonial best brought premies to their feet singing, as nostalgia for the early days caught them up in feelings of devotion once more.... With so many premies coming out in support of devotion, there has been a shift away from secular tendencies back to ritual and messianic beliefs and practices....elevating the guru to a much greater place in their practice of the Knowledge
74. Derks, Frans, and Jan M. van der Lans. 1983. “Subgroups in Divine Light Mission Membership: A Comment on Downton” in the book “Of Gods and Men: New Religious Movements in the West.” Macon edited by Eileen Barker, GA: Mercer University Press, (1984), ISBN 0-86554-095-0 pages 303-308 copyright © 1983 Mercer University Press
    ”However, in 1975 there was a schism within the movement. Guru Maharaj Ji's mother did not approve of his marriage to his American secretary and dismissed him as the movement's leader. The American and European adherents did not accept his dismissal and remained faithful to him. The movement split up into an Eastern and Western branch. The Western branch tried to smother its Hinduistic background and started to emphasize Guru Maharaj Ji as a personification of ideology. This change in ideology may. be illustrated by the fact that since then, Guru Maharaj Ji's father, Shri Hans, the movement's founder, became less important and was much less referred to in the movement's journal. It may further be illustrated by the differences in initiation policy before and after 1975. Before 1975 it was sufficient to have a desperate longing for "Knowledge" (in the sense Divine Light Mission uses this term); after 1975 one had to accept Guru Maharaj Ji as a personal saviour in order to become a member.”
75. 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 Prem Rawat does not lay claim to any special powers, does not heal and has stated sardonically that the last thing he would want is access to anyone else’s mind and he encourages would-be students to think for themselves, delaying formal teaching of the four techniques for at least five months during which time they should listen and resolve any questions.
76. Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
77. Hummel Reinhart, Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, pp.79 Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-170-05609-3
78. Downton - "a premie asked him what he meant when he used the term "Guru Maharaj Ji." Question: "It confuses me when you speak of Guru Maharaj Ji and yourself as different-that Maharaj Ji has taught you or Maharaj Ji teaches or leads you-when you're Maharaj Ji." Answer: "Guru Maharaj Ji that gave me this Knowledge is my guru and that's whom I am referring to. Of course it's not physical. What I am actually referring to is that omnipotent power." Question: "You mean God?" Answer: "Well, we can't really harness Him down into words. It would be kind of hard."
79. Melton, J. Gordon The Encyclopedia Handbook of Cults in America p.143, Garland Publishing (1986) ISBN 0-8240-9036-5
80. Melton, Encyclopedia of American Religions
    "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 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.
81. Kranenborg, Neohindoeïstische bewegingen in Nederland: een encyclopedisch overzicht, pp.178
    "Zij onterfde hem spiritueel, in feite werd hij de beweging uitgezet. Maharaji ging zelfstandig verder, zij het met minder pretenties dan voorheen. Zo sprak hij sindsdien niet meer in goddelijke termen over zichzelf, maar noemde zich 'humanitarian leader'" (translation: "She disinherited him spiritually. In fact, he was expelled from the movement. Maharaji continued on independently, with less claims pretensions than in the past, not no longer speaking with divine terms about himself, but calling himself instead as an 'humanitarian leader'."
82. ^ Ron Geaves (2004). "From Divine Light Mission to Elan Vital and Beyond: An Exploration of Change and Adaptation". Nova Religio. 7 (3): 45–62.
83. Chryssides, Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements pp.115-6,
    Maharaji delivers the four meditative techniques known as the Knowledge which featured in DLM and which afford self-understanding and self-realization, but he insists that such Knowledge is independent of culture and is by no means bound to the religious traditions of India.
84. "Coming Out of the Cults", Psychology Today, January 1979.
    The people I have studied, however, come from groups in the last, narrow band of the spectrum: groups such as the Children of God, the Unification Church of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, the Krishna Consciousness movement, the Divine Light Mission, and the Church of Scientology.
85. Downton, "Sacred Journeys -Against a background of increasing secularization and bureaucratization, premies were ready for a charismatic renewal. This is the classic struggle between the bureaucratic and charismatic forces in history, which Max Weber considered the dynamic of social change. As a type of authority, bureaucracy leans toward order and efficiency, while charisma introduces creative disorder through heroic leaders who demand the personal loyalty of their followers in order to expand their potential to change the world. It was this conflict between the tendencies of order and disorder which Weber saw as the source of fundamental change in society"..
86. Stephen J. Hunt 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. It was his young age which made him different from other eastern gurus who had established similar Hindu-inspired movements at the time. He was the son of Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, who began the DLM in India in 1960, based on the teachings of his own variety of enlightenment through the acquisition of spiritual knowledge. When his father died in 1966, the Guru Maharaji announced himself as the new master and started his own teaching. His global tour in 1971 helped to establish a large following in Britain and the USA. In 1973, he held what was intended to have been a vast, much publicized event in the Houston Astrodome. 'Millenium '73' was mean to launch the spiritual millenium, but the event attracted very few and had little wider influence. Perhaps because of this failure, Maharaji transformed his initial teachings in order to appeal to a Western context. He came to recognize that the Indian influences on his followers in the West were a hindrance to the wider acceptance of his teachings. He therefore changed the style of his message and relinquished the the Hindu tradition, beliefs, and most of its original eastern religious practices. Hence, today the teachings do not concern themselves with reincarnation, heaven, or life after death. The movement now focuses entirely on "Knowledge", which is a set of simple instructions on how adherents should live. This Westernization of an essentially eastern message is not seen as a dilemma or contradiction. In the early 1980's, Maharaji altered the name of the movement to Elan Vital to reflect this change in emphasis. Once viewed by followers as Satguru or Perfect Master, he also appears to have surrendered his almost divine status as a guru. Now, the notion of spiritual growth is not derived, as with other gurus, from his personal charisma, but from the nature of his teachings and its benefit to the individual adherents to his movement. Maharaji also dismantled the structure of ashrams (communal homes). The major focus of Maharaji is on stillness, peace, and contentment within the individual, and his 'Knowledge' consists of the techniques to obtain them. Knowledge, roughly translated, means the happiness of the true self-understanding. Each individual should seek to comprehend his or her true self. In turn, this brings a sense of well-being, joy, and harmony as one comes in contact with one's "own nature." The Knowledge includes four secret meditation procedures: Light, Music, Nectar and Word. The process of reaching the true self within can only be achieved by the individual, but with the guidance and help of a teacher. Hence, the movement seems to embrace aspects of world-rejection and world-affirmation. The tens of thousands of followers in the West do not see themselves as members of a religion, but the adherents of a system of teachings that extol the goal of enjoying life to the full. For Elan Vital, the emphasis is on individual, subjective experience, rather than on a body of dogma. The teachings provide a kind of practical mysticism. Maharaji speaks not of God, but of the god or divinity within, the power that gives existence. He has occasionally referred to the existence of the two gods—the one created by humankind and the one which creates humankind. Although such references apparently suggest an acceptance of a creative, loving power, he distances himself and his teachings from any concept of religion. It is not clear whether it is possible to receive Knowledge from anyone other than Maharaji. He claims only to encourage people to "experience the present reality of life now." Leaving his more ascetic life behind him, he does not personally eschews material possessions. Over time, critics have focused on what appears to be his opulent lifestyle and argue that it is supported largely by the donations of his followers. However, deliberately keeping a low profile has meant that the movement has generally managed to escape the gaze of publicity that surrounds other NRMs.
87. Lans & Derks, Premies Versus Sannyasins
    "A second similarity is that in both movements, participation involves rejection of previous habits and lifestyle. According to Maharaj Ji, all evil should be attributed to the mind, while for Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, the ego is the responsible agent. Apparently, these merely represent linguistic variants to indicate the same obstacle of freeing oneself from former bonds, but in essence they refer to different realities. DLM’s concept of mind refers primarily to a state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust. The ego, on the other hand (in Bhagwan’s terminology), is the symbolization of all the ideas, norms, and values which one has interiorized in the course of socialization. In other words, it represents the influence that the surrounding society has had on the subject. So, although both movements preach a similar doctrine (getting free from evil by eliminating the binding forces from one’s life), the fact that these binding forces are conceptualized differently makes" Jan M. van der Lans is associate professor of psychology of culture and religion at Catholic University, Nijmegen. He has published several books and articles on new religious movements. Frans Derks is a research assistant with the Netherlands Organization for the Advancement of Pure Research (Z.W.O.). lie is currently working at the department of psychology of culture and religion at Catholic University. Nijmegen to investigate the relationship between religious attitudes and cognitive psychology.
88. The New Religious Consciousness. Glock, Charles Y., and Bellah, Robert N. (Editors). (1976). Jeanne Messer author - Westerners approaching Eastern teachers from any school are confronted with constant reiteration that the mind is the barrier to enlightenment, whether enlightenment is described as complete nothingness or as perfect bliss or as knowledge of God. Needless to say, that truth could not be accessible to the mind. Westerners are generally accustomed to identifying themselves with the boundaries of their bodies, the thoughts in their minds, and with their emotions, such as depression or ecstasy; to be told that their identity is essentially different is to be informed of nothing. Maharaj Ji's devotees claim, however, that it is possible to experience that fact, whether or not the mind is willing to acquiesce. There is no way-functionally at least-to bypass the premises of rationalism except to introduce experience where the mind says experience is not possible-that is, to provide incontrovertible evidence to which the mind has no alternative but to acquiesce. To assert that the mind cannot comprehend God is not to assert that the man cannot, if one is accustomed to that distinction; but many of us are not so accustomed, and have long asserted that God is an entity in whom one believes, an entity, that is, beyond experience.
89. Haan, Wim (Dutch language) De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981. ISBN 90-242-2341-5 Note: Haan was part of a critical movement within the Catholic church (Based mainly on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission.) Dutch orginal:
    "Het woordje "mind" wordt binnen de premie-gemeenschap gedefinieerd als de 'gekonditioneerdheid', d.w.z. alle vervreemdende invloeden die de mens van zijn ware aard hebben doen afdwalen.
    Soms ontaardt de strijd die tegen dit woord wordt gevoerd echter in een volstrekte irrationaliteit. Elke kritiek en objektieve benadering wordt dan als mind bestempeld. Als iemand zich slecht voelt of gedurende lange tijd geen goede ervaringen heeft heeft tijdens zijn meditatie, dan is de betreffende persoon 'in zijn mind'. Gesprekken met buitenstaanders worden vaak uit de weg gegaan, omdat dat wel eens de mind zou kunnen stimuleren."
90. Foss, Daniel, and Ralph Larkin. "Worshipping the Absurd: The Negation of Social Causality Among the Followers of the Guru Maharaji'ji." Sociological Analysis, 39 (1978): 157-164.
91. The Times of India, December 4 1987
92. Frequently Asked Questions Available online (Retrieved January 2006)
93. Chryssides, George D. Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements pp.210-1, Scarecrow Press (2001) ISBN 0-8108-4095-2
    "Maharaji progressively dissolved the Divine Light Mission, closing the ashrams, affirming his own status as a master rather than a divine leader, and empahasizing that the Knowledge is universal, non Indian, in nature" "This Knowledge was self-understanding, yielding calmness, peace, and contentment, since the innermost self is identical with the divine. Knowledge is attained through initiation, which provides four techniques that allow the practitioner to go within.
94. Barrett 2001, page 327
    "Unusually, the fact that Maharaji came from a lineage of 'Perfect Masters' is no longer relevant to the reformed movement. This is not where the authority comes from, nor the recognition of Maharaji as the master by his student; this comes rather from the nature of the teaching and its benefit to the individual. The Divine Light movement used to be criticized for the devotion given to Maharaji, who was thought to live a life of luxury on the donations of his followers; Whittaker, clearly conscious of past criticism, is emphatic that Maharaji has never earned anything from Elan Vital or any other movement promoting his teachings. At the heart of Elan Vital is this Knowledge — loosely, the joy of true self-knowledge. The Knowledge includes four meditation techniques; these have some similarities in other Sant-Mat-derived movements, and may derive originally from surat shab yoga. The experience is on individual, subjective inner experience of peace rather than on a body of dogma. In its Divine Light days, the movement was sometimes criticized for this stressing of experience over intellect. The teaching could perhaps best described as practical mysticism."
95. Visions International, Broadcast schedule of Maharaji's addresses (Retrieved January 2006)
96. The Keys Retrieved November, 2005
97. The Prem Rawat Foundation. "About The Keys". {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |accessyear= and |accessmonthday= (help)
98. KSGV: Objectives
    "Het KSGV onderneemt zijn activiteiten vanuit een christelijke inspiratie."
99. Lans, Jan van der (Dutch language) Volgelingen van de goeroe: Hedendaagse religieuze bewegingen in Nederland page 117, written upon request for the KSGV published by Ambo, Baarn, 1981 ISBN 90-263-0521-4
100. Premies Versus Sannyasins by Jan van der Lans and Dr. Frans Derks Update X 2 June 1986 http://www.dci.dk/en/?article=599
101. Lans, Jan van der (Dutch language) Volgelingen van de goeroe: Hedendaagse religieuze bewegingen in Nederland page 117, written upon request for the KSGV published by Ambo, Baarn, 1981 ISBN 90-263-0521-4
102. Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
103. Kent, Stephen A. From slogans to mantras: social protest and religious conversion in the late Vietnam war era, Syracuse University press, 2001, ISBN 0-8156-2948-6
104. Levine, Saul V. Life in the Cults, article that appeared in the book edited by Marc Galanter M.D., (1989), Cults and new religious movements: a report of the committee on psychiatry and religion of the American Psychiatric Association, ISBN 0-89042-212-5
105. Melton. Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in Americapp 141-145
106. 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
107. Cagan, A., Peace is Possible, pp.228
108. U.S. Patent Office
109. "Guru Maharaj Ji becomes a citizen of the US", Rocky Mountain News, Wednesday, October 19 1977, Denver, Colorado, USA

Bibliographical references

• Aagaard, Johannes, Who Is Who In Guruism? (1980), in Update, Vol. 4.3, October 1980
• Barret, David V., The New Believers: A Survey of Sects, Cults and Alternative Religions (2001), Cassel, ISBN 1-84403-040-7
• Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Active New Religions, Sects, and Cults, (1997), ISBN 0-8239-1505-0
• Bowker, John (Ed.), The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, Oxford University Press, New York (1997) ISBN 0-19-213965-7
• Brown, Mick The Spiritual Tourist, Bloomsbury Publishing 1998, ISBN 1-58234-034-X
• Cagan, Andrea, Peace Is Possible: The Life and Message of Prem Rawat, Mighty River Press (2007), ISBN 978-0978869496
• Cameron, Charles (Ed.), Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji? (1973), Bantam Books, Inc.
• Carrol, Peter N. Nothing Happened: The Tragedy and Promise of America in the 1970s, Holt, Rinehart and Winston (1982), ISBN 0030583195
• Chryssides, George D., Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements, Scarecrow Press (2001) ISBN 0-8108-4095-2
• Collier, Sophia, Soul rush: The odyssey of a young woman of the '70s, Morrow (1978), ISBN 0-688-03276-1
• Derks, Frans and Jan van der Lans Subgroups in Divine Light Mission Membership: A Comment on Downton in the book Of Gods and Men: New Religious Movements in the West. Macon edited by 'Eileen Barker, GA: Mercer University Press, (1984), ISBN 0-86554-095-0 pages 303-308 copyright © 1983 Mercer University Press
• Derks, Frans and Jan van der Lans Premies versus sannyasins published in Update nr. X 2 June 1986 available online
• Downton, James V., Sacred journeys: The conversion of young Americans to Divine Light Mission,(1979) Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-04198-5
• DuPertuis, Lucy (Summer 1986), How people recognize charisma: the case of darshan in Radhasoami and Divine Light Mission Sociological Analysis, University of Guam, Vol 47, No 2
• Fahlbusch E., Lochman J. M., Mbiti J., Pelikan J., Vischer L, Barret D. (Eds.) The Encyclopedia of Christianity (1998), ISBN 90-04-11316-9
• Frankiel, Sandra S. in Lippy, Charles H. and Williams. Peter W. (Eds.) Encyclopedia of the American Religious Experience, p.1521, Charles Scribner's Sons (1988), ISBN 0-684-18863-5 (Vol III)
• Geaves, Ron (2002), From Divine Light Mission to Elan Vital and Beyond: an Exploration of Change and Adaptation, 2002 International Conference on Minority Religions, Social Change and Freedom of Conscience, University of Utah at Salt Lake City
• Geaves, Ron, From Totapuri to Maharaji: Reflections on a Lineage (Parampara),. Paper presented at the 27th Spalding Symposium on Indian Religions, Oxford. March 2002.
• 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.
• Goring, Rosemary (Ed.). Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (1997) Wordsworth Editions, ISBN 1-85326-354-0
• Haan, Wim, De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981 (Dutch language) ISBN 90-242-2341-5.
• Hadden, Jeffrey K. and Elliot III, Eugene M., Divine Light Mission/Elan Vital in Melton, Gordon J. and Bauman, Martin (Eds.) "Religions of the world: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of beliefs and practices" ABC-CLIO (2002), ISBN 1-57607-223-1
• Hans Jayanti (2000), DUO, New Delhi, Book published in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Shri Hans' birth.
• Hinnells, John (Editor), The Penguin Dictionary of Religions (1997), ISBN 0-14-051261-6
• Kent, Stephen A. From slogans to mantras: social protest and religious conversion in the late Vietnam war era, Syracuse University press, 2001, ISBN 0-8156-2948-6
• Hunt, Stephen J. Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction (2003), pp.116-7, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-3410-8
• Kent, Stephen A. From slogans to mantras: social protest and religious conversion in the late Vietnam war era, Syracuse University press, 2001, ISBN 0-8156-2948-6
• Kranenborg, Reender Dr. (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen ("Eastern faith movements in the West") (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
• Kranenborg, Reender, Neohindoeïstische bewegingen in Nederland: een encyclopedisch overzicht, Kampen Kok cop. (2002)
• Lans, Jan van der and Dr. Frans Derks, Premies Versus Sannyasins in “Update: A Quarterly Journal on New Religious Movements”, X/2 (June 1986)
• Lans, Jan van der Dr. Volgelingen van de goeroe: Hedendaagse religieuze bewegingen in Nederland (Dutch language), Ambo, Baarn, 1981 ISBN 90-263-0521-4
• Lee, Raymond L M., Sacred Tensions: Modernity and Religious Transformation in Malaysia (1997), The University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 1-57003-167-3
• Leech, Keneth. Soul Friend (2001), Morehouse Group, ISBN 0-8192-1888-X
• Levine, Richard Michael. "Who is your guru" in the 1973 section of The Seventies: A Tumultuous Decade Reconsidered (Book by Rolling Stone). Little, Brown and Company (2000). ISBN 0-316-81547-0
• Levine, Saul V. Life in the Cultsin Galanter, Mark M.D., Cults and new religious movements: a report of the committee on psychiatry and religion of the American Psychiatric Association (1989), ISBN 0-89042-212-5
• Lewis, James, The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religionsm Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-57392-888-7
• Lippy, Charles H., Pluralism Comes of Age: American Religious Culture in the Twentieth Century, M. E. Sharpe (2002), ISBN 0-7656-0151-6
• McGuire, Meredith B. Religion: the Social Context 5th edition (2002) ISBN 0-534-54126-7
• Melton, Gordon J., Encyclopedia of American Religions 7th edition. Thomson (2003), ISBN 0-78766-384-0
• Melton, Gordon J., Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America, (1986), Garland Publishing, ISBN 0-8240-9036-5.
• Miller, Tim (Ed.) America's Alternative Religions (S U N Y Series in Religious Studies) (1995) State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-2397-2
• Palmer, Spencer J. P. and Keller R. R., Religions of the World: A Latter-day Saint View, Brigham Young University (1997) ISBN 0-8425-2350-2
• Price, Maeve, The Divine Light Mission as a social organization. (note 1) Sociological Review, 27(1979)
• Pryor, William, The Survival of the Coolest: A Darwin's Death Defying Journey Into the Interior of Addiction (2004), Clear Press, ISBN 1-904555-13-6
• Rawat, Prem and Wolf, Burt. Inner Journey: A spirited conversation about self-discovery (DVD). ISBN 0-9740627-0-7
• Rawat, Prem, Maharaji at Griffith University (2004) ISBN 0-9740627-2-3
• Rigopoulos, Antonio The life and teachings of Sai Baba of Shirdi State University of New York press, Albany, (1993) ISBN 0-7914-1268-7
• (In Dutch:) Schnabel, Paul. Tussen stigma en charisma: nieuwe religieuze bewegingen en geestelijke volksgezondheid ("Between stigma and charisma: new religious movements and mental health"). Erasmus University Rotterdam, Faculty of Medicine, Ph.D. thesis, 1982. Deventer, Van Loghum Slaterus, ISBN 90-6001-746-3.
• The Prem Rawat Foundation presents: Maharaji at Sanders Theatre, Harvard University (2005) ISBN 0-9740627-3-1
• U. S. Department of the Army, Religious Requirements and Practices of Certain Selected Groups: A Handbook for Chaplains (2001), The Minerva Group, ISBN 0-89875-607-3

External links

Official websites of Prem Rawat

• 'Maharaji', Prem Rawat's personal website. Available in 16 languages.
• The Prem Rawat Foundation
• The Keys website - Keys for preparing to receive the techniques of Knowledge
• Broadcasts, online radio, audio-visual materials about Maharaji and his message, Europe - Available in 11 languages
• Raj Vidya Kender, India
• Portal for contact information Information about volunteer groups world-wide, news, etc.
• Excerpts from recent addresses

Other

• Manav Dharam website of Sat Pal, Prem Rawat's elder brother who claims to be a Satguru

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