Prem Rawat (Prem Pal Singh Rawat) whose devotees call him Maharaji (meaning Ultimate Ruler) first came to attention in the West as Guru Maharaj Ji - the self-proclaimed Perfect Master and Lord of the Universe ridiculed in the media as a fat, squeaky-voiced God boy. He had inherited his titles and position as the Satguru, The True Revealer of Light and Spiritual Master of the Divine Light Mission, India (Divya Sandesh Parishad) when his father died in 1966. His father, Hans Rawat, was a successful Indian guru, self titled HRH (His Royal Highness) Yogiraj Param Sant Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaj. As a child the youngest Rawat son was informally called Sant Ji, more formally Balyogeshwar ("Born King of the Yogis") and even more formally Param Sant Satgurudev Shri Sant Ji Maharaj. In the West Rawat dropped these more verbose titles in the early 1980's and instructed his followers to call him Maharaji. He has also changed the names of his organisations many times: Divine Light Mission (DLM), World Welfare Association (WWA), World Peace Corps (WPC) and Divine United Organisation (DUO) became Elan Vital in the early 1980's and in 2001 The Prem Rawat Foundation (TPRF) was created and from 2010 his major orgs are Words Of Peace Global (WOPG) registered in Holland, Words of Peace International (WOPI) in the USA, HDSK (Human Development through Self Knowledge) in Great Britain and Raj Vidya Kender (Royal Knowledge Society) in India. He no longer claims to be an Incarnation of God but an internationally famous humanitarian leader and teacher of peace. He's neither.

25th Anniversary Divine Times Magazine

Special Edition 17 July 1996

A one-off magazine published in 1996 as an ego stroke to Prem Rawat on the 25th anniversary of his arrival in the 'West'. It demonstrates the complete evolution of the original Divine Light Mission movement claiming it would bring peace to the world through meditation into a cult of aging devotees adoring Prem Rawat.

The word 'meditation' and the phrase "Guru Maharaj Ji" are never mentioned. It was sold to "People with Knowledge" (PWKs) and "People Aspiring to Receiving the Gift of Maharaji's Techniques of Meditation." (PARGOMTOMs)

Words such as 'historic' are used in this magazine but they refer to events in Prem Rawat's life. Over 10 years have passed since this magazine was published and there is no evidence that Rawat will be considered noteworthy except as a footnote in the history of minor religious charlatans of the late 20th century.

• page 1 Thank You for 25 Incredible Years
  
  
• page 2 Happy Anniversary - Mark Winter, A close encounter - Glen Whittaker
  
  
• page 3 Then, the world changed - Gary Girard: The world might have changed for a few American followers of the young Prem Rawat but Rawat's arrival in the West provided nothing for the wider society but a few laughs at the expense of the fat Godboy who guzzled ice-cream, loved fancy cars and had an ulcer at age 14.
  
  
• page 4 They were called hippies but I called them happies - Mahatma Gurucharnanand: The one-time "Great Soul" leaves the major figure in his early success out of the story. Another one-time "Great Soul" and the only Western 'mahatma', Mahatma Saphlanand or Brian Kitt, a formerly flamboyant figure in the London psychedelic scene. As Saphlanand became disillusioned with Rawat quite early his important role has been written out of the DLM's early history.
  
  
• page 6 At 6am Golders Green looked like paradise - Norma Wilshaw, Poem - Milky Cole: The young Prem Rawat had the gift of inspiring terrible poetry in some of his followers. This gift later developed into Rawat writing the terrible poetry himself. This proved a far more efficient method of producng terrible poetry.
  
  
• page 7 An amazing gift - Bobby Hendry (Rawat's cook), My search was over - Giorgio Benoffi: Hendry has continued to fail in his life's quest to find a satisfactory way of thanking Rawat. Fair enough, nothing deserves nothing. Grunbaum becomes paralyzed and overwhelmed at the sight of Rawat shaking hands with himself.
  
  
• page 8 Poster for Rawat speaking at Central Hall, Westminster, November 2, 1971
  
  
• page 9 On wings of love - Bill Bach, A flight like no other - Gloria Bianco
  
  
• page 10 A remarkable meeting - Julian West, Thank You - John Coletta, How I met Maharaji - Ron Coletta
  
  
• page 11 I Enjoyed Then, I Enjoy Now - Interview with Prem Rawat
  
  
• page 15 He came from the heart and spoke to my heart - Richard Profumo, I was thirsty for the truth - Angelo Malfitano, This time I went straight away - Joan Apter
  
  
• page 16 London: The Early Years
  
  
• page 18 Amazing Grace - David Passes: This magical tale includes mention of a special invitation the simple young Rawat sent to the Queen of England inviting her to attend one of his speeches. It was written in gold on a blue velvet scroll, no doubt what He considered the height of sophistication and class. Mike Finch, who drove the young Rawat to the concert reports that Ms Collins appeared to have no idea who He was and neither did the celebrities who surrounded her after the concert. Both Finch and Rawat were nonplussed, if not dazed, by Rawat not being the centre of attention. Possibly He might have realised at this point that he was, indeed, the frog in the well and not the frog in the ocean.
  
  
• page 19 A heart full of love at Heathrow - Peter Lee, The Gift of Knowledge - Jeff Segel, Forever young - Jenny Perkins, Those early days - Peter Potter
  
  
• page 20 Midsummer Magic, The last line of the poem - Karen Ringrose, Adventures in Devon - Mike Finch. Coincidentally, or synchronistically, both Karen and Mike "saw the light" in the years following 1996 and have disowned Prem Rawat as a ????. The young Rawat failed to strike a chord with the audience. Hardly anyone could understand his Indlish, squeaked in the high pitched, breaking voice of puberty. He was so out of touch that he used such inappropriate examples as not being able to serve the hippie crowd as a military officer or a police constable and promising an end to sects. Despite this, followers of Rawat have developed a doctrine that his short speech was the highpoiint of the festival and galvanised the best and the brightest, the "hippest" of the English counter-culture, into becoming premies.
  
  
• page 21 AT GLASTONBURY: A pair of anniversaries - Andrew Kerr
  
  
• page 22 Poster advertising speech at the Hunter College Auditorium, 8 October, 1971
  
  
• page 23 Fourteen years is fourteen years - Faith Harper: Ms Healy / Harper vividly remembers a well known TV reporter sitting shoeless and cross-legged at Maharaji's feet. This had nothing to do with any recognition of Rawat's divinity, he was merely trying to interview the 14 year old guru - they don't pop up every day - for an amusing, weird and wonderful sound-bite and there was only one chair in the room in which the so-called Lord of the Universe was already sitting. Ms Healy was an attractive, if formidable looking, young woman who remembers the past vividly but fails to mention that 25 years later, Elan Vital believed there are only 600 committed "students" of Rawat's in Australia. I wonder if there are any of that first group of 60 she inspired who still believe in Rawat and his "Knowledge".
  
  
• page 24 The First European Tour: Paris - Sue Ratcliffe, Heidelberg - Lena Zieschang
  
  

The concept of an 'Elan Vital', a vital force that is necessary for life is a basic part of the Rawatism religion. He has claimed for most of his career that he reveals "the energy that is keeping you alive" through the use of his "3rd technique" of meditation ie concentratig on your breath. This idea of an elan vital has been thoroughly discredited by modern research in biology.

Prem Rawat's "Knowledge" has three parts: regularly listening to his speeches, doing voluntary work for organisations serving him or donating money and daily meditation correctly practicing the four techniques he recommends. The techniques are so simple it's hard to see how they could be practiced incorrectly. First technique ("Divine Light") involves sticking your thumb and middle finger on your eyeballs (NB: with eyes closed) and your index finger between your eyebrows. Second technique: ("Heavenly Music") poking your thumbs into your ears and listening. Third technique: ("Holy Name") thinking about your breathing (NB: continue to breathe). Fourth technique: ("Nectar") curling your tongue backwards and tasting. Rawat's father taught slightly different techniques but either way it's difficult to see how these could produce the benefits claimed for them especially as Rawat claims His Knowledge is the only method of attaining real happiness and love in this life.