The Incarnation of Prem Rawat (Maharaji)

On the 19th July, at three o'clock, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj (the Guru Maharaj Ji of his time) left his body (died). He had left a letter in which he sent his love to his oldest three sons and obeisances to his youngest thereby showing his wishes re the succession. It is not unusual for minor Indian gurus with property to be succeeded within the family but this may be the first time that the true Satguru has been succeeded by his son or daughter. Buddha and Jesus, for example, had no children.

Prem Rawat was at school in Dehra Dun. The chauffeur came to fetch him. Everyone was weeping. I was just sitting there, not weeping. Something began to happen to me. I began to feel that I am not this body; that I could not move these lips." He points to his lips. "I always thought that the soul would leave by the mouth, but my mouth was shut. Still, I felt I was leaving my body and my soul was everywhere going out. And this voice came to me saying: 'You are he, you are the one to continue.'"

On the 29th July, Prem Rawat demonstrated meditation and told in satsang that he would "unite all religions" by spreading the same Knowledge that Jesus and all Perfect Masters taught through the Mahatmas for without those great souls it cannot be done.

On the 31st July, Prem Rawat told in satsang of how his father had resurrected and appeared to him in his mother's bedroom while she slept and talked to him about certain matters. He promised to give proof that night at 9 o'clock by revealing Guru Maharaj Ji through the power of Prem's meditation! That night in a move that even Hollywood would be too embarrassed to use, the young Prem Rawat dressed as his father and danced and played the manjeeras and as Andrea Cagan wrote in the authorised biography:

"Here was Shri Maharaji himself, they decided, dancing before their eyes, with the same radiant grace, glorious smile, and shining eyes. What really occurred that evening remains a mystery, something that words cannot describe. People say it was as if father and son were one and the same in front of them, as if time and death had been suspended for a moment and life was manifesting in an eternal moment of glory."

Miraculously, there was a "Lord of the Universe" crown lying around that was the right size and the young Prem Rawat was declared the new "Perfect Master". On the 1st August when going to immerse his father's ashes in the Ganges, the voice came to him again: "You are he. You are the one to go and give this to the world." That night "For the first time," says Guru Maharaj Ji, "I did not give satsang. The satsang just came and I began to speak: Dear children of God, why are you weeping? Haven't you learned the lesson that your master taught you? The Perfect Master never dies. Maharaj Ji is here, amongst you now." Immediately his mother, three elder brothers and all the mahatmas present, prostrated at the feet of the Perfect Master and received his blessings.

Later in his life, he succinctly explained the transmission procedure:

See, after one Master, the power of his spirit is transmitted. That holy spirit of Knowledge is transmitted to another body, whom the first body thinks is capable. As in many offices. Suppose I'm an employee. Hmm? And I am to resign. And I am really a very faithful employee. I go to the owner and the owner says, "Well, okay, you want to resign. Now go and find a man like yourself." I go and search for him. In the same way, the Master who has been perfect knows who has to be the next man, who's capable of this, of receiving this authorization. And then, after him, the power is transmitted to him. And he fully agrees with that.

References:

• Transcripts of the public speeches or "satsangs" of the young Prem Rawat on the 29th July, 1966 and the 31st July, 1966 when he revealed his incarnation were printed in 'The Golden Age' the magazine published by Divine Light Mission, Australia in the 1970's.
• The text of the "satsang" of the young Prem Rawat on the 29th July, 1966 is also available as published in the Divine Light, Volume 2, No 2.
• The full "authorised" story of the Incarnation of Prem Rawat was published as "The Unbroken Garland" in the special Millenium Issue of "And It Is Divine" in 1973. It included Prem Rawat's Satsang of the 29th July and his mother's satsang of the 31st July, Prem Rawat's Satsang of the 31st July and his eldest brother, Bal Bhagwan Ji's Satsang of the 31st July.
• A summary of the story was published in the And It Is Divine magazine, Volume 1, Issue 1 of November 1972 titled Dawn of the Age of Truth.
• The story is told in excerpts from the book "Who Is Guru Maharaj Ji?" Published in November 1973 by Bantam Books, Inc. © 1973 by Shri Hans Productions
• An interview with Prem Rawat published in the New York Times of the 8th of April, 1973 includes discussion of the incarnation and this is also published in the book Gurus, Godmen and Good People by Khushwant Singh, the respected Indian journalist, editor and author.
• Details of the Incarnation were also published in the Divine Light colour magazine And It Is Divine in an article about the history of Prem Rawat and his Holy Family.
• A revisionist summary of the events is published in "Peace Is Possible", the authorised biography of Prem Rawat, the only book published by Mighty River Press. This story, which Prem Rawat is touting 40 years after the events, minimises the astonishing supernatural aspects of the event and attacks his mother and eldest brother with unsubstantiated aspersions on their character and actions while showing his in a hagiographical manner.

Video Footage of the young Prem Rawat in India:
Video Footage of the young Prem Rawat in the "West" in the early 1970's
Prem Rawat explains the lineage of the incarnations of God and their importance and functions in modern, scientific terms.