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.
Generally, premie conversions were followed by a period of enthusiasm, during which time many felt as if their lives had taken a radically positive turn. For the most "blissed out," it was almost a euphoric state, as their experience of the spirit, identification with it, and emotional detachment from their personalities produced feelings of joy. This experience sometimes lasted only a few hours, although there were some premies who remained in this state for several days. During this period of elation they had little choice but to share what they had experienced with anyone who would listen: "I gave satsang to everybody I saw," said one premie, "because I was really happy to be on the road to the realization of my soul."
Following the enthusiasm phase life began to return to normal, as premies were rudely awakened to the fact that their negative feelings and desires, the sources of personal turmoil before their initiation, remained to haunt and tease. Another danger was that premies might forget the uniqueness of the Knowledge experience, diminishing it to the point where they would lose interest. As I was told: "After awhile, as the new experiences became 'normal,' or integrated into our lives, it was easy to lose consciousness of the richness and depth of the Knowledge experience, making satsang, meditation, darshan, and attendance at programs essential as a reminder."
Normalization was a potential threat to the deepening of spiritual commitment, for after the great anticipation and excitement of the conversion experience, disillusionment could set in, which could lead to withdrawal. Probably at no other time was interaction with other premies more important, for as enthusiasm waned and the Knowledge experience lost some of its novelty doubts began to develop in somewhat greater abundance. Those who were more securely established within the premie community could shed their doubts because they were encouraged to express them openly. This was a counteractive force to disenchantment.
What took place next was called "purification," which premies described as the struggle between their "higher" and "lower" selves. The conflict between these two inner tendencies was one of the chief sources of personal growth for all premies as they attempted to find a resolution. They realized fairly quickly that, instead of a brief skirmish, a drawn-out battle between the sacred and profane would be necessary to finish the process of liberating the spirit. "When I first received the Knowledge, I thought in six weeks I would reach the point of spiritual enlightenment. But I soon discovered that it's a slow process because I had desires and attachments to contend with. " Realizing the inevitability of a protracted spiritual struggle, this premie became more convinced than ever that she needed Guru Maharaj Ji's help.
The Way of Surrender
Driven by a strong desire for change, the "blissed out" had cut themselves off from competing commitments, had become partially absorbed into the premie subculture, and were determined to surrender. There was a sense of inevitability as they accepted the next step in their commitment. "It was time to end what I'd been doing," recalled Tina, "and to follow Guru Maharaj Ji. That's all there was for me to do."
Typical of the group of premies who surrendered, Tina did not question whether she should be active or not, for she was ready to respond to Guru Maharaj Ji's call for help. As you know, many countries are fighting or trying to fight just because they think that they are enemies and that they must destroy. The idea should be brought out that people are not enemies, but are children of God. All have been made by God, and it's not good if a brother fights with a brother. You see, what I want to accomplish, or what I want to bring down onto the earth, is peace. That's my point, to give this Knowledge, this Word, this Light, which has been revealed by all saints (Guru Maharaj Ji, 1972). 1
Tina received word about the trip to India and, of course, she was eager to go. With fourteen other premies, she put on a rummage sale, collected coke bottles, and raised $3,000. Although she and the others worked very hard, she attributed their success to Guru Maharaj Ji's grace. "There was no way we should have been able to raise that much money on the junk we sold. That was pure grace. Guru Maharaj Ji always says that if you put forth the effort, he will grace you. And we had put forth the supreme effort." Guru always has to give His blessings to you, you need that, then you'll roll right on (Guru Maharaj Ji, 1972). 2
Tina did not receive any money herself from the rummage sale, but three days before the mass exodus of premies to India, a friend gave her $200 so she could make the trip. Having greater contact with Guru Maharaj Ji in India, she was able to identify with him more fully and to learn more about her own shortcomings. "Being in such close contact with purity makes you see all the garbage and dirt you have inside, and you know that you have to get rid of it. That's what it's like when you're with Guru Maharaj Ji. You see perfection manifested in him, and you realize that is how you're supposed to be, so you start cleaning up. Cleaning up is sometimes difficult because it means that part of you has to die, your lower self has to die in order for your real self to emerge. So that's the way India was for me, extremely high but difficult because I was cleaning out. I got rid of more personal garbage in India than at any other time in my life."
Facing the emotional crisis of undoing personalities conditioned by years of socialization, the "blissed out" turned to Guru Maharaj Ji for direction. They needed to believe that he knew who they were and that he was in control of their spiritual evolution, since they had already given up the idea they were in control. To secure themselves during this period of confusion and turmoil, they had to believe in his omniscience. Some premies even began to desire a personal relationship with him, in order to reassure themselves, in much the same way devout Christians speak of needing a personal relationship with Jesus.
Tina was one who longed for a personal relationship of this kind. "It is a beautiful thing when a premie develops a personal relationship with Guru Maharaj Ji. If you develop a personal relationship with him, you begin to really feel close to him. Otherwise, you may feel he doesn't even know who you are, but he does. I know he does without a doubt. Just before I came back from India, I went to see him for the last time. I had to see him. I ran into the ashram, and there were people all around his door. I got down on my knees and prayed. 'Guru Maharaj Ji, I'm leaving and I need to see you for just one minute more.' Before I knew it, the door flew open and he came walking out. Other people were around, but he looked at me and I was drawn to him. I looked right at his feet, and he said, 'Yes, you're leaving,' and I said 'Yes.' He said, 'Where are you going?' and I said 'Ohio.' And he said, 'That's very good.' I kissed his feet and he walked in and closed the door. Well, that was worth three days of crying for me. I always had this little question in my mind: Does Guru Maharaj Ji really know what we are thinking? Does he really know everything? Does he know me? That experience showed me he really does. I felt so close to him then. When you have an experience like that it makes you want to know the Guru Maharaj Ji inside even more, because when you really get to know him and realize that the Knowledge will make you like him, you just try all the harder to become what the Knowledge is."
Another way premies developed a personal connection to the guru was purely spiritual. "Its inevitable," said Tina, "that we're going to love Guru Maharaj Ji. When you meditate, you start realizing what the true self is, and love naturally grows because that's what spirit is, love. Then you begin to recognize that true spirit is now manifested in a body, and that's why we love Guru Maharaj Ji. We don't love him for his physical appearance; we love him because he is showing us the spirit within us. So, if you are doing what Guru Maharaj Ji says, then you naturally begin to surrender to him. If you don't, there's a very good chance you will never get into the Knowledge, for we don't know how to love God because God is a very abstract thing. But there's a bridge that comes between us and God, and that's satguru. So if you start loving satguru, who is infinite and finite at the same time, you start learning how to love that infinite thing, God. Guru Maharaj Ji doesn't want us to blindly worship his physical form. He wants us to experience what is true. Suddenly, God is not an abstract thing anymore, but everything else in this world becomes abstract and God becomes very real. Before I received the Knowledge, it was the other way around; the world was real and God was some abstract thing." All the saints have been trying to give something to people so that they might be in perfect union with God. Jesus came and He gave something. He gave the lesson of love, but He didn't speak only of love, He gave something that put people into love. I am doing the same thing now, giving something to people so that they might be in complete love, so that they might be in the true love which flows towards God rather than the love which flows towards materialism. Suppose I love this fan and this fan comes to an end. If it breaks, then my love will break. But God is something that can't break. Love towards God is very pure, and such love will increase and spread (Guru Maharaj Ji, 1972). 3
Seeing Through Projections
John had walked out of the Knowledge session disappointed. Had it not been for the fact that he was living with a committed premie, there is a good chance he would have eventually dropped out of the movement. He was neither determined to become a devotee nor was lie very much interested in becoming deeply involved in the movement.
When John first heard about the trip to India, he had still not begun to meditate and was not interested in going. However, he changed his mind when he heard that there were going to be 2,000 Mahatmas there. Intrigued by the thought of being around so many "evolved souls," he even resisted attempts by his father to suppress his interest. Unhappy that John was turning away from the Catholic Church, his father had warned him that breaking away from the church could mean hell for eternity. That John was at least attracted to the movement at that point was clear from his insistence that he was going to India anyway.
Initially, John had been unable to accept the belief that Guru Maharaj Ji Ji was the Lord. In fact, it bothered him when other premies referred to the guru in that way. He regarded the guru as a spiritual guide to emulate, but he did not feel the intensity of love which normally accompanies surrender. "I knew I had the capacity to feel a lot more for him. Sure, I prostrated to him, but I wasn't doing it from the heart. I knew he was someone special, but I didn't have the feeling of love for him that much."
Resisting surrender, John was neither as willing to conform nor as uncritical as the "blissed out." In India, some people protested the rules laid down by the Mission's leadership and others were packing up and leaving. John was among those who criticized the rules. "At that time, I figured the leaders were trying to take something from me. I felt they were demanding too much."
By the time of Guru Maharaj Ji's birthday party, John's disillusionment with the Mission had reached a critical point. He wanted to leave India and return to the United States, but was unable to because of an agreement he had with his airline which required that he stay in India for a specified period of time. From the beginning, he had felt both attracted to and repelled by the movement and Guru Maharaj Ji. A part of him wanted to jump headlong into commitment while an inner voice kept telling him to stay back. He was confused as a result of this conflict, which made him receptive to a breakthrough. "A lot of realizations came to me during the birthday party. I'd seen people bowing down to Guru Maharaj Ji, and something would sort of turn off in my mind. It was like I really didn't have too much of a feeling for him, or very much love either. My mind kept telling me that the people prostrating before him were only doing it because everyone else was. As I was observing the party, something clicked inside my mind, and I realized it was only my mind thinking those things about people, that their bowing down was real. I thought to myself that maybe they really loved Guru Maharaj Ji. I began to think there might be something real going on. I realized that my mind had been judging others from my own prejudices. After that realization, I started meditating seriously and then things began to happen. That was the turning point for me. There was something I saw that made me decide to dedicate my life to this thing." If you don't meditate, you won't realize. And I must tell you one thing, and that is that you don't meditate for me. You meditate for yourself. You should get high. I am high enough; you should get high. You need this meditation because you need to get high. You must get to that point where you can also reach the infinite state. I have given you this Knowledge, therefore it is your duty to meditate upon it (Guru Maharaj Ji, 1972). 4
Having realized he was projecting his own skepticism and hypocrisy onto other premies, John was able to see more clearly the meaning of the Mission and the purpose of devotion. That he was preparing to surrender seemed fairly evident, since he was looking for supporting evidence in his dreams. He awoke from one dream he could not remember, but with a strong feeling that he had to dedicate his life to Guru Maharaj Ji. In another he connected the experiences of premies to those of the early Christians, feeling that premies were going through changes equally compelling and beautiful. Where initially his disillusionment had driven him into the role of the observer, he began to feel more at home in the premie community as a participant.
Upon his return to the United States, he was determined to be a devotee. He was meditating regularly and was trying to be obedient, unquestioning, loving, and in service to God and guru. Yet, his commitment was still quite delicate, for he began slipping back into old habits and ways of thinking when he visited his parents and family on his way back to Colorado. Without other premies close by to reinforce the new pattern of behavior, John was soon back into the old role which had secured him a social niche in his family.
When he arrived back in Colorado his understanding of the guru-devotee relationship became clearer. "It says in several scriptures that the quality of a guru is in what he reveals. He shows you who you really are, but it turns out you are really him. If he can truly show you your true self, then he must also be a part of you. The guru is only a mirror reflecting back who you really are. He is totally unified with what I've been meditating on and he can teach people how to get there. And that's what Guru Maharaj Ji really does. He teaches us how to get to that one point inside. Slowly I realized that he is the embodiment of that thing which is inside of us all." Knowledge is within, inside of us, but we have to understand the way to realize it. Our face is right with us, but we cannot see it until and unless we have a mirror in front of us. That's the thing. We have to have a mirror. The mirror is the Perfect Master. Like water, he is also known by different names (Guru Maharaj Ji, 1973). 5
Having seen Guru Maharaj Ji in this light, John was ready to accept the belief he was the Lord. Where once his feelings toward the guru had been lukewarm, his next encounters with him touched him deeply. "Seeing Guru Maharaj Ji was really far out for me after that. I had no choice but to prostrate before him. It wasn't like I decided to do it beforehand. I'd just see him and automatically hit the floor. The feeling I had for him was just so incredible."
Conflicts of Half-Devotion
Walt had left the Knowledge session not fully understanding what had gone on there. His experience is particularly interesting because, although he was quite determined to become a devotee, his feelings of inferiority and paranoia prevented his complete surrender. He had only a glimmer of hope that, by himself, he would be able to find his way through the maze of changes he knew would-be necessary to reach his spiritual destination. Feeling so completely inadequate, he needed to be assured of the spiritual protection and guidance of the guru.
In the two months following the Knowledge session, Walt was far from "blissed out." "When I came to Guru Maharaj Ji's Knowledge, it wasn't followed by a burst of happiness. I just knew it was the Truth and that I'd better try to realize it. For some people, coming to Guru Maharaj Ji is the most blissful experience, but, for me, it was pure misery."
Being among premies should have raised his spirits somewhat, and it did at times, but often it simply reminded him of how emotionally troubled he was feeling. "When I listened to satsang back then, I was very paranoid. I couldn't say-anything and I'd try to avoid looking into people's eyes because it was so painful. After satsang was over, I'd leave as quickly as I could so I didn't have to talk to anyone afterwards.' They all seemed so joyful and happy, and I was feeling completely messed up."
Somewhat overwhelmed by his feelings of inadequacy, Walt was still determined to realize the Knowledge in hopes that it might eventually free him from his persistent depressions. "I'd get up at 5:30 in the morning and try to meditate, but it was really hard because my mind was always speeding so fast. I couldn't concentrate on the techniques for more than thirty seconds. During that time, I'd have two thousand different thoughts. I was totally lost. But I did learn that I was not my mind, where before I thought I was. I started to realize that my mind was my worst enemy, so I put a sign up on my wall which said: 'Mind is the Enemy. Fight!'"
As if it were not enough to be restrained by inner forces, Walt also had to contend with the opposition of his best friend, who was hostile toward the movement. "My friend's mind was really dark then concerning Divine Light Mission and Guru Maharaj Ji. He was really down on me, as almost hateful vibrations came from him. We were so close, yet at times" we were like enemies. We could hardly talk at all during those first few weeks after I'd received the Knowledge."
Caught in the crossfire of his friend's antagonism and his own spiritual inclination, Walt chose to move out. This, of course, made him freer to enlarge his commitment to the movement and to Guru Maharaj Ji. Even more so because two of his new roommates were premies. Having cut himself off from a source of conflict, he achieved a greater sense of social solidarity with premies and became more fully enclosed in the premie community. When the time came for the trip to India, Walt decided to go. Still confused, he went to London first, where he walked around propagating the Knowledge. His mind was still racing and his meditations were not improving much. In India, it was the same. "The whole time in India, I was confused about God. All of Guru Maharaj Ji's devotees would be singing and I'd have to force myself to sing. People would be prostrating to him, and I'd have to force myself to prostrate. People would go on a morning procession and I'd have to force myself to go. I was forcing myself to do everything."
Although there were many opportunities for Walt to develop close bonds with other premies, he chose to remain aloof, wandering around by himself feeling lonely and lost. When the time came for Guru Maharaj Ji's birthday party, premies were busy making costumes, but he did nothing and finally attended the party in his Indian whites, which was the standard form of dress. Yet, there were signs he was beginning to feel more like a part of the community, since he and a few other premies had formed a band for the occasion.
Walt felt so far from his spiritual goals, he was afraid. This sense of dread was nourished by Guru Maharaj Ji's satsang during the party. "I got really bummed out on his satsang. The only thing I heard him say was 'Those people who do not realize this Knowledge will go to hell and never return.' That's the only phrase I remember and I was going 'Oh, no! I'm going to hell because I'm not realizing his Knowledge."
This fear made it all the more urgent for Walt to change, which only increased his feeling of hopelessness. When he returned to the United States he was quite depressed about his prospects, although when he stopped for a visit with his family he was encouraged by a number of subtle changes. "The first night back home, one of my friends came over and suggested we smoke some dope. We did, but I didn't get off on it at all. Then this girl I knew called me and invited me over to spend the night with her and I told her no. I just realized I was totally detached from those things." The effect of these changes in attitude was to increase his feeling of self-confidence, which made him somewhat more determined to change.
By the time he returned to Colorado, he was more determined than ever to "quit fooling around" and take devotion seriously. "The time had come for me to become a devotee. I couldn't be a spaced out, confused kid anymore. Then, it was like Guru Maharaj Ji started gracing me with good meditations. I'd get up in the morning and meditate and really feel good, just filled with joy. I was in a period of grace. It was like Guru Maharaj Ji lifted me out of my mind for that period. It was a blissful and happy time."
Walt was only temporarily in this state, however, for soon he was depressed again. Desperate for a breakthrough of some kind, he found himself wanting to take psychedelics again, so he tripped with a friend. During his psychedelic experience, he came to a number of insights which reflected his own state of confusion and his desire to be saved. "It really became clear to me how everyone is crazy. I saw that it was Guru Maharaj Ji's will to let the world go crazy, and then he was going to come at the last moment and rescue us all. I was looking at one of Guru Maharaj Ji's pictures. Focusing on his smile, I really knew what that smile meant. It wasn't the smile of a kid who was really high, but the smile of the same being who died on the cross. He was the supreme being of the universe."
Having come to the point of believing in the guru's spiritual powers, he was able to accept his own suffering as part of the guru's plan to save the world. He realized that, if he could be brave and bear his pain, he would eventually be transformed. He also began to feel a much deeper sense of love for the guru. "I saw Guru Maharaj Ji in New York. Up to the point when he walked in, I was dulled out. But when he came in I fell to the floor and started crying a little bit. Something deep inside of me started welling up. I was very blown away."
In a positive state of mind as a result of his contact with Guru Maharaj Ji, Walt decided to return home for a short visit. Like John, being outside of the premie community made him vulnerable to old habits, feelings, and desires. "I started getting a great deal of sexual desire for the girl I had turned down before, which completely brought me down. It just blew my mind back into a crazy, confused state. I lost my whole sense of peace. Knowing I had to get out of there, I finally managed to get a ride back to Colorado."
Still spiritually and emotionally unsteady, he turned to psychedelics once again. "There's a part in The Aquarian Gospel where Jesus goes into some crypts to face many tests of character. During that psychedelic trip, Guru Maharaj Ji put me through every test in the book. After I went through those tests, I rose above my mind and convinced myself I was a Mahatma. I was into an illusion that all the Jesus Freaks in town were going to be at the bottom of the mountain when I went down. I thought everything was blissful and would eventually come together. I actually believed I was at the end of my spiritual search. Well, when I got to the bottom of the mountain, there were no Jesus Freaks there to greet me, so I walked along the road giving leaflets to people."
Looking at this psychedelic experience, there is a definite change in the way Walt was beginning to see himself. Although certainly exaggerated, viewing himself as a Mahatma was in striking contrast to his earlier identity as a "spaced out, confused kid." Conversion requires a degree of self-confidence of this kind. At the very least, there must be some sense that one is able to change for the better. Combined with this sense of positive potential was a deepening desire to submit to the guru, as we see in the following encounter with Mata Ji, the guru's mother. "I told her I really wanted to be devoted and I really wanted to love Guru Maharaj Ji, and to please show me how. She told me that any pain I was feeling was blessed pain, that I was feeling it because Guru Maharaj Ji had not revealed something to me, that he knew about everything happening to me and that it was happening for a reason. She told me to keep meditating and to remember the Holy Word. I really felt good after, that."
Assured that Guru Maharaj Ji was in control of his life, Walt entered a period of spiritual elevation again. For some time afterwards, he worked joyfully at the ashram preparing for the Guru Puja festival which was to be held in Montrose, Colorado, that summer. But at the festival he went into a depression once again.
When he returned to Boulder, he was still longing to be a devotee, but had begun to tire of the struggle. He was impatient being in a state of half-devotion and was looking for an end to his conflicts. His breakthrough came in an unusual place. "I was sitting in satsang with my former roommate, who had received the Knowledge by then, and I asked him if he wanted to go outside and talk. We went out to the parking lot. We turned around and there was a big, shiny car right next to me. I looked in the back seat, and there was Guru Maharaj Ji. He rolled down the window and looked at me. I fell to the ground and prostrated to him. I got up and I never felt so close to him as I was then. There he was just looking at me and he wasn't talking to a thousand people. He was relating to me on a one-to-one basis. He asked me how many people were at satsang, and why I wasn't there. He was just speaking idle conversation, but actually what he was doing was looking at me and saying, 'Yes, I'm your Guru, I'm your Lord.' At one point, I asked him if I could make a request, and he said that was fine. I said, 'Will you please let me realize a bond of love with you ? I cannot stand living in a half-devoted way. I really want to be devoted. I really want to love you." He grinned and told me that love was good, but it wasn't everything, and that I should keep meditating and everything would be fine."
Walt's encounter with Guru Maharaj Ji in the parking lot was a definite turning point in his conversion and commitment, for it gave him the security he needed. "It was almost like he came to Boulder that night just to give me assurance. He came so he could roll down the window, look at me, and say 'Yes.' And ever since that point my faith has been like a rock. There's no doubt now that Guru Maharaj Ji is really taking care of me."
Commitment
Now let us consider briefly some of the commitment mechanisms which typically exist in movements like Divine Light Mission, where individuals are encouraged to invest and sacrifice, to renounce competing commitments and share in various forms of social communion, to humble themselves, and to surrender.
Investment and Sacrifices
There is substantial agreement among those who have studied the subject that commitments develop strength, not in spite of investments and sacrifices, but because of them. Rosabeth Moss Kanter's view reflects recent thinking, on the issue. "Investment is a process whereby the individual gains a stake in the organization, commits current and future profits to it so that he must continue to participate if he is going to realize them. Investment generally involves the tying of a person's present and potential resources to the organization, future gain to be received from present behavior." On the other hand, "Sacrifice operates on the basis of a simple principle from cognitive consistency theories: the more it 'costs' a person to do something, the more.. 'valuable' he will have to consider, it, in order to justify the psychic 'expense' and remain internally consistent." 6
Even before their initiation, these people were encouraged to invest and sacrifice. They were expected to attend satsang, to do service in the ashram as a sign of sincerity, and to give in any way they could. During the Knowledge session, it was_ common in 1971-72 for Mahatmas to encourage personal offerings, by way of donations of money and valuables, and gifts for Guru Maharaj Ji were quite common since expressions of thanks to him, as guru, were backed by years of eastern tradition. After their entry into the movement, premies were expected to contribute as much of their time, energy, and resources as possible. Total commitment and surrender were strongly encouraged from several quarters, mainly from the Mahatmas, Guru Maharaj Ji's mother (who had been one of his most ardent supporters before their feud), and other devotees.
The trip to India made additional demands. Most premies had to either sell their personal possessions or borrow money to finance the trip. Living in India taxed them further, for they had to live in cramped quarters, eat strange and sometimes unpalatable foods, and listen to satsang for hours in a language they did not even understand. Many also fell ill from the typical travelers' diseases.
For those like John who were not yet ready to make a strong commitment, the heavy sacrifices expected of them in India were almost too much. In fact, according to reliable reports, many premies who were in John's position withdrew from the movement rather than pay what they regarded as a heavy price for membership. Hesitating to develop strong commitments, they were willing to give moderately and no more. Had the Mission demanded less of them, perhaps their doubts and other obstacles may have been overcome by gradually investing and sacrificing, to the point where they might have been willing to give more.
Social Enclosure
Social enclosure is the process by which the member's activities come to be centered in the movement. The effect is to deepen commitments by encouraging the termination of competing obligations outside of the community and by increasing social communion with members, which makes the member more dependent on the community for the satisfaction of needs and more reliant on its beliefs for comprehending the world. Actually, there is a tendency for new members of a movement to alter their social lives by spending more time with other members and less with old friends, especially if they are critical of the direction being taken. A typical case was that of a premie who, after receiving the Knowledge, noticed an immediate change in her social network. She stopped seeing old friends and formed new friendships with premies or others who had begun a spiritual search similar to her own. She characterized that period of her life as a "scary time," for she experienced emotional conflicts having to break up the order of her social life.
By renouncing the outside world and increasing contact with members, the individual's commitment to the community is secured. Eventually the movement's ideology is taken on, which draws the person closer to other members as a result of their shared beliefs. When everything can be understood and explained by reference to ideology, the member is armed with a new power to deal with life and a way to combat conflicting views of reality. An ideological perspective provides a sense of order, security, predictability, and meaning, as well as assurances about the fulfillment of prophecy.
Within the Mission, social enclosure took its characteristic form. We have seen that during the screening procedures before the Knowledge session those who were following another guru were asked to leave. The belief was that, once the individual had received the Knowledge, there was no need to be committed to any other teacher or method, since the Mission was considered by many as the "ultimate path." The consequence was to diminish the strength of competing obligations so the initiate's life could be focused more completely on the Mission's goals and activities. It is true that some premies were involved in The Church of World Messianity, but that was frowned upon by the Mission's leadership. Eventually, the leaders became openly opposed to this dual membership and urged premies to quit The Church of World Messianity so they could invest more of their energies and resources in the Mission. This pressure came primarily from Mahatmas and organizational leaders, and its effect was to deepen the involvement of some premies, while others defected (as we will discover later in Joan's case).
While the leaders were encouraging the renunciation of competing commitments, social communion between premies was being fostered by their frequent attendance at satsang, their interaction with other premies during the performance of various services, their sharing of common meals and living arrangements, and by periodic programs during which masses of premies came together for several days to praise Guru Maharaj Ji and the Knowledge. In fact, the most powerful sources of social communion among premies were their mutual respect and love for the guru and their recognition that they were united in the spirit. This gave them a group identity and distinguished them from the outside world.
Mortification
"Mortification helps destroy the old self, prideful and oriented to the standards and status of the outside. It paves the way for the person to gain a sense of self and a new source of status and self-esteem. … At the same time, through mortification, the new self is oriented around devotion, loyalty, and obedience to the movement." 7 A guru may self-consciously set out to diminish the hold of the follower's ego by mortifying it through a series of humbling experiences, believing it is when the ego has lost its self-importance in relation to God's greatness that an inner revolution is possible. Thus, mortification may be regarded as a necessary and positive step by both the guru and his devotees.
From 1971 to 1973, but less so today, mortification was prevalent in the Mission. This had the effect of destroying the widespread hippie identity, along with its costume and lifestyle. As Tina said: "My identity as an American, dropout bum with middle-class upbringing and Catholic background began to fade away. Guru Maharaj Ji just showed me my true identity. And there I was with nothing to attach myself to. I couldn't do the same old things. There was now a deeper meaning to my life."
New premies were encouraged to change the way they looked and behaved. "In 1972, our ashram was a loose, hippie-type place, but Guru Maharaj Ji put a stop to that. First of all, the guys were told to get haircuts and shave off their beards. Some people really freaked out about that because they hadn't realized that whole game was over." As late as 1976, there was a move underway within the Mission to extinguish the remnants of the hippie language from premie communications, to remove such expressions as "freaked out," "far out," "right on," and "spaced out." It was this assault on the hippie identity which helped to prepare the way for a new self-image.
Even before these young people had joined the movement in 1972, they were expected, as part of the eastern tradition, to humble themselves before God, Guru Maharaj Ji, his Mahatmas, and his family. Seeking entry to the Knowledge session was itself a reminder of their inferior position, as they submitted to the authority of the Mahatmas, hoping they would get in.
In 1973, 1 attended a screening session where the Mahatma had to decide which of about thirty people would be admitted into the Knowledge session. When he entered the room there was a noticable change in people's behavior as they began to relate to him as if he were a highly evolved spiritual being. Several people prostrated to him, their bodies and faces flat against the floor. The Mahatma asked everyone in the room a question to determine the extent of their sincerity, and from time to time he selected someone whom he thought was ready to receive the Knowledge. When he had finished choosing people, a half dozen of the rejected rushed up to him, prostrated at his feet, and begged him to let them into the session, which, I discovered later, was standard practice.
The humble position of premies was also emphasized by the great social distance between them and Guru Maharaj Ji. This distance was inspired by the presence of the guru's bodyguard, whose appearance served to create an aura of power around him, by special rooms set aside only for his use, by pictures of him surrounded by flowers, and by the use of platforms which elevated him above his followers. There were also times when premies had to wait as much as two hours for him to arrive at a program. To an outside observer, such behavior would probably be viewed as arrogant and inconsiderate, but to premies it was a lesson, in that it challenged their egos.
Even when the guru seemed to consciously humble them, they could find a lesson in it, as we see in the following account. One morning I was in Denver outside of the ashram waiting for Guru Maharaj Ji to come out, and there were quite a few other people hanging around too. Somebody came down and told us to get in line, that he was going to give us darshan, to be with us in person. Then somebody else came down in a while and told us he was watching television and he wouldn't be down' for an hour. We stayed around for that hour and then somebody else came down and told us it would be even later. So we sat around some more. Then someone else told us to stand in line again for darshan, so we got in line again. This went on and on. It was driving me crazy. Then we were told to go into the ashram and prenam, you know, to prostrate, in front of his picture. I was thinking, 'What is this bullshit? He's upstairs watching the tube. This is ridiculous!" So I went in, and as soon as I prenamed, it felt really good. I found myself thinking, 'It's pretty nice down here. I could just stay here forever.' But one of the Mahatmas was there and poking people to move on. So I got up really feeling lightheaded. He'd done something to me! It was a perfect lesson. He was trying to tell us that darshan is not his physical body. If you get greedy and dive for his feet as soon as he walks by, that's not going to do it because he controls it. He can give you darshan at any time right where you are. He doesn't have to be there personally. That was a good lesson and I was so happy afterwards."
Regimentation is another way an old identity is undermined. This was especially common after the Guru Puja festival in 1972, when an exhaustive set of rules governing life in the ashrams was laid down. Premies who wished to live there were required to sign oaths of poverty, chastity, and obedience and to follow the ashram routine religiously. This meant rising in the morning at 4:30 A.M., singing Arti, a devotional song, and sitting in meditation for an hour. Breakfast followed, then service: tasks assigned by ashram officials who were considered channels for the expression of the guru's will. Therefore, obedience to organizational leaders was regarded as obedience to Guru Maharaj Ji. This resulted in a fairly disciplined atmosphere, which tended to homogenize premie behavior.
As was the case for all meals, lunch was vegetarian and lasted about an hour. In the afternoon, service was continued, although premies could not leave the ashram without signing out and then only after permission had been granted. Only those on official business were allowed to leave. Visiting friends or just strolling around the city were unacceptable uses of time, for all of their effort was supposed to be concentrated on the achievement of the Mission's goals.
Dinner was normally served at 5:30, followed by satsang, which lasted about two hours. After satsang, they meditated one hour, then retired for the night. Each day the same general routine was followed, although I observed quite a lot of flexibility as individuals were given considerable freedom to act contrary to the rules.
Although life was quite regimented in the ashrams in 1972, there were other living arrangements outside of the ashrams which were more open and flexible. For a while, there were Premie Centers around the country where fewer rules and restrictions existed. Premie houses developed very early as loosely structured cooperatives, where there was, and continues to be, almost no regimentation at all. As a result, premies have always had some discretion about the type of involvement and living arrangements they want.
Surrender
While mortification tended to undermine a premie's old identity, surrender to Guru Maharaj Ji supplied a new one, as each premie identified with, idealized, obeyed, and lost the capacity to criticize him.
Premies developed an emotional tie to the guru through identification, for he was regarded as the perfect manifestation of the universal spirit and of the changes they wanted for themselves. Strongly identifying with him and the spirit, they began to internalize new values through his example. They tried the best they could to measure up to him or to the standards established for them as devotees.
While identification with Guru Maharaj Ji was encouraged within the premie community, the belief he was the Lord set him at a great psychological and social distance from his followers. Premies were able to accept the notion that he represented the ideal state of being they should strive to achieve, but they could not quite entertain the possibility of reaching it. This created some confusion, as we see in the following comment: "Guru Maharaj Ji is so awesome I really don't identify with him, although that is where I hope to be sooner or later. "
Idealizing the guru by alluding to his extraordinary spiritual powers aided the premies' identification with him, encouraged their surrender to the inner spirit, and gave them assurances about change. Having seen the futility of their own efforts, they seemed to project superhuman powers onto him so that their transformation and their hopes for a peaceful and loving world could be guaranteed. The tendency to idealize him was so great among some premies that they actually believed that, had he willed it, he could have single-handedly changed the world.
Believing the guru to be a saint, premies were ready to conform to his wishes (as well as they could), while many lost the capacity to criticize him. Even during the height of the public scandals which hit the Mission in its formative period, I did not hear premies express even one critical comment about the guru. Given their view of him as the Lord, it was as clearly outside the realm of possibility for them to oppose or criticize him in any way as for Moses to have told God that he wanted to edit the Ten Commandments.
Devotion to Guru Maharaj Ji seems similar to the type of unquestioning affection children feel for their parents during the time before adolescence when they are emotionally merged with them. This is one of the reasons that, once formed, a follower's strong emotional bond with a leader is so hard to break, especially when the leader is viewed as divine. This dependence may be a positive experience for the follower, however, in the sense that it creates both security and trust, which pave the way for a change of identity and values. Erik Erikson has called this stage of development the "psychosocial moratorium. " It is the time when the child's high regard for and trust of the parents provides the basis for an identity and an accompanying set of values. The security of this trusting and affectionate relationship, he argues, takes the pressure off of the child and therefore nurtures the formation of the child's identity. 8 Applying Erikson's approach to the case of Malcolm X, who had developed a devotional relationship to Elijah Muhammad, I have proposed the possibility that a follower's emotional attachment to a leader may culminate in a new identity and may lead, as it did in Malcolm X's case, to independence. 9 There is no assurance that autonomy will develop, however, and this is a pitfall premies should be aware of. I believe there is a time when the devotee's autonomy from a guru, like independence from one's parents, should be achieved, otherwise surrender remains only an instrument of social control to serve the guru's ends, rather than a means of bringing the person into an individual relationship to God and the world.
The emotional disengagement of children from their parents seems to take a natural course, but for adults who have emotionally merged with a guru becoming more independent must be more conscious and deliberate. A danger is that, by idealizing the guru, the devotee preserves the distance between them so it always appears as if more needs to be done. This of course provides the devotee with the rationale for the continuation of dependence on him. Some followers may be able to face the trauma of separation, while others may have to be pushed away when the time is right.
If both guru and devotee are psychologically or socially dependent on the relationship, then neither are likely to initiate a rift and the devotee may become permanently fixed in that regressive state, never to go beyond the role of obedient child. This stunts the devotee's personal development by keeping him or her trapped in the collective, so what is uniquely individual is never brought to the foreground and nurtured. It seems to me that a good guru, like a good parent, would encourage his followers to discover their uniqueness, so they might exist in the world with full command of their potential.
Some people oppose the guru-devotee relationship because they feel it represses the individuality and sense of personal responsibility of the follower. They warn against the dangers of surrender, while they praise individualism, feeling that each person possesses sufficient resources to reach enlightenment without having to give up autonomy.
Such people would not be surprised to hear that mortification played a role in the Mission in 1972, for they would regard that as confirmation of their suspicions about gurus and what they see as the dubious ends they serve. From a western perspective, this position is understandable. Yet, to be objective, we need to understand mortification and surrender as they are viewed in the eastern spiritual tradition. Perhaps we will be able to put what Guru Maharaj Ji says and does into a broader context by examining the eastern view of the guru's role in general.
The Revolutionary Role of Gurus
Seen from the eastern perspective, the guru's role is revolutionary, not in the sense of overthrowing a political order, but in overturning his or her followers' perception of the world. In this sense, the guru is regarded as the destroyer of socially conditioned patterns and the creator of a new way of being in the world. As Krishnamurti has said: "Real revolt, true revolution is to break away from the pattern and to inquire outside of it." 10
Therefore, shattering his followers' world view is one of the most pressing tasks of the guru, a view expressed by Don Juan, Carlos Castaneda's guru in Tales of Power. "The first act of the teacher is to introduce the idea that the world we think we see is only a view, a description of the world. Every effort of the teacher is geared to prove this point to his apprentice. But accepting it seems to be one of the hardest things one can do; we are complacently caught in our particular view of the world. A teacher, from the very first act he performs, aims at stopping that view. Sorcerers call it stopping the internal dialogue, and they are convinced that it is the single most important technique that an apprentice can learn." 11
With this goal in mind, gurus encourage their followers to question their own beliefs and concepts as a way of preparing them to see a new world. This has been an overriding appeal in Guru Maharaj Ji's satsang, for starting in 1971 he has urged premies to see through and become detached from concepts. "If you want to stay in the world," he has said, "be like a lotus flower which stays in the dirty water. You can live in the world of concepts, but live in such a way so that they don't affect you." 12
Gurus also speak frequently of the need to quiet the mind so that the spirit can be experienced more directly and fully. In fact, this is one of the chief purposes of meditation as a spiritual practice. Like most gurus, Guru Maharaj Ji speaks often about the need to quiet the inner dialogue, recommending meditation as a way to silence the personality's various voices which incessantly jabber within and prevent a direct experience of the spirit. His position is similar to Krishnamurti's, who has said: "When the mind is swept clean of image, of ritual, of belief, of symbol, of all words, mantrams, and repetitions, and of all fear, then what you see will be the real, the timeless, the everlasting, which may be called God; but this requires enormous insight, understanding, patience, and it is only for those who really inquire into what is religion and pursue it day after day to the end." 13
To approach a guru seeking enlightenment, supposedly one must be eager and willing to change, entering the relationship as Tina did, wanting to be reborn. Then there is a feeling of trust and receptivity which makes the follower ready to give up old patterns for new ones. Guru Maharaj Ji often spoke in this vein in 1972, when he told people to come to him with a childlike heart, empty and ready to be filled up. Bubba Free John, an acclaimed perfect master living with a group of his followers north of San Francisco, is even more straightforward: "You should not approach me if you are not willing to be undone. The Guru does not come to satisfy devotees or disciples. A satisfied disciple is still the one he was. The Guru is only interested in the utter, radical dissolution of that whole limitation that appears as his disciple." 14
A guru who has realized God is thought to have seen the basic equality of everything at the level of "pure being." It is assumed that his goal is to bring followers to the same level of understanding, so they too may live in harmony with God. Many gurus who demand obedience from their followers are said to utilize the followers' dependence to make them equal eventually, although this is clearer in some spiritual traditions than others. For example, in Zen Buddhism, the Zen Master urges his students to reach enlightenment so they may leave him and go into the world. Shunryu Suzuki has expressed this equality between student and master in many different ways. The following is one: "When everything exists within your big mind, all dualistic relationships drop away. There is no distinction between heaven and earth, man and woman, teacher and disciple. Sometimes a man bows to a woman; sometimes a woman bows to a man. Sometimes the disciple bows to the master; sometimes the master bows to the disciple. A master who cannot bow to his disciple cannot bow to Buddha. Sometimes the master and the disciple bow together to Buddha. Sometimes we may bow to cats and dogs." 15
It is unclear even today whether Guru Maharaj Ji sees his followers as his spiritual equals, who need only reach his level of enlightenment, for he has made contradictory statements on the issue. On the one hand, he has said that when his followers reach the point where they have learned A, B, and C, then he will already have gone to a new level of perfection of D, E, and F. 16 This puts him forever beyond the reach of his followers, possibly prolonging their dependence on him for guidance and discouraging their ultimate autonomy.
On the other hand, he has also repeatedly emphasized the spiritual equality of everyone, arguing that ego and individuality are the chief obstacles in the way of realizing oneness. For example, a premie asked him in 1971 whether he thought the ego was an illusion which had to be overcome and he answered by saying: "That is 'I,' that is ego, and that has to be overcome. Ego come, delusion come, black light come. Opposite projection. Mind always brings duality, and what is the other word we use for duality? Individual? This is my individual property, that means this is mine, that is yours. Mind brings duality, soul brings reality. That's why there is delusion. Really there is no individuality. When everybody is one, there should be no individuality. Everything should be one. But ego carries the word 'I' with it. 'I' is the individuality, the mind." 17
While we in the west value individualism, it is seen as an obstacle to happiness and peace in many forms of eastern spirituality, Divine Light Mission being just one case. Humility, seeing one's smallness in the larger picture of life, is regarded as an essential step in the follower's transformation and the world's salvation. This is thought to produce a change of heart in the follower, from wanting power, position, and material goods to loving God and serving humanity. As service to God and humanity supersede personal greed, a new chance for human harmony and peace is believed possible. Seen in this light, mortification and surrender are a revolutionary strategy, the means by which gurus attempt to fundamentally shake the foundations of culture. In this respect, we could say that gurus want to reach deeper than the surface changes which we see so often these days.
Giving Thanks to the Guru
Devotees shower a great deal of affection on their gurus, through smiles and loving glances, by lying prostrate at their feet, and in the offering of flowers and gifts. Giving tokens of appreciation to the guru is, I have been told, a traditionally accepted and expected way for devotees to express their gratitude.
The guru himself may encourage the giving of gifts, both to allow devotees to express their growing feelings of love and to counteract selfishness and dependence on material objects. By expressing love toward the guru (which is also to say the universal spirit), devotees are learning to love others in a new way. Guru Maharaj Ji has said: "You think that your wife, your husband, your children will give you love? No. It is the love of selfishness. Baby loves mother because mother gives him milk, but not because they have a connection. No, just because of selfish love. In the same way, you love everything because of selfishness. But you love guru without selfishness. It is pure and perfect love; it is that love which cannot be disturbed by mind at all." 18
In the eastern spiritual tradition, giving thanks to a guru is not only a tribute to the guru but to the spirit as well. It is an expression of thanksgiving for God's grace and a recognition on the part of devotees that nothing really belongs to them and what is given to them is theirs only to use for a time. By giving, devotees believe they are returning to God what they have received through His grace.
Giving gifts to the guru is also considered a way of learning how to become free of attachments to the material world. Whether it is a memento or a large sum of money, those who give in order to break their dependence on materialism are thought to experience a new sense of freedom. Yet, as one premie told me, breaking such dependence does not mean devotees will denounce material comforts, but only that they will no longer rely on material goods for their happiness and peace.
The Lifestyles of Gurus
Many of the luxuries surrounding America's new gurus are gifts from their followers. Guru Maharaj Ji is not alone among the new gurus who are surrounded by material comforts. A casual glance at the lifestyles of other gurus in America does not turn up any signs of poverty. This raises an obvious question: Why is it gurus insist on their followers becoming detached from the material world, while they seem to be completely immersed in it?
Detachment means losing dependence to students of eastern thought. A guru may be surrounded with material luxuries, they believe, and not depend on them in the least for his peace and happiness. Trungpa, Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist teacher, has expressed this idea: "Then, of course, the next step is giving away one's possessions. But this is not necessarily connected to austerity. It does not mean that you should not own anything at all or that you should give away what you have immediately. You could have a great wealth and many possessions and you could even enjoy them and like having them and probably you have a personal interest in them-like a child's toy, or adult's toy for that matter. It isn't a question of not seeing the value of possessions, the point is that it should be equally easy to give them away." 19
The western mind tends to see this as a rationalization of self-indulgent behavior. Yet, while many people feel gurus have accumulated more than their share of wealth, their followers believe they are getting no more than what they deserve. From the premie point of view, for instance, Guru Maharaj Ji's opulent lifestyle seems in harmony with their view of him as the Lord. They want him to live like the king that they feel he is. Idealizing him as they do, they are more than happy to supply him with luxuries.
From this perspective, Guru Maharaj Ji's opulence can be understood as a natural outgrowth of his followers' need to idealize him and to set him at a sufficiently great distance so that beliefs in his extraordinary powers are preserved. In short, premies have a stake in maintaining his luxurious way of living. The fact is that followers, not leaders, are the chief obstacles to equality, for followers need to elevate the leader so they have an ideal to strive toward. This point of view may seem strange, yet, if we look at other spiritual movements across the country, we find other followers elevating their gurus to a high spiritual status and surrounding them with material goods.
While we can partially explain Guru Maharaj Ji's lifestyle in terms of collective dynamics, another point of view would question why he has accepted the luxuries premies have gladly given him. Several explanations could be offered: that he is following tradition; that he recognizes his followers' need to elevate him to a point where he becomes the ideal to emulate; that he sees no conflict between his lifestyle and his spiritual mission; and that he is not attached to the comforts surrounding him. Of course, there is also the possibility that he is ambitious and materialistic, as so many people believe.
It is difficult to understand the motives behind Guru Maharaj Ji's lifestyle, just as it is impossible to know whether he is, as premies believe, an authentic saint. I have thought about this issue a great deal and have come to the conclusion that there is no way of knowing, by objective measures, whether the guru is authentic or not. That can only be determined subjectively, for, as one premie told me, "You can only see Guru Maharaj Ji with your heart." Instead of considering the guru's motives and authenticity, perhaps it would be more constructive to ask whether his followers have benefited from their relationship to him and what impact his efforts are having on our society.
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.