Mahatma Guruchar(n)anand *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.
Mahatma Guruchar(n)anand *
There is little doubt that Mr Charan Anand formerly known as Mahatma Gurucharanand has been the major figure in the success of Prem Rawat in the West.
Without him it is unlikely that Divine Light Mission would have been ready to take advantage of the brief window of opportunity for eastern gurus and religions in the period 1970 to 1975.
He provided the impetus, inspiration and initiations that created the infrastructure to allow the young Prem Rawat, then calling himself Guru Maharaj Ji, to travel to the West,
disobey his mother and stay in the West indulging himself. His important influence into the 8 years' old Rawat being proclaimed the Satguru should not be forgotten either.
Is there a Guiness Boook of Records category for the person who has squeezed more eyes than anyone else alive? Mahatma Gurucharanand aka Enlighteningthumbsofpainanand is that man. Call him what you will, he is a phenomenon, the man who tirelessly squeezed eyes for 25 - 30 years? He has squeezed eyes all over the world, a truly international squeezer. He squeezed eyes of any sex, color, caste or creed, completely unprejudiced. He even went where no ophthalmologist will go, he will squeeze the eyes of a blind person.
Mike Finch, the 100th person Gurucharanand initiated in England recalls up to fifty "ex-beatniks, hippies, spiritual seekers, drop-outs, artists, the inquisitive" and the unlucky would gather to be enthralled and enchanted before being initiated ie revealed the techniques of meditation, by Gurucharanand. Finch remembers the pain to this day. But there are limits to what you can do with this "Knowledge" which after all is just squeezing your eyes and ears, poking your tongue backwards and concentrating on your breath. and sometimes there are people confident enough to ask the embarrassing question: "Just press on your eyes? What's that?" Understandably, Gurucharanand despite squeezing more eyes than anyone else on earth today (at least someone who doesn't live in India) was unable to provide a satisfactory explanation. "Mahatma Saphlanand" who was Gurucharanand's companion and entré into the London "hippie" culture told this story:
It was a dark and stormy night in the winter of '69--'70, in a West Kensington basement. The total no. of premies in the West was about 20. Charan Anand, had given knowledge to just one guy, with me assisting. He was one whom the Beatles might have called "one of the beautiful people", a gentle souled flower child called Rory. (I first met him years before at a party in Chelsea, in the kitchen where we were talking on a pretty cosmic level with Robin Williamson of the Incredible String Band. On the table sat a large jug of orange juice laced to the tune of about 500 mics. of LSD per glass.) When Charan had finished, Rory started to weep. "Aahhh" said Charan, thinking he was weeping for joy. But he wasn't. He said: "That's it? All my high expectations of a great revelation of God, all this waiting for days and nights listening to your talks, raising my hopes into thinking it was going to be a mind blowing experience, better than acid? Just press on your eyes? What's that?" "Explain Saph", said Charan. I tried, but I saw he had a point. Mahatmaji was visibly disturbed. We gave up trying to persuade him that it was quite profound.
There is a copy of one of Gurucharanand's satsangs from a Divine Light magazine. Unfortunately it appears to be one he wrote rather than spoke and shows none of the charm he surely must have possessed to get Divine Light Mission off the ground. It is full of hyperbole and false promises about the instanteous bliss of Satguru's Knowledge and contains the Catch 22. Who can totally dedicate themselves? Who can be sincere and selfless?
It is not child's play to become lost into pure consciousness, it can only be achieved by the Divine Grace of the Perfect Master which comes to those devotees who have totally dedicated themselves in order to spread His Sacred Knowledge for the sake of humanity. He who pleases his Spiritual Master through sincere devotion and selfless service reaches the highest goal of life in the twinkling of an eye. By the boundless compassion of the Perfect Master every human being becomes capable not merely of knowing about the ultimate Truth, they can also merge into it and receive direct experience instantaneously.
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Gurcharanand appeared in Indian footage in the film Satguru Has Come: "As the time approached for Shri Hans Ji Maharaj to leave this world the young Guru Maharaj Ji began to manifest his divinity. His words moved his father's disciples to tears of joy. After a lifetime devoted to bringing Knowledge of God to millions of followers, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj left his mortal body in Perfect Peace." |
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He kick started Divine Light Mission in Australia in September, 1972 when he came for 10 days and initiated several people thereby doubling the number of premies
and returned with the pudgy, moustache-hopeful guru the next month.
In this editorial in the Millenium edition (November 1973) of And It Is Divine magazine Mahatma Gurucharanand repeats the main doctrines of Rawatism, "once again the almighty Lord has incarnated in human form" and "his true Knowledge which leads man to perfection." After a decade or more of meditation, Gurucharanand seems oblivious to his lack of progress to perfection.
But unfortunately most people of the world do not understand this simple fact and miss the opportunity of receiving his true Knowledge which leads man to perfection. Many great souls came in the past but people did not recognize their glory. But now once again the almighty Lord has incarnated in human form to reveal to us the fundamental truth within ourselves. So let us not repeat the same mistake over and over again, and let its take the full advantage of his supreme Knowledge.
Gurucharnanand was one of the very few mahatmas who remained loyal to the young Rawat in 1975 when his mother disowned him. He had then been living in relative luxury in the West adored by the young Western followers for at least 5 years and a return to the poverty, celibacy and discipline of an Indian mahatma's ashram would have been very difficult and most uncomfortable. He always followed his own advice and kept his priorities perfect:
Your only occupation and duty in this world is to keep yourself content, self-wise and self-blissed. You have no responsibility to anybody but to yourself. We are serious criminals to ourselves if we violate the most sacred love, cheerfulness and peace.
In the late 1970's and early 1980s Gurucharanand was most famous for his bhajans, interminable Indian dirges sung in a monotone that the Perfect Master, Prem Rawat, encouraged him to sing and record
in a group called the Holy Jesters. In the center capture from a 1979 video we see Mahatmas Gurucharanand and Jagdeo who lived in Rawat's Malibu Residence
and used his position in supervising the education of premie children to sexually abuse some of them. He was sent back to India in secret after the scandal became public where Raj Vidya Kender looked after him.
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In 1996 Charanand told this story in the 25th Anniversary (of Rawat's arrival in England) Edition of Divine Times (a magazine/newsletter that had been defunct for about 15 years by then)
I am extremely thankful to Maharaji for allowing me to be so close to him for all these years. I pray in my heart to be with him for the rest of my life to the very last breath. Throughout these years, I have enjoyed myself to the fullest by practicing Knowledge, and participating in his activities. I know without his help, love and care, I would not be where I am today. I feel so fortunate that I had an incredible opportunity to spend almost 18 years with Shri Maharaj Ji. He was so beautiful and divine. I loved and adored him very dearly, and I still do. He not only helped me understand the importance of a Master, but also prepared me for the transition when he left his body. I never felt left alone. I immediately recognized his presence in Maharaji.
Gurucharanand was the main star of the 2001 Elan Vital 'Passages' video. Click here to see his contributions.
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Learning More:
Gurucharanand mentioned by Prem Rawat in his speeches
The name apparently can and has been transliterated as 'Gurucharanand' and 'Gurucharnanand'. As I prefer the first version I will use it.
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.
