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.
THE POST, Frederick, Md. Thursday, March 11, 1982 B-1
ANNAPOLIS (AP) - Emotion-filled stories of brainwashing and deprivation were recounted as a House committee heard testimony Wednesday an legislation to provide parents with the right to remove their children from religious cults. College students who identified themselves as former cult members - and parents who have tried unsuccessfully to remove their children from such groups - were among the more than 30 witnesses signed up for the hearing, which lasted late into the evening.
"The things I did and believed in were not rational," said Maggie Shivers, 28, a Yale student who identified herself as a former member of the Divine Light Mission.
We were told that if we left we would shatter into a million pieces," said Ms. Shivers, who broke down in tears as she tried to finish her testimony.
Other former cult members said they were the victims of deceptive recruitment and that they were threatened with death if they left.
Lined up in opposition to the bill were the American Civil Liberties Union and representatives from the Unification Church, Church of Scientology and The Way International.
The ACLU and the various groups who are the targets of the legislation have traditionally argued that such laws would violate the constitutional right of freedom of religion.
"My concern is only with actions, not beliefs," said Delegate Ida Ruben, D-Montgomery, sponsor of the legislation. "Not all acts, even when done in the name of religion, are protected by our Constitution. Ritual human sacrifice is murder, not a sacrament."
"We should not allow the deliberate destruction of a person's free will to be protected by the first amendment while a good faith attempt to restore free will is being prohibited by the first amendment," she said.
Mrs. Ruben's legislation would allow the courts to appoint a special guardian for an adult or emancipated minor if it can be shown the person has undergone a "substantial behavior change" as a result of "systematic coercive persuasion."
A guardian could be appointed for only 45 days and only after a formal legal hearing. During the guardianship period, counseling would be given to restore the person's "capacity for independence."
Mrs. Ruben said she knew of no other such legislation on the books in other states.
The legislation is designed to provide a means for parents to remove their children from so called religious cults, at least temporarily, without facing criminal prosecution.
A Silver Spring couple was indicted by a grand jury is Denver last year on kidnapping and conspiracy charges in their unsuccessful bid to remove their daughter from the Divine Light Mission. The mother, Esther Dietz, was among the witnesses Wednesday.
"We acted out of a clear understanding of the destructive nature of cults," said Mrs Deitz. "Must we wait for another Jonestown, Guyana?"
An Episcopal priest who has helped families whose children have entered religious cults also testified for the bill, "To me the question is not just freedom of religion, but freedom from religion," said the Rev. Michael Rokas of Joppatown.
"There are many people who are not being given a free choice, but are being manipulated and coerced," he said.
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.