Mata Ji empowered her eldest son, Bal Bhagwan Ji, as the new Guru Maharaji or "Perfect Master" Satpal Ji. The millions of Indian devotees and thousands of mahatmas seemed quite content with the new Satguru and rejected the "playboy" Prem Rawat.
At the death of the previous "Perfect Master", Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, the sensible "worldly" option would have been for a mature, realised devotee or the eldest son to become the next Perfect Master. Bal Bhagwan Ji, the eldest son, was the most intelligent and handsome, thin and charismatic and he could speak good English. He had earlier been presented as the likely heir ('Bhagwan' does mean 'God'). It was later claimed that Hans Rawat had already decided who would receive the title (published details of the succession are here) though however it was decided there is no doubt that the young "Sant Ji" or Prem Rawat became the new "Perfect Master" and until Prem Rawat's disinheritance and deposing because of his drug abuse, playboy lifestyle and meat eating, Bal Bhagwan appeared to live the role of Number One servant and devotee.
The young Rawat's long time bodyguard, Bihari Singh, claimed 30 years afterwards on a Prem Rawat Foundation sponsored website, A Voice For Peace (since deleted) that at his mother's behest he forgot the words of his father: "You are the older brother. Never try to make yourself anything. Try to help your brother …" Satpal Maharaj, as he is known, became the replacement Perfect Master. Most of the Indian premies and virtually all of the mahatmas obeyed Mata Ji and Bal Bhagwan Ji who, after a protracted court case, won ownership of the name and property of Divine Light Mission in India. As a young boy Prem Rawat or Maharaji's had accused the Indian premies of being "lost in illusion" in his"Peace Bomb" Satsang and to his loyal followers this now seemed prophetic. The young Western premies either rejected both sides or accepted they were witnessing a Divine Lila.
Mata Ji empowered her eldest son, Bal Bhagwan Ji, as the new Guru Maharaji or "Perfect Master" Satpal Ji. The millions of Indian devotees and thousands of mahatmas seemed quite content with the new Satguru and rejected the "playboy" Prem Rawat. |
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In the past 30 years Satpal has enjoyed a successful career as a politician, a family man with two sons, the Godman head of a large organisation of millions of devotees. He has continued and expanded the work of his father and mother and is a powerful figure in Uttar Pradesh but according to Prem Rawat and his followers there is only one true Perfect Master.
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Compare these recent (circa 2006) photos of the brothers. They're both appear to be living off the fat of the land and Satpal and his family are certainly enjoying a wealthy lifestyle (see Divine Enterprise) as is Prem Rawat.
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Satpal Ji has numerous followers in England of Indian descent and an informative web site with much hagiographic information about himself, their mother and their father though no mention is made of the prodigal son.
A Voice For Peace website, www.avoiceforpeace.net, was paid for by the Prem Rawat Foundation. It was on the net from December 2005 to December 2006 and is partially available on the Wayback Machine. It's mission statement included:
"This initiative is aimed at gathering for posterity the many fond memories that people with an interest in Maharaji and in his message have collected and preserved throughout the years. Of particular interest are stories that would add to the historical documentation of Maharaji's efforts around the world including first visits to countries, media coverage, and eyewitness reports of significant occasions. Personal stories are welcome as well, but may not be published on this site. They will add to the record of people's personal appreciation for Maharaji and the Knowledge he offers."
It did not remain on the internet for very long presumably because Rawat's activities were so unimpressive and the stories posted by his followers so full of magical thinking.
See Site Policy for statement regarding copyright.
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.
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.