Prem Rawat's Teaching about Krishna - In His Own Words

Shri Maharaj Ji, Delhi, India, August 7 1952
St. Kabir says that whatever is done without the guidance of Guru, goes astray. Many people believe today that Lord Rama or Lord Krishna, or a flag, or the Gita, or the Ramayana, etc... should be taken as Guru, but nobody bothers to think over what has been written in the scriptures. Guru Nanak writes, in the Granth Saheb that nobody should be mistaken, because one cannot get liberation without a Guru. One who was misguided can discard hypocrisy upon getting the guidance of a Guru, and attain devotion to God. Guru is he who can transform a man into a god in no time, and can show an inner light which is more brilliant than the light of a hundred suns put together. The darkness of night cannot fade away without the rising of the sun. Similarly, until we find the Satguru, the darkness of our hearts cannot vanish. All the prophets, Guru Nanak, St. Tulsidas, Lord Jesus Christ, Lord Krishna preached about the Holy Name and Divine Light and told the public that this is the only way of getting peace and happiness. It cannot be attained by any other means. One can get relief from miseries by meditation and attain happiness.
Volume 2, Issue 2, And It Is Divine Magazine

Hans Rawat (father of Prem Rawat), June 1966, at Dehra Dun, India
Today marks the celebration of Krishna's birthday. Many people say that God doesn't take birth. Why should God take birth? Why should He do that? Devotion. God cares about his devotees. God is the object of devotion and He takes birth for the pleasures of devotion. People who say that God doesn't take birth, say as a challenge that God's all-powerful. But for the same reason, people leave all doubts behind to worship that all-powerful God. When God can do everything, then why can't He take birth? If there's even one work He can't perform, then how is He all-powerful?
The Golden Age Number 24, November 1975

Hans Rawat (father of Prem Rawat), Prem Nagar Ashram, Hardwar, India
However, the inherent quality of the Holy Name of the Almighty is to make the heart sacred and pure the moment that it is known and realised. The case of Ratnaker can be cited as an example of the power of the Holy Name. He was a ferocious bandit but as soon as he received Knowledge of the Holy Name he was transformed and became a great saint. People have been made to believe that names like Ram, Krishna, God, Om, Elahi, Jehovah and Akhbar are the real Name of God and that He can be realised by uttering these names. This is also a delusion - a mere deception, for these names only signify His attributes, they are just adjectives. They are not His real Name.
Divine Light, Volume 2, Number 6 and Hans Yog Prakash

Discourse - Param Sant Sadgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaj (Prem Rawat's father and Perfect Master of His time)
How did the saints become great? Because all of them remembered God's Name and meditated upon His Divine Light. People are engrossed in illusory things and have forgotten God and hence suffer from various worldly problems. A devotee wants to meet God but worldly illusions keep him away. It is well known that the soul is indestructible. So the souls of all creatures, whether living on earth or in water or in the sky, are indestructible. Moreover, new souls are not made, all of them have existed since time immemorial. It is also written that there is such a thing as salvation. Souls worthy of salvation achieved it and the remainder are bound to the cycle of birth and death. Those who did noble works got heaven. So, where have the liberated souls gone? Guru Nanak Dev Ji says, "Light has merged in Light". Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita, "There is no difference between Me and the gyani (Knowledge)". So, we should also search for the true Master and acquire Spiritual Knowledge from him.
Manav Dharam website (January 2009) downloaded 9 May 2009

The first discourse by Shri Guru Maharaj Ji in America, Los Angeles, July 17, 1971
So now - now we are just saying that we should know God, we should realize Him, we should do that, we should do that. But when you realize, then somebody will ask you what you have done, "Oh, I have realized that Supreme Being, that Supreme God." So, you have to realize God and there is a special technique, that Raja Yoga - not yoga - Raja Yoga: yoga of mind and not of body. Of mind. That yoga of mind which I teach, Krishna taught to Arjuna. Krishna says, "Arjuna, this is the Raja Yoga and every yoga started from it." Every yoga started from it."
And It Is Divine magazine, Volume I, Issue 1, November 1972

Questions & Answers, San Francisco, August 6 1971
Krishna says that you can have Knowledge by all means, but you will have to go to a Satguru, to a true Master, with a beggar's heart.
Q: What do you do before that?
That is what I am telling you. Prepare for it.
Q: How do you prepare for it? Do you prepare for it by meditating?
I'll tell you. Listen to me first. Go to a true Master with a heart like a beggar. Go to him, request him, and beg for that Knowledge. When he is pleased with you, he will give you that Knowledge, he will reveal that Truth to you.
Elan Vital, Spring 1980, Volume IV, Issue 1

Hollywood, California, August 11, 1971
This is the Knowledge that Jesus Christ gave, that Guru Nanak gave, that Krishna gave, that Ram gave, that Mohammed gave. And I am giving it. Supreme Knowledge. It is sacred. Top sacred! And it dwells within all of us. All human beings. And we are unable to know it without the help of the true Master. That is what I am teaching. Yes?
Elan Vital, Volume III Issue 3, Autumn 1979

Guru Maharaj Ji answers questions in Boulder, Colorado on August 18, 1971
Q: Would you speak on the subject of reincarnation? A: See, reincarnation means that a realized soul, which is one at a time, comes and reveals that Truth to people. Ram, Krishna, Buddha, Kabir, Nanak, Guru Govind Singh ... and also Christ - and there are many. They are all called incarnations. They come to give this Knowledge to people so that they may be done with all the sufferings of this world. Like Krishna says, "When there will be a decline in the true religion, I will come to save it and form one religion." Which he did. And "religion" means realization. "Religion" has started from a word "realization." Élan Vital, Volume 4, Issue 1, Spring 1980

Boulder, Colorad, August 28, 1971 Remember, Jesus came to reveal the Truth - not to write scriptures or not to do anything else, but to bless the people living in these countries, to bless the people of these countries, to bless the human beings existing on this plane. And so, even now a Holy Master has come here to give you something. If you want something from me, I can give it to you. Krishna says, "Receive this Knowledge, by all means, but have a guileless heart. Have a heart filled with a keen desire to know it, filled with real love to know it." God created sufferings. But He couldn't bear it when He saw how the people were suffering on this plane. He Himself created suffering, but when He looked, when He peeped through, He saw that all the people were suffering. He couldn't bear that. For we are His sons and He is our Father, and it is impossible for our Father to bear it when we are suffering. And He came onto this Earth to protect us.
Élan Vital magazine, Fall 1980. Volume IV, Isssue 3

Questions and Answers, October - November 1971, London
Q: But the Bible, The New Testament, tells that Jesus is living now.
A: So Jesus is living, right! Jesus is living. Ram is living now, Krishna is living now, Buddha is living now, but they all have been united. All their powers have been united into one very, very, very, very powerful power. And then this power spreads it's hand, you know, like this, something is going to happen. All this, all the things that are going on wrong in this world are going to be abolished.
Affinity, June 1979, Issue 52

Johannesburg, South Africa, 29th April, 1972
People today are so sophisticated they have become foolish because they cannot believe that the Perfect One is here. Even if they have some religious feeling, some inner understanding of truth, they cannot conceive of the Living Master. If you only read the scriptures properly you will see that they all talk about a Living Master. No scripture exists which does not talk about true Knowledge, or divine experience, being imparted to a disciple by a Living Master. We read the scriptures without understanding what they are saying. Indian people read the Bhagavad Gita and in this Lord Krishna, the Living Master of His time, said clearly, "Don't recognize me by my external appearance for this is perishable. My true form has no beginning and no end.
Many great saints got fantastic experiences from this wonderful Knowledge and just wanted to spread it to all people In every age a great saint like Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Mohammed, and Christ has taken birth on earth for this purpose, to give this Knowledge to other people, because in their time, the truth had declined, spiritual understanding had been lost. As far as spiritual matters go, they were ages of darkness.
The Golden Age, July 1979, Number 54

Montrose, Colorado, on July 25, 1972
Jesus came into this world and gave this Knowledge to people. Mohammed came into this world and gave this Knowledge to people. Krishna gave this Knowledge to people. Ram gave this Knowledge to people. But now we must look for a living Master to show us the Light once again. Because the sun comes and goes away and we don't look for the light of the sun which has just gone. We look for the new rising sun. The sun is the same but it rises in a new way, in a new, beautiful way and we look for that. In the same way, God is the same, but now we must look for His coming and for His Knowledge.
Light Reading, 1980

Prem Nagar Ashram, Hardwar, India, November 1972
So understand how subtle the mind is, and how subtle this Knowledge is which every Master has been revealing in His own time.Jesus did not preach Christianity. Krishna did not preach Hinduism. They preached the true Knowledge of the self, they gave self-realization to their devotees. Rama did not preach Hinduism: He gave self-realization to His devotees.
And It Is Divine, Volume 1, Issue 9, July 1973

Kansas City, Missouri, February 17, 1974
But if our lives have been dedicated to the Almighty, then wherever Almighty takes us, we are bound to go there. And that is that little trick that, this is that little trick that Krishna explained to Arjuna. That look; this is how you get along, going to liberation. This is how you can do selfless action.
... And it's like, by doing meditation is the only way, one and only way to dedicate it. You understand? Because you are not actually dedicating your whole life to an individual, but to Almighty. That's where intention should be.
Elan Vital, 1977

Cosmopolitan Hotel, Denver, Colorado, May 6 1974
And in Gita Lord Krishna says about this Knowledge to Arjuna, really beautiful explanation, and then Arjuna asks that, "Lord, what is the way to receive it?" And Lord says, "Go to the Perfect Master of your time and rid yourself of all your desires that you have in your heart. Go with no ego in front of Him. And go with a heart of a little child, and beg Him, ask Him, request Him. And He will give it to you." And it's like, "Knock, and it shall be opened," you know, and, "Ask, and it shall be given." It's like, then, instead of taking the truthful meaning of that, we completely get stuck in the scripture itself. But it says to go to a Perfect Master, to go to that power that can reveal us this Knowledge.
The Golden Age Number 17, January, 1975

Hans Jayanti, 1974
This is the joy, this is the wonderful, beautiful experience those saints had, those fortunate premies had, who were able to realize the Perfect Master. Like John was able to realize Christ. Like Arjuna was able to realize Krishna. Like Hanuman was able to realize Ram. They could understand that their Saviour, that their Father, that their shelter was still there, and that they could still run to it. Premies, it's said that in this world we have always needed a Saviour
And It Is Divine, Volume 2, Issue 7

Nepal, May 3, 1975
Today, people are totally confused. They don't even realize that this Knowledge is inside of them. That's why I go from place to place to give this Knowledge. More than three million people have received this Knowledge and have derived benefit from it. This is the Knowledge that was revealed by Lord Krishna.
Elan Vital, Volume III, Issue 4, Winter 1979

Indian Centre, Denver, Colorado, February 19, 1977
As I said before, this world was not made for problems. Therefore there are no solutions. This world was made for one reason. And there is only one reason. And the reason is for every individual to come together, to come into one, to become one, to really understand this Knowledge. Tell me one thing. People might say, "Well, why would God create such a fantastic earth? Why would a Creator create such a fantastic environment just for people to come together?" Tell me, what did Jesus do when he came? Tell me, what did Krishna do when he came? Tell me, what did Ram do when he came? Bring people together through Knowledge. Through this experience that he gave, he brought people together.
The Golden Age Number 41

Guru Puja Festival, Miami Beach, Florida July 29, 1977
And then, in the whole conversation where Lord Krishna is trying to convince Arjun that it's okay to fight -- "Just go ahead and do it," and shows him his real form -- he says, "Look, I'm everything. I'm the doer of everything. I am the maker of everything. I am everything. I am in everything and I am everything. So go ahead and fight." He says, "It's my agya. Go ahead and fight." Then he also says, "Look, these people are dead, so just go ahead and kill them. It's okay, kid." (That's an exaggeration.) But why? "Because following me, by obeying me, the Almighty, you will attain peace. I'll give you the Knowledge. I'll reveal you myself. You will attain it."
Elan Vital, Volume IV, Issue 2, Summer 1980

Guru Puja Festival, Tucson, Arizona, July 16, 1978
And we follow Guru Maharaj Ji. We follow Perfect Master. We follow that Knowledge which is within inside of us all, which is … We do not believe. There's a difference. "Oh yes, I believe in John. I believe in Arjun. I believe in Nanak." No! We do not believe; we experience. And there is a vast difference between believing, and knowing and experiencing. And we experience. We experience Jesus. We don't just talk about Jesus. We experience Jesus. Because in fact, who Jesus was was not a physical format. We experience the Jesus that Jesus talked about. We experience the Ram that Ram talked about. We experience the Krishna that Krishna talked about. And we experience that Knowledge that all the Perfect Masters talked about. Now. By Guru Maharaj Ji's Grace
Divine Times, August 1978 Volume 7, Number 5

Guru Puja, Geneva, Switzerland, September 10, 1978
Wasn't Jesus Christ judged, whether or not he was the Perfect Master? Wasn't Mohammed judged? Wasn't Krishna judged? Wasn't Ram judged? Wasn't Shri Maharaj Ji judged? All the Perfect Masters have been judged, as though if we are the real smart cream of the crop of this entire universe, that we have the capability of judging the Lord of the Universe when he does come. Obviously not. But anyway, we judge. And our judgement is based upon different concepts.
One time a lot of so-called intellectual people came up to Shri Maharaj Ji and they said, "What are you trying to do? What are you talking about?" ... You can imagine these guys who are thinking that they're heroes, people of the people, yet they didn't know they were talking to the Lord of Lords. I mean this is stupidity.
Geneva '78 booklet

Holi, Miami, Florida, 8 April, 1979, afternoon
There is one song that goes "Without Guru Maharaj Ji, nobody is going to find the path." And it just becomes so obvious in our lives that, yes, we are made to be dependent on somebody, on that perfectness. We have to rely on that perfectness. We have to be a beggar. And we have to be the "most humblest" beggar. Not just a beggar, but the "most humblest" beggar. Because everybody is a beggar. There is this one poem by Tulsidas. It goes, "In this world, you should do two things. Accept Holy Name and give peace." And that's what you have to do. You have to be a beggar. And to understand that, and to beg from your heart. Because what else can you do? You can't go up to Guru Maharaj Ji and say, "By the power vested in me, 0 Guru Maharaj Ji, I order you to reveal me Knowledge, give me Grace and satisfaction in my life." I mean, that would be a little bit too outrageous. And Guru Maharaj Ji will go, "Get out of here. Take your power and go swimming with it. Go fly a kite." But to beg for that Knowledge in the "most humblest" way. That's what Krishna says. You have to get rid of all your "cheats," your tiny nooks and crannies of this mind. Give it all up. With a humble heart approach the Perfect Master of the time and beg for this experience.
Divine Times, May/June 1979, Volume 8, Number 3

Guru Puja, Miami Beach, Florida, Saturday, 21st July, 1979
You know it seems so evident that by now everybody would understand, that everybody would understand all the mistakes human beings have made in the past with the Perfect Masters and would not commit the same mistakes again. Too many stories and too many examples. The cost of every living Perfect Master who has incarnated into this Earth. Look at Krishna. Look at Ram. Look at Mohammed. Look at Buddha. Guru Nanak. ... You know, we think there are so many experiences out there. But every living Perfect Master has come to reveal one experience.
The Golden Age, October 1979, Number 55

Hans Jayanti Festival, Kissimmee, Florida, November 5, 1979
See, Guru Maharaj Ji comes in this world, Guru Maharaj Ji manifests in this world, for his devotees. Period. And he tells his devotees the way out. And if devotees do not follow, can they even be called the devotees? When Krishna came, his devotees, his gopis, were completely blissed out. They didn't care about anything else.
Elan Vital, Volume IV, Issue 3, Fall 1980

Cancun, Mexico, January 16, 1980
That's exactly the thing with devotion. Devotion is that connection that all those devotees at that time of Jesus had to him, that Arjun had to Krishna, that Hanuman had to Ram. It's that link between what that Master comes in this world for and what we are here for. It's that ultimate link. That's the devotion. That is devotion. When we try to take our concepts again and somehow monkey it all up, with our devotion - take our concepts, fake our devotion and try to lay our concepts on top of the devotion - it doesn't work. It doesn't work for any of us. Because, again, it has to be sincere. It has to be the point of surrender. It has to be to the point of that clarity where you can understand, where you can see, where it's beyond ego, where it's beyond doubt.
Affinity, June 1980