Prem Rawat Stars in the Eponymous TVTV Documentary:
The Lord of The Universe

Lord of the Universe TVTV documentary Lord of the Universe TVTV documentary

The person who brought the most publicity to Guru Maharaj Ji (Prem Rawat) was Rennie Davis, the (in)famous anti-Vietnam war campaigner, who was one of the Chicago Seven conspiracy trial defendants. He figures extensively in the TVTV 'Lord of The Universe' and 'Mysterious Miracles, Aliens from Spaceship Earth' videos.

This documentary was filmed around the Millenium '73 festival billed by Prem Rawat (Guru Maharaj Ji) as the 'most important event in the history of humankind' and it's preceding publicity campaign called 'Soul Rush'. The festival showed that the young Maharaji and his inner circle of administrators and family members had a completely unrealistic picture of their powers, the number of their followers and the public response to Rawat's proclamations that he could bring World Peace. It provided the Divine Light Mission with a reality check and an exceedingly large debt. It is still available at Amazon and is a must for anyone with an interest in 1970's Divine Light Mission.

Some music from Millenium including scenes of the darshan line is available here. A full transcript of the film is available here

 

Rennie Davis gave an introductory public speech at the event.

"It is not possible to understand the Middle East, or Watergate, or UFOs, or the super comet in the sky unless you understand the central event on this planet around which all other events now spin. Guru Maharaj Ji says: 'Life is like a chess game and very soon now the whole world will be checkmated' and if America wants to know what is happening it must first understand the main thing that is happening, the Lord is on the planet, he's in a human body and he's about to usher in the greatest change in the history of human civilisation."

To drum up public interest in Millenium a convoy of buses filled with premies toured US cities in a publicity campaign called "Soul Rush". At the time this lady premie's age would have made her very unusual, now nearly all the premies are this age but nowhere near as enthusiastic.

Older Lady Premie: "Because He gives that true experience of God, He gives a true experience of God, you see Light, you'll hear Music, you'll taste Nectar, and you'll feel the Word. He uplifts us, He is baptizing us in the Holy Spirit, this is the day that we've been waiting for, the day we've been waiting for. He's come, He's here."

Onlooker: "We had a man up in New York, Father Divine too. It didn't last long."

"Oh yes, five of our friends from the Country Club have received Knowledge."

One of the Rawatism religion concepts that has remained unchanged is the belief that premies have an "experience" on which they base their worship and adoration of Prem Rawat. They do not base their life on ideas, concepts or philosophy but on an "experience of life" only available to those who practise Maharaji's Gift of Knowledge." These premies certainly cast doubt on that dogma.

"I'd crawl across three continents on my hands and knees to eat the dust off Guru Maharaj Ji's feet if necessary."

"I don't do anything. You know, I as a human being don't do anything, you know Guru Maharaj Ji does everything. I don't do anything, what do I do? You know. Guru Maharaj Ji, really from my own experience, this is not a philosophy, from my own experience, Guru Maharaj Ji is doing everything. He is the Doer of everything in this world."

"I would like to bet anyone who wishes to try and make some green energy that by November 15th, the Houston Astrodome will physically separate itself from the planet which we call Earth and will fly."

"People are going to come here with incredible negative pre-determined notions and they're going to go away spaced out and blissed out and really turned on. Anybody who's exposed to this vibration cannot fight it because it's stronger than anything, you know, the vibration of Guru Maharaj Ji is stronger than anything that has ever, that has ever been known. There's a rumour going around that NASA is tracing and following him around the country because his energy level is stronger than anything they've ever seen before."

Premies who have come to Houston airport to greet Maharaji clamber for bits of the garlands he briefly wore after he leaves and they bliss-out with their 'prasad' that he has touched.

"You know who touched this flower, the Lord of the Universe.
Touch it. A flower."

Maharaji gave this satsang on his arrival at the Houston airport. When he left, the garlands that had been laid around his neck were ripped apart and distributed to the adoring premies as prasad.

"This is just about the time that everybody comes together and understands who is God because I guess there have been too many of these phony things going around these world. Ah, messes like Watergate and things like that but it's just not America, it's right around the world, you can't just blame just one country for it. And I guess this is just about time that everybody gets together and understands who is God because it's important that people know God by now, at least." (knowing laughter in crowd)

At this time the young Prem Rawat and his close followers hadn't yet completely realized that their ideas and enthusiasm were not about to sweep everybody off their feet and at Millenium they held the last open and free press conference Maharaji has ever held. However, they angered the real reporters by packing the press conference with phony reporters asking questions that only people who were premies would ask and closing the conference when they began to ask difficult questions.

"The purpose of this mission, the aim of this mission is to establish peace in this earth and we want that we should be helped by all brothers and sisters because if we are humans, if we are real humans, we would very much like that peace should be on this earth. And thus we would like to help somebody who can establish peace. Well, here I am and I can I say I can establish peace in this world."

Q: "It's hard for some people to understand how you personally can live so luxuriously in your several homes and your Rolls Royce and stuff and why don't you spend that money on feeding people?"

A: "And that's a really good question. Let me tell you this that life you call luxurious ain't luxurious at all because any other person gets the same life I get, he is going to blow apart in a million pieces in a split of a second."

Q: "Guru, are you the Perfect Body?"

A: "Oh no."(Sustained laughter)

"I'm trying to accomplish peace in this world. That's what I'm trying to do."

"Because whatever Jesus taught to his disciples has not disappeared, it's still there. Because that time if those people staying alive is because of the same Knowledge and if this time people are going to stay alive it's because of the same Knowledge. You're alive because of that same Knowledge."

"There is this man who comes into Houston and he is looking for a Superman comic. And he goes searching right around Houston and he searches all Astrodome and he searches all stationery book and every just bookstores and every place. He can't get a Superman comic. And then he's sitting with his eyes closed and suddenly a little guy, 4 years old, 5 years old comes up to him with something under his shirt and he shakes him up and says "Excuse me" and you go like that "What's up? What do you want?" "Oh. I'm sorry but I thought you wanted a Superman comic, I can give it to you." It's just like he's really cool boy, he's just smiling, he's cool and you're all screwed up and just ready to burst open. You just don't like guys fooling around you, you want them hot so they can really boost up that thing inside you. And then he opens the first button of his shirt and you look "Hey man I don't believe it. What's going on?" And then he takes out this superman comic up and he gives it to you and your mouth is open and then just like that."

"Rock Me Maharaji" plays during the darshan line.

Everything was dark at first
Things had gone from bad to worse
The Lord of all the universe
Came down to show the way
I was just a little child
Maya made my mind run wild

Then Guru Maharaj Ji smiled
And nighttime turned to day
I will give you peace he said
And at his feet I laid my head

Chorus:
So rock me Maharaji and roll me tonight
Rock me Maharaji and say it's all right
It's all right