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Prem Rawat succeeded his father Hans Rawat as the leader of the Divine Light Mission an organisation that was created to formalise the activities of Hans Rawat's existing following.[1] Hans Rawat did not promote a systematically developed doctrine however the teaching that he adopted was, acccording to several scholarly articles, derived from Sant Mat.[2] [3][4] Central to Hans Rawat's teaching was the practice of four meditation techniques , collectively called Knowledge which were taught in a secret initiation. Precepts propounded by Hans Rawat included the essential need to surrender to a Satguru through only whom the true Knowledge could be obtained, and only through the practice of which could lasting inner peace be gained.

Initially Prem Rawat adopted all aspects of his father's teaching, however successive changes in presentation have seen the younger Rawat abjure all the teaching inherited from his father with the single exception of the tenat that the practice of Knowledge is essential to obtaining inner peace.[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]

Origins

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Scholars wroted that Prem Rawat's teachings spring from the traditions of the Indian Sants, who dismissed religious ritual and praised the "Divine Name" for its power to save. They emphasised honour for the guru or Perfect Master. In correspondence with the Sant Mat movement, Rawat emphasized surrender and devotion to the guru and claimed, according to several scholars, to be an embodiment of God on Earth.[13] [14][15][16][17][18]He also emphasized surrender to God "who dwells in the heart."[19][20][21][22][23][24][25] According to several scholarly articles and observers, Prem Rawat, never had a systematically developed set of teachings or doctrine.[26] [27][28]According to a religious scholar, he was also influenced by Christianity and his speaking style in a satsang in 1975 was described as resembling a "Christian evangelical campaign."[29][30][31].His teachings were described by a religious scholar as essentially Hindu in origin. [32]One scholar wrote that the teachings of the Divine Light Mission are in essence Radhasoami[33]

"Knowledge"

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Main article: Techniques of Knowledge

When Rawat first came to the West his teachings were essentially Hindu in origin, embracing a worldview that accepted transmigration of souls, karma, human avatars and imbedded in an interpretation of the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita.However, a discerning listener would have recognized the radical voice of the North Indian nirguna bhaktas, also defined as Sants, notably Nanak and Kabir, especially in the message of universalism, equality and the focus on inwardness rather than the outward forms of Hinduism.[34]The experience was an individual, subjective experience rather than on a body of dogma, and in its Divine Light days the movement was sometime criticized for this stressing of emotional experience over intellect. His teaching consists simply of what he calls "giving knowledge," not of any extensive set of moral precepts. Unlike most Eastern religious teachers, he generally refused to give concrete instructions regarding what one should eat, how one should make a living, or what one's disciplehood should involve. All of truth is in "the Knowledge" and not in the "conceptual mind".[35][36][37][38][39] In the early 80s Rawat dropped all of its original Eastern religious practices. [...] Unusually, the fact that Rawat came from a lineage of 'Perfect Masters' is no longer relevant since this is not where the authority comes from, nor the recognition of Maharaji as the master by his student; this comes rather from the nature of the teaching and its benefit to the individual.[40][41] Although occasionally drawing upon Indian anecdotes to use as examples for his teachings and referring to Kabir and Nanak, there is apparently little in his current idiom that could be linked to Hinduism, on the contrary, he openly challenges transmigration and the law of karma as only belief systems that cannot be verified as fact. Although there are many who would assert that his authority lies in his charisma, Rawat himself has stated that he does not consider himself to be a charismatic figure, preferring to refer to his teachings and the efficacy of the practice of the four techniques on the individual as the basis of his authority[42] Rawat's teachings provide a kind of practical mysticism. He speaks not of God, but of the god or divinity within, the power that gives existence. And although such references apparently suggest an acceptance of a creative, loving power, he distances himself and his teachings from any concept of religion. The process of reaching the true self within can only be achieved by the individual, but with the guidance and help of a teacher. Maharaji now teaches a simple self-discovery process, involving the use of four simple techniques to turn the senses within and appreciate the joyful basis of existence beyond thoughts and ideas. He denies that his teachings represent instant gratification, but he sees it instead as an ongoing learning process that c an enrich an individual.[43]The tens of thousands of followers in the West do not see themselves as members of a religion, but the adherents of a system of teachings that extol the goal of enjoying life to the full. For Elan Vital, the emphasis is on individual, subjective experience, rather than on a body of dogma. [44][45]

According to the Dutch religious scholar and Christian minister Reender Kranenborg and the American religious scholar J. Gordon Melton, these techniques are secret and were originally called "Light", "Sound", "Name" or "Word" and "Nectar" but Maharaji now refers to them as the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th techniques. [46][47][48]Maharaji asks practitioners to promise "not to reveal these techniques to anyone", but says to "let other people go through their own journey... [so] they, too, can have the techniques when they are ready."[49] Kranenborg and Melton provide differing details of them in their writings but agree on a general description of the practices.[23][48] "Light" involves careful pressure on the eyes, seeking to open the "third eye" after a long period of training and practice. This is comparable to similar Tantric practices. "Sound" involves positioning the hands over the ears and temples, with the goal of hearing the "heavenly music". This is reported to be related to sabda-brahman meditation. "Name", or "Word", is a meditation concentrating on breath. Kranenborg additionally states that it employs mantras while exhaling. "Nectar" involves tongue positioning, eventually leading the student to taste the "nectar of life".

Warnings against the mind

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Another aspect of his teaching were warnings against the "mind". The "mind" was defined in the Divine Light Mission, according to various scholarly articles, either as alienating influences that made man stray off from his true nature, or a "state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust", or "conceptual thinking" that was the main enemy of direct religious experience. [50][51][52]

Developments and name changes

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Following the split with his family in 1974 Rawat transformed his initial teachings in order to appeal to a Western context. He came to recognize that the Indian influences on his followers in the West were a hindrance to the wider acceptance of his teachings. He therefore changed the style of his message and relinquished the Hindu tradition, beliefs, and most of its original eastern religious practices.[53][54][55]

In 1983 Rawat downsized Divine Light Mission and changed its name to Elan Vital. He dropped the title "Guru" and closed the last western ashrams, seeing his teachings as independent of culture, religion, beliefs, or lifestyles,[56][57]He continued to teach the four techniques of Knowledge and affirmed his own status as a master rather than a divine leader. The original religious movement was essentially defunct. Scholars such as Kranenborg and Chryssides describe the departure from divine connotations, and the new emphasis that the Knowledge is universal, rather than Indian.[58][59]

According to Stephen J. Hunt in Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction, Rawat's major focus is on stillness, peace, and contentment within the individual, and his 'Knowledge' consists of the techniques to obtain them. Knowledge, roughly translated, means the happiness of the true self-understanding. Each individual should seek to comprehend his or her true self. In turn, this brings a sense of well-being, joy, and harmony as one comes in contact with one's "own nature." The Knowledge includes four secret meditation procedures and the process of reaching the true self within can only be achieved by the individual, but with the guidance and help of a teacher. Hence, the movement seems to embrace aspects of world-rejection and world-affirmation. The tens of thousands of followers in the West do not see themselves as members of a religion, but the adherents of a system of teachings that extol the goal of enjoying life to the full.[60]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ Satgurudev, Divine Light Mission,B-19/3, Shakti Nagar, Delhi 7, India - 1970
    "Shri Maharaj Ji realised the necessity of following a modern technique for propagation, and wished to provide for his followers an organisation in which they could work for the betterment of mankind. Therefore, in 1960 the mission was named the Divine Light Mission and registered at Patna."
  2. ^ Mangalwadi, Vishal The World of Gurus revised edition Cornerstone Pr Chicago; Revised edition (July 1992) ISBN 094089503X, pp 137-138
    "The Divine Light Mission has not been interested in teachings and philosophies. Balyogeshwar and his brother have consistently rejected "theoretical" knowledge as "useless." I found the DLM devotees most difficult to talk to, because they neither wanted to teach their philosophy to me nor answer philosophical questions and objections. Their one comment was, "Take the practical knowledge of the experience of Sound and Light and all your doubts and questions will be answered." "
  3. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3, page 76 English translation: "Neither in the time of the father, Shri Hans, nor in that of the son, did the Divine Light Mission possess a systematically developed set of teachings. Both saw [doctrines] as presenting more problems than advantages. Although the father saw himself primarily as the Guru of the Poor, and his discourses that were rich in metaphors were more concerned with practical applications than with penetrating theory, yet his satsangs could always be understood against a background of Hindu tradition. But the satsangs that his son held in the west, which he managed with a minimum of Hindu terms and concepts, still remain vague for the non-Hindu listener."
    "
    "Eine systematisch entwickelte Lehre hat die Divine Light Mission weder zur Zeit des Vaters Śhrī Hans noch des Sohnes besessen. Beide haben darin eher einen Vorzug als einen Mangel gesehen. Hatte der Vater sich vornehmlich als >>Guru der Armen<< verstanden und sich in einer bilderreichen Sprache mehr um praktische Anwendbarkeit als um theoretische Durchdringung bemüht, so blieb doch der Inhalt seiner Satsangs auf dem Hintergrund der Hinduistischen Tradition klar verständlich. Die Satsangs jedoch, die der Sohn im Westen gehalten hat und die mit einem Minimum hinduistischer Terminologie und Konzepte auskommen, müssen für den nichthinduistischen Hörer vage bleiben."
  4. ^ Haan, Wim (Dutch language) De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981 edited by Dr. R. Bakker, Dr. C. J. G. van der Burg,(The article is mainly based on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission) ISBN 90-242-2341-5 page 55 English parahrasing:The DLM hardly had a philosophical background and that its central items of faith were summarized in the song associated with the Hindu devotional ritual called aarti. Partial text of the song
    "page 55 note 2 "Bij de Divine Light Mission is nauwelijks sprake van een filosofische achtergrond. De centrale 'geloofspunten zijn allen weergegeven in dit lied. Helaas is er geen Nederlandse tekst beschikbaar.Hieronder volgt de Engelse tekst van dit dertien coupletten tellende 'loflied'
  5. ^ Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
  6. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, pp.79 Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-170-05609-3
  7. ^ Kranenborg, Reender, Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern Faith Movements in the West.
  8. ^ Lans, Jan van der & Frans Derks, Update nr. X 2 June 1986
  9. ^ Lans, Jan van der & Frans Derks, Premies Versus Sannyasins Update nr. X 2 June 1986
    "According to Maharaj Ji, all evil should be attributed to the mind[...] indicat[ing] the same obstacle of freeing oneself from former bonds [...] DLM’s concept of mind refers primarily to a state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust."
  10. ^ Haan, Wim (Dutch language) De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981. ISBN 90-242-2341-5 Note: Haan was part of a critical movement within the Catholic church (Based mainly on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission.) Dutch orginal:
    "Het woordje "mind" wordt binnen de premie-gemeenschap gedefinieerd als de 'gekonditioneerdheid', d.w.z. alle vervreemdende invloeden die de mens van zijn ware aard hebben doen afdwalen.
    Soms ontaardt de strijd die tegen dit woord wordt gevoerd echter in een volstrekte irrationaliteit. Elke kritiek en objektieve benadering wordt dan als mind bestempeld. Als iemand zich slecht voelt of gedurende lange tijd geen goede ervaringen heeft heeft tijdens zijn meditatie, dan is de betreffende persoon 'in zijn mind'. Gesprekken met buitenstaanders worden vaak uit de weg gegaan, omdat dat wel eens de mind zou kunnen stimuleren."
  11. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3 English translation
    "The young Guru explains that conceptual thinking, translated with the English word “mind” in German translations also, is the main enemy of direct religious experience."
    "Der junge Guru erklärt das konzeptionelle Denken, das auch in deutschen Übersetzungen mit dem englischen Wort >>mind<< bezeichnet wird, als Hauptfeind der unmittelbaren religösen Erfahrung."
  12. ^ Stephen J. Hunt Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction (2003), pp.116-7, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-3410-8
  13. ^ Björkqvist, K. (1990). World-rejection, world-affirmation, and goal displacement: some aspects of change in three new religions movements of Hindu origin.. N. Holm (ed.), Encounter with India: studies in neohinduism 79-99. Åbo Akademi University Press, Turku
    "In 1976, Maharaj Ji declared that he felt that the organization had come between his devotees and himself, and he disposed of the headquarters altogether. During the latter half of the 70's, the movement clearly returned towards greater world-rejection, although perhaps not reaching the same level as in 1971-73. The millenarian ideology had lost its credibility owing to a slowdown in the expansion rate, and the millenarian jargon gradually disappeared completely. Emphasis was placed on devotion to the guru, ashram life was again encouraged, and satsang meetings were arranged every evening."
  14. ^ Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
  15. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, pp.79 Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-170-05609-3
  16. ^ Kranenborg, Reender, Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern Faith Movements in the West.
  17. ^ Melton, J. Gordon The Encyclopedia Handbook of Cults in America. p.143, Garland Publishing (1986) ISBN 0-8240-9036-5
  18. ^ Lans, Jan van der and Dr. Frans Derks Premies Versus Sannyasin
    "His request for total surrender and complete trust is grounded in his claim of ultimate authority derived from his godliness."
  19. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3
    pp.76-77: pp76-77. Neither in the time of the father, Shri Hans, nor in that of the son, did the Divine Light Mission possess a systematically developed set of teachings. Both saw [doctrines] as presenting more problems than advantages. Although the father saw himself primarily as the Guru of the Poor, and his discourses that were rich in metaphors were more concerned with practical applications than with penetrating theory, yet his satsangs could always be understood against a background of Hindu tradition. But the satsangs that his son held in the west, which he managed with a minimum of Hindu terms and concepts, still remain vague for the non-Hindu listener. The young Guru explains that conceptual thinking, translated with the English word “mind” in German translations also, is the main enemy of direct religious experience. It is therefore hardly surprising that little firm information about DLM teachings can be obtained from his followers. On the other hand, the lack of professed concepts allows them a freedom of expression which is spontaneous and personal, and which makes an agreeable contrast with the unexamined reproduction of received teachings which one especially finds in the devotees of Iskcon. Whatever judgment one may have about the movement, its intellectual lack of contours is clear to all observers.
    "Eine systematisch entwickelte Lehre hat die Divine Light Mission weder zur Zeit des Vaters Śhrī Hans noch des Sohnes besessen. Beide haben darin eher einen Vorzug als einen Mangel gesehen. Hatte der Vater sich vornehmlich als >>Guru der Armen<< verstanden und sich in einer bilderreichen Sprache mehr um praktische Anwendbarkeit als um theoretische Durchdringung bemüht, so blieb doch der Inhalt seiner Satsangs auf dem Hintergrund der Hinduistischen Tradition klar verständlich. Die Satsangs jedoch, die der Sohn im Westen gehalten hat und die mit einem Minimum hinduistischer Terminologie und Konzepte auskommen, müssen für den nichthinduistischen Hörer vage bleiben. Der junge Guru erklärt das konzeptionelle Denken, das auch in deutschen Übersetzungen mit dem englischen Wort >>mind<< bezeichnet wird, als Hauptfeind der unmittelbaren religösen Erfahrung. So ist es nicht verwunderlich, daβ von seinen Anhängern nur wenig Handfestes über die DLM-lehre zu erfahren ist. Andererseits eröffent ihnen der Mangel an vorgegebenen Konzepten einen Freiraum für Äuβerungen einer spontanen Subjektivität, die wohltuend vom unselbständigen Reproduzieren autoritativ verkündenter Lehren absticht, wie man es vor allem dei den Anhängern der ISKCON antrifft. Wie auch immer die Bewertung ausfallen mag - die geistige Konturlosigkeit der Bewegung fällt allen Beobachtern auf. Im Zentrum steht bei Vater und Sohn die vierfache Meditationstechnik, die vier >>Kriyas<<, die Sri Hans von Svami Sarupanand gelernt hatte. [..]"
    "pp.78: "Innerhalb dieses eklektischen Denken dominiert der Einfluβ der in Nordindien beheimaten Sant-Tradition, der schon in der Geschichte des Radhasoami Satsang wirksam war. Von ihr bestimmt ist die Ablehnung äußerlicher Rituale und Zeremonien und die Forderung, das Göttliche im eigenen Inneren zu suchen; damit verbunden die Polemik gegen den Trennenden Charakter der in Äuβerlichkeiten estarrten Religionen und gegen die Kastentrennung; ferner die Ablehnung der Askese zugunsten des Lebens im Stande des Haushalters, wie Sri Hans es selbst geführt hat; die Ablehnung der Bilderverehrung und die Konzentration auf den Guru als die Manifestation des Göttlichen; [..]"
  20. ^ Lipner.
  21. ^ Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
  22. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, pp.79 Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-170-05609-3
  23. ^ a b Kranenborg, Reender, Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern Faith Movements in the West.
  24. ^ Melton, J. Gordon The Encyclopedia Handbook of Cults in America. p.143, Garland Publishing (1986) ISBN 0-8240-9036-5
  25. ^ Geaves, Ron, Globalization, Charisma, Innovation and Tradition: 2006. Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies, 2 44-62.
    "Prem Rawat has affinities with the mediaeval Nirguna Bhakti (formless devotion) tradition of Northern India, more commonly known as Sant. With its emphasis on universalism, equality, direct experience, criticism of blind allegiance to religious ritual and dogma, and tendency towards syncretism."
  26. ^ Mangalwadi, Vishal The World of Gurus revised edition Cornerstone Pr Chicago; Revised edition (July 1992) ISBN 094089503X, pp 137-138
    "The Divine Light Mission has not been interested in teachings and philosophies. Balyogeshwar and his brother have consistently rejected "theoretical" knowledge as "useless." I found the DLM devotees most difficult to talk to, because they neither wanted to teach their philosophy to me nor answer philosophical questions and objections. Their one comment was, "Take the practical knowledge of the experience of Sound and Light and all your doubts and questions will be answered." "
  27. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3
  28. ^ Haan, Wim (Dutch language) De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981 edited by Dr. R. Bakker, Dr. C. J. G. van der Burg,(The article is mainly based on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission) ISBN 90-242-2341-5 page 55 English parahrasing:The DLM hardly had a philosophical background and that its central items of faith were summarized in the song associated with the Hindu devotional ritual called aarti. Partial text of the song
    "page 55 note 2 "Bij de Divine Light Mission is nauwelijks sprake van een filosofische achtergrond. De centrale 'geloofspunten zijn allen weergegeven in dit lied. Helaas is er geen Nederlandse tekst beschikbaar. Hieronder volgt de Engelse tekst van dit dertien coupletten tellende 'loflied' page 55 note 2
    "Bij de Divine Light Mission is nauwelijks sprake van een filosofische achtergrond. De centrale 'geloofspunten zijn allen weergegeven in dit lied. Helaas is er geen Nederlandse tekst beschikbaar.
    Hieronder volgt de Engelse tekst van dit dertien coupletten tellende 'loflied'
    Jai, Gurudev Maharaj, Ji,
    Your glory fills the world
    Protector of the weary and the weak
    You bring the death of attachment
    You bring the mind true detachment
    Save us from the ocean deep
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Creator, Preserver, Destroyer
    Bow their heads and pray to You
    All bow and pray to You
    Scriptures sing Your glory
    Heaveny hosts sing Your praises
    Your virtues are ever true
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Chanting, fasting, charity, austerity
    never bring you knowledge of the soul
    will never reveal your soul
    without the grace of satguru
    without the Knowledge of Satguru
    rites and rituals never reach the goal
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    In the river of bondage to maya
    All are swept out to sea
    All are sinking in the depths of the sea
    Guru's boat is the holy name
    Guru's ship is the holy word
    In seconds he has set us free
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    In the river of bondage to maya
    All are swept out to sea
    All are sinking in the depths of the sea
    Guru's boat is the holy name
    Guru's ship is the holy word
    In seconds he has set us free
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Anger, desire, attachments
    Rob us of eternal life
    Take away our heavenly life
    Satguru gives us true Knowledge
    Satguru is eternal Knowledge
    The sword that kills our problem life
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Religions harp their own glories
    Call to follow their own path
    Welcome me to follow their own way
    The essence of all was revealed
    The seed of all was revealed
    I walk on the true way today
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Nectar from Satguru's feet is
    Holy and it cleans us of our sins
    So sacred in cleaning us of sin
    When he speaks, darkness flies away
    When he speaks, darkness cannot stay
    Doubts removed, new life then begins
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Mine, Thine, Wealth, Health
    Give them to the lotus feet of love
    Give them to the lotus feet of the Lord
    Give yourself to Satguru
    Sacrifice yourself to Satguru
    Be united with the blissful Truth
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Bible, Gita, the Koran
    Sing the glory of Your Name
    They all sing the glory of Your Name
    Angels sing Your great glory
    Heavenly hosts sing Your praises
    They find no end to Your fame
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Desires have robbed me and left me
    Trapped in the darkness of the night
    Yes, they've trapped me in the darkness of the night
    Guru gives holy Name and Light
    Guru gives Holy Name and Sight
    Cross the ocean by His Love and Light
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Many past forms you have taken
    Now we have come in your control
    Again You have come to save the soul
    In this time of darkness
    To lead Your devotees from darkness
    You have come as Hansa the pure soul
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Come to the shelter of Guru's grace
    Come with your heart and your soul
    Bring Him your heart and your soul
    Cross the worldly ocean
    Cross it by your devotion
    And attain the supreme goal
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev
    Jai Gurudev Maharaj Ji
    Your glory fills the world
    Protector of the weary and the weak
    You bring the death of attachment
    You bring the mind true detachment
    Save us from the ocean deep
    Jai Dev, Jai Satgurudev"
    English translation: page 55
    "The DLM hardly had a philosophical background and its central items of faith are all listed in the song associated with the Hindu devotional ritual called aarti. Unfortunately a Dutch text is not available."
    Note:Haan wrote this article while he was a student of theology at a Pastoral and Theology school in a small town in the Netherlands and while he was part of a critical movement within the Catholic church.
  29. ^ Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1, page 64
    "Tenslotte is de invloed van het Christendom ook aanwezig. Misschien komt dat Maharaj ji op een christelijke school heeft gezeten. Misschien omdat hij al zo lang in het Westen woont.
  30. ^ Hummel, Reinhart, Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-170-05609-3, p79.
    "In a satsang in 1975 in Orlando/Florida, he speaks in a language similar to American evangelical campaigners." Original: "In einem 1975 in Orlando/Florida gehaltenen Satsang spricht er eine aehnliche Sprache wie Amerikanische Evangelizationsfeldzuege."
  31. ^ Kranenborg, Reender (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1
  32. ^ Geaves, Ron, Globalization, Charisma, Innovation and Tradition: An exploration of the Transformations in the Organisational Vehicles for the Transmission of the Teachings of Prem Rawat (Maharaji), 2006, Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies, 2 44-62
    "The teachings were essentially Hindu in origin, embracing a worldview that accepted transmigration of souls, karma, human avatars and imbedded in an interpretation of the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. However, a discerning listener would have recognized the radical voice of the North Indian Nirguna Bhaktas, also defined as Sants, notably Nanak and Kabir, especially in the message of universalism, equality and the focus on inwardness rather than the outward forms of Hinduism."
  33. ^ Juergensmeyer, Mark 'Radhasoami Reality, The logic of a modern faith'
    "The teachings of the Divine Light Mission, led by the boy guru Maharaj-Ji, are essentially those of Radhasoami as well, and other spiritual leaders of the time were also influenced by Radhasoami teachings."
  34. ^ Prince & Riches: The New Age in Glastonbury: The Construction of Religious MovementsMaharaj-ji was considered to be deeply spiritually imbued, enabling him to teach secret techniques of meditation [that] where considered o heighten spiritual; experience and help people realise their full potential in day-to-day living in the material world.
  35. ^ Messer, Jeanne. 1976 "Guru Maharaj Ji and the Divine Light Mission," in Charles Y. Glock and Robert N. Bellah, eds. The New Religious Consciousness. Berkeley: University of CaliforniaPress. pp.52-72.
  36. ^ Edwards, Linda. A Brief Guide to Beliefs: Ideas, Theologies, Mysteries, and Movements, pp.277-79, Westminster John Knox (2001), ISBN 0-664-22259-5 "In its earlier existence Divine Light teaching derived mainly from Hinduism. Maharaj Ji, as the guru, imparted wisdom upon his followers. The guru taught that humanity is inherently divine. For people to attain this divinity, which came from the teachings of Guru Maharaj Ji, who is of the line of Perfect Masters.
  37. ^ Lans, Jan van der & Frans Derks, Premies Versus Sannyasins "According to Maharaj Ji, all evil should be attributed to the mind[...] indicat[ing] the same obstacle of freeing oneself from former bonds [...] DLM’s concept of mind refers primarily to a state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust."Another aspect of his teaching were warnings against the "mind". The "mind" was defined in the Divine Light Mission, according to various scholarly articles, either as alienating influences that made man stray off from his true nature, or a "state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust", or "conceptual thinking" that was the main enemy of direct religious experience.
  38. ^ Haan, Wim (Dutch language) De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981. ISBN 90-242-2341-5 Note: Haan was part of a critical movement within the Catholic church (Based mainly on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission.) Dutch orginal:
    "Het woordje "mind" wordt binnen de premie-gemeenschap gedefinieerd als de 'gekonditioneerdheid', d.w.z. alle vervreemdende invloeden die de mens van zijn ware aard hebben doen afdwalen.
    Soms ontaardt de strijd die tegen dit woord wordt gevoerd echter in een volstrekte irrationaliteit. Elke kritiek en objektieve benadering wordt dan als mind bestempeld. Als iemand zich slecht voelt of gedurende lange tijd geen goede ervaringen heeft heeft tijdens zijn meditatie, dan is de betreffende persoon 'in zijn mind'. Gesprekken met buitenstaanders worden vaak uit de weg gegaan, omdat dat wel eens de mind zou kunnen stimuleren."
  39. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3 English translation
    "The young Guru explains that conceptual thinking, translated with the English word “mind” in German translations also, is the main enemy of direct religious experience."
    "Der junge Guru erklärt das konzeptionelle Denken, das auch in deutschen Übersetzungen mit dem englischen Wort >>mind<< bezeichnet wird, als Hauptfeind der unmittelbaren religösen Erfahrung."
  40. ^ Stonner and Parke All Gods Children: The Cult Experience—Salvation Or Slavery?, pp.29 Chilton (1977), ISBN 0-801-96620-5 Guru Maharaj Ji claims to understand the key to the essence and spirit of knowledge and truth. He says he is in touch with the force of life that lurks in the inner recesses of all living things. He promises the same to those who will follow him. "He who seeks truth, finds it, the young guru tells his disciples.The Divine Light Mission gives equal billing to all well-known religions and their scriptures, the Torah and all the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Koran, and the Bhagavadgita. Perhaps because the movement originated in India it emphasizes the teachings of the Hindu scriptures, the Bhagavadgita. The God of Divine Light resembles the impersonal concept of infinite power and energy of the Hindu omnipresence more than it does Western man's image of a rational and willful God who created the Universe and has a plan for it. Maharaj Ji teaches that God is the source of all life. God is an omniscient power that is hidden in the secret recesses of all living things.
  41. ^ Barret, David V., The New Believers: A Survey of Sects, Cults and Alternative Religions (2003),pp.65, Cassel, ISBN 1-84403-040-7
  42. ^ Geaves, Ron, Globalization, charisma, innovation, and tradition: An exploration of the transformations in the organisational vehicles for the transmission of the teachings of Prem Rawat (Maharaji), 2006, Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies, 2 44-62
  43. ^ Edwards, Linda. A Brief Guide to Beliefs: Ideas, Theologies, Mysteries, and Movements, pp.277-79, Westminster John Knox (2001), ISBN 0-664-22259-5
  44. ^ Stephen J. Hunt Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction (2003), pp.116-7, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-3410-8
  45. ^ Prince & Riches: The New Age in Glastonbury: The Construction of Religious Movements Prince, Ruth, Riches, David, The New Age in Glastonbury: The Construction of Religious Movements, pp.100, Berghahn Books (2001), ISBN -157-181792-1
  46. ^ Frankiel, Sandra S. in Lippy, Charles H. and Williams. Peter W. (Eds.) Encyclopedia of the American Religious Experience p.1521, Charles Scribner's Sons (1988), ISBN 0-684-18863-5 (Vol III)
  47. ^ Kranenborg, Reender Dr. (1982) Oosterse Geloofsbewegingen in het Westen/Eastern faith movements in the West (Dutch language) ISBN 90-210-4965-1 partial free English translation. The mediation methods are officially secret. They are quite simple. The 'light meditation' means that one closes one's eyes and presses with the thumbs on the eye balls with as a consequence that they move towards each other and that it seems that the third eye is openened. After some time one sees the light. The original intention of this meditation, as it is practiced in Tantrism, is indeed opening of the 'third eye' between the eyebrows on the forehead, but only after a long and heavy training. The 'sound meditation' means thone closes the ears by pressing on them with the thumbs, with the hands on the temples. After some time one hears the noise of blood and finally heavenly music. This technique is a sabda-brahman-meditation in which one assumes the eternal vibrations that form the basis of the universe and form the divine. The 'nectar meditation' means that one tries to get one's tongue behind the uvula. If one succeeds then one can taste the nectar. This excercise comes originally from yoga in which is it is a part of elaborate breathing excercices. The 'name meditation' consists of following the breath going inside and of using mantras during exhalation i.e. hamsa and soham which means respectively 'swan' (the divinity) and 'I am that' (that is the divine). This excercise is related to the 'japa-' or mantra-yoga that we also encounter at the Transcendental meditation and the Hare Krishnas.Dutch original
    "De methodes van de vier technieken zijn officieel geheim. Maar geheimen blijven moeilijk bewaard en ook deze vier technieken zijn bekend. Ze zijn bij de Divine Light Mission vrij simpel. De 'meditatie van het licht' houdt in dat men de ogen sluit en met de duimen op de oogballen drukt zodat deze naar elkaar toe gaan en als het ware ‘het derde oog’ geopend wordt. Na verloop van tijd ziet men dan het licht. De oorspronkelijk bedoeling van deze oefening, zoals die in het tantrisme beoefend word, is inderdaad het openen van ‘het derde oog’ tussen de wenkbrauwen op het voorhoofd, maar dan wel na een lange en zware training. De ‘meditatie van het geluid’ houdt in dat men de oren met de duimen dichtdrukt, met de handen op de slapen. Na verloop van tij hoort men het geruis van het bloed en tenslotte hemelse muziek. Oorspronkelijk is deze oefening een sabda-brahman-meditatie, waarin men uitgaat van de eeuwige trillingen die de basis van het universum vormen en het goddelijke uitmaken. De filosofie van de ook in Nederland aanwezige Radha Soami Satsang is hierop gebaseerd. De ‘meditatie van de nectar’ houdt in dat men met de tong achter de huig probeert te komen. Wie hierin slaagt proeft de nectar. Deze oefening komt oorspronkelijk uit de yoga, waar ze een onderdeel vormt van de uitgebreide ademhalingsoefeningen. De ‘meditatie van het woord’ bestaat hieruit dat men de adem naar binnen volgt en bij het uitademenen mantra’s gebruikt: hamsa en soham, resp. als betekenis hebbend ‘zwaan’ (de goddelijkheid) en ‘dat ben ik ‘ (namelijk:dat goddelijke). Deze oefening is verwant met de ‘japa-‘ of mantra-yoga, zoals we die ook tegenkomen bij de Transcedente Meditatie en bij de Hare Krishna’s."
    "Op zichzelf zijn de vier meditaties niet uniek. Het speciale van de Divine Light Mission is dat ze losgemaakt zijn uit het verband waar ze in passen en verregaand vereenvoudigd zijn."
  48. ^ a b Melton, Gordon J., Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America (1992) pp. 143-4, Garland Publishing, ISBN 0-8153-1140-0
  49. ^ The Keys website. "Three promises". The Prem Rawat Foundation. Retrieved Sept 2006. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameters: |accessyear= and |accessmonthday= (help)
  50. ^ Lans, Jan van der & Frans Derks, Premies Versus Sannyasins "According to Maharaj Ji, all evil should be attributed to the mind[...] indicat[ing] the same obstacle of freeing oneself from former bonds [...] DLM’s concept of mind refers primarily to a state of consciousness characterized by everything but passive, nonrational confidence and trust."
  51. ^ Haan, Wim (Dutch language) De missie van het Goddelijk licht van goeroe Maharaj Ji: een subjektieve duiding from the series Religieuze bewegingen in Nederland: Feiten en Visies nr. 3, autumn 1981. ISBN 90-242-2341-5 Note: Haan was part of a critical movement within the Catholic church (Based mainly on the Dutch branch of the Divine Light Mission.) Dutch orginal:
    "Het woordje "mind" wordt binnen de premie-gemeenschap gedefinieerd als de 'gekonditioneerdheid', d.w.z. alle vervreemdende invloeden die de mens van zijn ware aard hebben doen afdwalen.
    Soms ontaardt de strijd die tegen dit woord wordt gevoerd echter in een volstrekte irrationaliteit. Elke kritiek en objektieve benadering wordt dan als mind bestempeld. Als iemand zich slecht voelt of gedurende lange tijd geen goede ervaringen heeft heeft tijdens zijn meditatie, dan is de betreffende persoon 'in zijn mind'. Gesprekken met buitenstaanders worden vaak uit de weg gegaan, omdat dat wel eens de mind zou kunnen stimuleren."
  52. ^ Hummel, Reinhart Indische Mission und neue Frömmigkeit im Westen. Religiöse Bewegungen in westlichen Kulturen, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005609-3 English translation
    "The young Guru explains that conceptual thinking, translated with the English word “mind” in German translations also, is the main enemy of direct religious experience."
    "Der junge Guru erklärt das konzeptionelle Denken, das auch in deutschen Übersetzungen mit dem englischen Wort >>mind<< bezeichnet wird, als Hauptfeind der unmittelbaren religösen Erfahrung."
  53. ^ Stephen J. Hunt Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction (2003), pp.116-7, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-3410-8
    "Maharaji transformed his initial teachings in order to appeal to a Western context. He came to recognize that the Indian influences on his followers in the West were a hindrance to the wider acceptance of his teachings. He therefore changed the style of his message and relinquished the Hindu tradition, beliefs, and most of its original eastern religious practices."
  54. ^ Miller, America's Alternative Religions, pp.474
  55. ^ Downton, Sacred Journeys.
    "The end of 1973 saw Guru Maharaj Ji breaking away from his mother and his Indian past. He declared himself the sole source of spiritual authority in the Mission. And, unlike some gurus who have come to this country and have easternized their followers, he became more fully westernized, which premies interpreted as an attempt to integrate his spiritual teachings into our culture."
  56. ^ Miller, America's Alternative Religions, pp.474
  57. ^ Melton, Encyclopedia of American Religions.
    "In the early 1980s, Rawat moved to disband the Divine Light Mission and personally renounced the trappings of Indian culture and religion. Disbanding the mission, he founded Elan Vital, an organization essential to his future role as teacher. [...]Maharaji had made every attempt to abandon the traditional Indian religious trappings in which the techniques originated and to make his presentation acceptable to all the various cultural settings in which followers live. He sees his teachings as independent of culture, religion, beliefs, or lifestyles, and regularly addresses audiences in places as culturally diverse as India, Japan, Taiwan, the Ivory Coast, Slovenia, Mauritius and Venezuela, as well as North America, Europe and the South Pacific."
  58. ^ Chryssides, George D., Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements pp.210-1, Scarecrow Press (2001) ISBN 0-8108-4095-2
    "Maharaji progressively dissolved the Divine Light Mission, closing the ashrams, affirming his own status as a master rather than a divine leader, and emphasizing that the Knowledge is universal, non Indian, in nature" [...] "This Knowledge was self-understanding, yielding calmness, peace, and contentment, since the innermost self is identical with the divine. Knowledge is attained through initiation, which provides four techniques that allow the practitioner to go within."
  59. ^ Miller, America's Alternative Religions, pp.474
  60. ^ Stephen J. Hunt Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction (2003), pp.116-7, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-3410-8
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