Talk:Techniques of Knowledge/sources

Hadden

(1) Hadden, Religions of the world, pp.428 "The meditation techniques the Maharaji teaches today are the same he learned from his father, Hansji Maharaj, who, in turn, learned them from his spiritual teacher [Sarupanand] …….

Hans Ram Singh Rawat

(2) Hans Yog Prakash: Author Hans Ram Singh Rawat. (1936 ?) (copy available at http://www.prem-rawat-bio.org/library/hyp/hyp.htm).

“Without the complete and perfect Knowledge, the heart cannot know any peace. Artificial devotion cannot hold the appearance of love for very long.”

“Whoever is truly impartial can have devotion. Whoever has no illusions can have Knowledge.”

“No one can reach God without devotion to Satguru. He alone can give Knowledge of the Supreme.”

"Only by devotion to Satguru can you receive Knowledge of the Supreme. All scriptures sing the praises of devotion to the Perfect Master".

Hans Ji Maharaj

(3) Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaj Divine Light Mission (C.L.Tandon), B-19/3, Shakti Nagar, Delhi 7, India – 1970 (copy available at http://www.ex-premie.org/papers/Satgurudev.htm )

Shri Hans Ji Maharaj was a beacon showing the path of light to lakhs of people in India and was worshipped by them as their Satguru. He was an ideal saint, but more than that he was the perfect karma yogi. The members of the Divine Light Mission are indebted to him for imparting the knowledge of Divine Light and Sabad Brahm. The message of Shri Maharaj Ji has a special significance in the modern context, for without this knowledge of the true self of man there cannot be any possibility of peace on this earth. It is not until man finds his divinity and shines in the glow of the inner light that love will reign and mankind be truly united. Guru Maharaj Ji showed us that the responsibility for a fundamental change in this hate striven world lies with the individual, for unless we kill the hatred and the war within us there shall never be an end of strife without. The knowledge of the Divine Light and Name of God shows man the practical path to the kingdom of heaven where man shall not lift sword against man, neither shall he know war anymore.

He gifted me with Knowledge Divine. On the day of Initiation, I was reborn spiritually and learnt the true nature of the 'Self'. How simple is the knowledge. How secret is the knowledge. Light shines in man, but how sad it is that he gropes in darkness without the grace of a Guru.

If education means the development of the child, if it means to make all-round improvement in the child, then my humble submission is that the knowledge of the Holy Name and Divine Light, or spiritual knowledge, is the only panacea for all ills. Nations become great and strong by individuals, and individuals become great and strong by the knowledge of the spirit. Shri Maharaj Ji's greatest contribution in this distracted world was the dissemination of that knowledge which disciplines the mind and transforms the individual.

Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti

(4) 'Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti' http://www.manavdharam.org/shjm/1_brief_into.html

Shri Satpal Ji Maharaj, the teacher of Manav Dharam, travels constantly to inspire and encourage others to experience this inner force which is our true essence. He reveals the same techniques of spiritual insight to all, irrespective of nationality, caste or creed. Manav Dharam encompasses the teachings of all religions and is the source of them all. It is the eternal wisdom flowing from the practical Knowledge of the Soul.

Man is essentially spirit, or in other words, consciousness. To know consciousness, to experience it and to realize it is the path of spiritual knowledge. Knowledge has two aspects- material and spiritual. In the material domain it is called 'Apara Vidya' and pertains to all physical and social sciences. In the spiritual domain it is called 'Para Vidya' and pertains to self-realization, the experience of the soul. Science of soul itself implies the science of universal life. The science of the spirit is a sovereign science, a sovereign secret, imperishable, supremely holy, most excellent, directly enjoyable, full of virtues and very easy to practise. It is itself both the means and the end - the immediate and the ultimate. It is all comprehensive and all-inclusive, and knowing it means nothing remains to be known. It is the saturation of the self, the merging of the individual self with the Cosmic Self. It cannot be achieved through senses, mind or intellect. It is experienced by the self through the self by the grace of the realized Master. Knowledge is the means, and Knowledge also is the destination. In Divine Knowledge there must be no duality. It is just one point.

Mangalwadi

The founder of the Divine Light Mission, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, was born in Badrinath, UP. He was drawn to the Arya Samaj at an early age because of his religious inclinations. Later by sheer coincidence he met a saint known as Dada Guru and became his disciple. He entered samadhi while meditating, only the day after his initiation. He lost his body consciousness and realized the divinity within.

Dada Guru had appointed Hans Ji to be his successor but after Guru's death a small band of disciples refused to acknowledge the leadership of Shri Hans Ji. Therefore he left for Sindh and Lahore and started disseminating the knowledge of Divine Light and Holy Name. From 1930 onwards he visited Delhi frequently preaching to the labourers of Delhi Cloth Mills. He was no scholar but his simple, practical wellillustrated lectures, with a strong moral tone, backed by his magnetic personality, attracted many followers. By 1960 it is claimed that "tens of thousands" had taken initiation and therefore the Divine Light Mission was founded. (The Mission is not always honest in giving statistics; for example a book published by the Mission in 1970 claims that there were approximately a hundred thousand members at that time!' But a book published in 1973 claims that in 1966 they had several million followers).

[...]

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 note was, "Take the practical knowledge of the experience of Sound and Light and all your doubts and questions will be answered." Ibid.

We need not discuss their philosophical world view because they don't attach much importance to it and also because it seems similar to that of Radha Soami Satsang's discussed in the next chapter. It will suffice to look at their "practical knowledge." "Practical knowledge" or simply, knowledge is a term used to describe meditation. DLM claims that the "knowledge" has been handed down through the ages from one realized person to another. It was there when the world began and it is with us now. In times of greater darkness great saints are sent to disseminate this knowledge. The knowledge or meditation consists of four techniques, namely the techniques of seeing the divine Light, hearing the divine Sound, tasting the divine Nectar and hearing the divine Word. These techniques are taught by the guru or by the Mahatmas authorized by him in a secret initiation ceremony, which includes meditation., A person is initiated only after a Mahatma can see that he is spiritually prepared. There is no definite criterion for judging whether or not a person is ready. You can go to a Mahatma today and be declared unprepared. But go to another, and you may be told that you have been ready for a long time. The main thing a Mahatma generally looks for is the intensity of one's desire to receive the knowledge. Often people have to fall on their hands and knees before the Mahatmas to beg for "knowledge." They may be refused even after such prayers. After some people have been selected for initiation, they are taken into a closed room, where the Mahatma explains to them the importance of the knowledge, satsang and the Sad guru. The would-be initiates make an open profession that henceforth they will follow no other guru or saint except their own, and that they will worship and serve the Sadguru with all their hearts, strength, wealth and talents.

Serving the Sadguru The following information regarding initiation and "knowledge" is kept strictly secret by the Divine Light Mission. I am indebted to Mr. Bobby Cumiskey for revealing it to me. He was one of the first in Scotland to take initiation into DLM in 1971. Later he left the mission because it failed to satisfy his spiritual longings. Instead of giving him a spiritual relationship with God it taught that the experiences derived from physiological manipulation of eyes, ears, and tongue, and autosuggestions were experiences of divinity. in practice means obeying the orders of the Mahatma and propagating the knowledge. After making the vows, one by one the initiates bow before the picture of the Sadguru and worship it.

Then the Mahatma gives the knowledge or the techniques of meditation. In order to show the divine Light, the Mahatma asks the initiates to close their eyes. Then he places his middle finger and thumb on their eyes and starting from the corner of the eyeballs he presses the eyeballs up from the bottom so that in actual fact if the eyelids were open the centre of the pupils would be looking at the third eye point.° No w if the initiate concentrates on this point he can see a light; some others see a psychedelic movie of moving patterns and brilliant colours, whereas some don't see anything at all.

The technique of hearing the Music or the Sound is simple. One is asked to block his ears with the thumbs so that one does not hear any external sounds. When one listens long enough to his inner silence he can eventually here some noises. To some people this sounds like celestial music whereas others think they are hearing their favourite tune played on some heavenly instrument. The technique of tasting Nectar is a very difficult yogic exercise. Usually it is experienced after much practice. One has to try and curl his tongue to come up to the back of the throat and then has to swallow the tongue in such a way that it points upwards. Here the tongue is supposed to hit a point and make contact with the nectar that is constantly flowing through one's body. It is claimed that this nectar is indescribably tasty and it is the "living water" of which Jesus spoke. Some of the devotees also describe it as the "bread of life" and claim that after making contact with the everflowing stream of nectar you can live without food or water- but no one has as yet come forward to demonstrate these claims. Hearing the Word is the main meditation. In fact it is often regarded as the knowledge. It is simply a breathing exercise, in which one sits in a lotus position (if possible), with both hands on the knees, and concentrates on his breath going up and down, 6 The point between the two eyebrows on the forehead above the nose up and down. Through concentrating on one's breathing, one supposedly tunes into that "primordial vibration," the Word or logos, which has created the universe and sustains it. By constant meditation one is supposed to reach samadhi or the expanded state of consciousness which according to the DLM is the purpose of life. One knows that he has reached samadhi by the light. At the initiation the light seen may be only a small point. But as one meditates the light gets brighter. Eventually the light overtakes a person and he becomes literally full of this light. Once you feel (or perceive) that you have become the Light, you may know that you have reached samadhi or merged into God. You will never be reborn. In the two chapters that follow we shall be evaluating the monistic presuppositions of the Divine Light Mission and those aspects of its teachings which it shares in common with the Radha Soami Satsang. Here we only need to say in defence of Sri Balyogeshwar that his life which has been described by his mother and brother as immoral, is quite consistent with his philosophy.

If God is an impersonal Sound, Light, Nectar, Word or Consciousness, without any specific moral qualities; if liberation is merging into this impersonal, amoral God and if the way to liberation is through physical manipulation of certain nerves and auto-suggestions, then there is no need for one to be moral. Morality has no relationship with religion or liberation. Therefore, Sri Balyogeshwar as such has every right to live the way he wishes to live. And his so called "immoral" life in no way disproves his claim to divinity or guruship.

Khalsa

• New Religious Movements Turn to Worldly Success KIRPAL SINGH KHALSA*

Divine Light Mission (DLM) is a worldwide organization dedicated to the propagation of Guru Maharaj Ji's "knowledge" (a direct experience he gives to his followers in which it is believed that God is revealed). DLM is a Hindu-based tradition that emphasizes the sacred relationship between the Guru and his disciples. In 1974, DLM maintained ashrams in most major cities in the United States; organized their activities; coordinated the itineraries of Maharaj Ji, his family and the Mahatmas (initiators); and published and promoted the organization's various magazines.

[...]

Guru Maharaj Ji's teachings concerning material growth are in fact quite simple. What is of prime importance to a devotee of Guru Maharaj Ji is receiving knowledge (the personal initiation given by the Guru or by his initiators in which it is believed that God is revealed). Everything else in the devotee's life will take care of itself if the experience and practice of knowledge are the primary concerns in one's life. In the words of Denver's DLM director, "He (Guru Maharaj Ji) doesn't give any teachings about the material life. He is not a marriage counselor, dietitian, (or business advisor). He is not here to give that kind of attention. Basically have the experience he has to offer and when you become rooted in that experience it (questions about material life) will become known unto you." Thus we find no encouragement from the leadership or from the group itself to pursue material goals. Material goals are not seen as evil or wrong and conceivably a devotee can be very rich and still practice knowledge. However, the material world is generally seen, by the devotees of Guru Maharaj Ji, as a distraction to spiritual growth and an area in which one must only necessarily be involved, ideally minimally, but only to meet the basic requirements of life.

Kent

• Slogan Chanters to Mantra Chanters: A Mertonian Deviance Analysis of Conversion to Religiously Ideological Organizations in the Early 1970s Stephen A. Kent

As the recently converted Rennie Davis told reporters about his new 'mission' in 1973, "Getting the knowledge [from Maharaj Ji to the people] is the central objective. . . . Then we can do what the street people sought in the sixties—abolish capitalism and other systems that oppress" (quoted in Lewis and Thomas, 1973: 51).

Rawson

"Receiving Knowledge" is the key to everything in the Divine Light Mission, which is the organization headed by Guru Maharaj Ji, and the first step is to attend satsang, a sort of revival meeting in which premies give testimonies. To find out what it is that turned on Davis and the other followers-officially listed as 40,000 in this country and six million around the world -I attended a satsang in the Sunday school auditorium of a local Presbyterian church. About 50 persons, most of them already committed, were in attendance. There was singing to guitars and a small rock band, and then one premie after another speaking in gushing but vague terms about the bliss that follows the receipt of Knowledge. Guru Maharaj Ji is no ordinary guru, or guide. He is the Word become Flesh. "You mustn't confuse him with the components of his body," said one teenage girl. "He is timeless. He is the energy that is in every leaf and tree." A boy told how he had been delivered from fear of walking around big city streets at night. "When you have Knowledge you aren't afraid to go out," he declared. Another testified that he was living in sin with a girl until he saw what Knowledge had done to a childhood acquaintance: "I felt this warmth in him," he said. "He was shining, radiating with peace and joy. I figured that after awhile he would come down, but every day he got more blissful. It drove me crazy. Here was my old friend John from Akron, and he had found the peace of the universe."

At the end the leader announced that anyone interested in receiving Knowledge should come to the local headquarters the next morning. I showed up shortly before 9 am and, along with about 30 other persons, was ushered into a large living room. At one end was a makeshift altar draped with a white satin cloth and bearing innumerable pictures of Guru Maharaj Ji and other members of his family. We sat cross-legged on the floor and for two hours listened to more satsang and sang devotional folk songs ("Though the sun may fall and the moon may die, I will love you forever.") Shortly after 11 o'clock the mahatma-one of a reported 2000 persons authorized by the Perfect Master to impart Knowledge-arrived. He was dressed in a saffron robe and talked with an Indian accent.

The Knowledge session began about noon with an examination of each of the potential premies. Do you really believe Guru Maharaj Ji is the Lord? Do you really want to serve Him and Him alone? Do you have any other gurus? One young man made the mistake of saying that he wanted to receive Knowledge even though he was still a follower of Jesus. "Then get Jesus to give you Knowledge," retorted the mahatma. Asked why she wanted to receive Knowledge, one girl replied innocently enough that she wanted to find God. She was rejected along with nearly half of the others.

After a lunch break we settled into the serious business of making contact with the primordial vibrations of the universe. We were instructed to sit up straight, keep our eyes on the mahatma and answer all his questions in loud, clear voices. The first step was for everyone to take all the money out of his pockets, present it at the foot of the altar and express eternal gratitude and devotion to Guru Maharaj Ji. "If all you have is a check, sign it so that it can be cashed," instructed the mahatma. One boy was found to be holding out enough for his bus fare home. "What if Guru Maharaj Ji doesn't want you to go home?" asked the mahatma. The Knowledge on which the Divine Light Mission is built is fourfold, and the first part is the seeing of "divine light." The living room lights were extinguished, and after a discourse on the significance of spiritual inner light the mahatma began moving among us. Explaining that the center of the forehead is the center of the body, he showed each person how to press against the side of the forehead with the thumb and middle finger of the right hand and against the lower center of the forehead with the index finger. Sure enough, we pressed and saw light. Some described the sensation as similar to seeing a starry night. Others reported comets and fireworks. One girl said that she saw images she hadn't seen since childhood. The mahatma assured us that this was just the beginning of our spiritual light shows. "You are newborn babes," he explained. "You will see cosmic light."

We were told to prostrate ourselves before the largest picture of the Perfect Master and say "Guru Maharaj Ji I am yours," and then we moved on to the next piece of Knowledge-hearing divine harmonies. The mahatma showed us how to put our thumbs in our ears and the index fingers over our eyes. When the pressure on the right ear was relaxed we all heard dull rhythmic sounds. One initiate said it sounded like i generator. Another said it was like a train. The ma hatma nodded approvingly.

The third part was a breathing exercise in which w were instructed to sit with our index fingers am thumbs together and meditate on God and soul. The fourth involved "nectar" or divine revelation through the sense of taste. The mahatma explained that babies are born with their tongues curled back so as to re ceive nutrition from nectar that falls down from the center of their head before birth. This faculty, he said is normally forgotten after birth but can be reclaimed He showed us how to curl our tongues 'back toward the tonsils, an exercise that is presumably followed b premies often during the day. No one seemed to b tasting much nectar, but after 10 hours of sitting cross legged in the living room no one seemed to want t make an issue of it.

With the Knowledge imparted, the mahatma read some passages from the Bible, the $hagavad-Gita an Zen masters that, he said, proved that this was the Knowledge possessed by Jesus, the Buddha and other earlier spiritual leaders. He told us to meditate sever hours a day, covering the head for the divine light pa and told us that the first time we saw Guru Maharaj in person we should turn our right ear to him so that he might "blow you a puff of grace." He gave us greeting to be used in addressing other premies an passed out pieces of paper with his name and address. "Send your worldly possessions here," he said. "I you love Guru Maharaj Ji, or do you love your money Then-11 hours after it all began-we rose and stag- gered stiffly out into the cool evening air.

Geaves

• Globalisation, charisma, innovation, and tradition:

This had come about as a result of four young British members of the counter-culture, taking the 'hippy trail' to India in 1968 discovering the young Prem Rawat and his teachings and requesting that a 'mahatma' be sent to London who could promote the message and show interested individuals the four techniques known as 'knowledge'.

In his own letter introducing the Foundation, Prem Rawat writes: More than just words, I offer people Knowledge, a practical way to feel the contentment that is already inside them. My message is neither new nor old. It is timeless: the peace, the contentment that people seek is within. It was, is, and always will be. Now is the time 49 Journal of Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies to turn within. That is why the Prem Rawat Foundation has been created. It is my hope that through my work, and through the support of the Foundation, this message will reach those around the world with a thirst to enjoy the best there is in life.8

As Divine Light Mission faded and Elan Vital emerged, Prem Rawat transformed himself from 'Guru Maharaj Ji' to 'Maharaji' and scrutinised the language used to convey the message removing all previous idioms familiar to the North Indian Sant tradition such as sat guru, satnam, and satsang. The four techniques known as Knowledge simply became first, second, third and fourth technique rather than the Indian terminology describing light (prakash), sound (nada), holy name or word (shabd) and nectar (amrit). The exc1usivism of Divine Light Mission was moderated, and although Prem Rawat still insisted upon the necessity of a living master to enliven the experience of Knowledge, his language moved more towards the non-theistic, and an assertion that the teachings were outside the domain of religion. Certainly the deconstruction that accompanied the end of Divine Light Mission removed many of the dimensions of religion that would have been recognised by Ninian Smart, leaving only an emphasis on individual experience.

Nichols

• Encyclopedic Dictionary of Cults, Sects, and World Religions

Devotees "receive knowledge" directly from Maharaj Ji, who instructs them to reach into themselves in order to discover the "divine self " that every human being possesses. Devotees use a form of 'yoga called siddha and sometimes use a T -shaped baragon to aid in meditation.

Followers must observe Maharaj Ji's five commandments: Refrain from postponing till tomorrow what can be done today; always meditate on the holy name; never doubt; never avoid attending 'satsang; always have faith in God. As to the basic doctrines of DLM/EV, God is pantheistic (see 'pantheism) and Hindu in orientation. God is an all-pervasive divine energy. Maharaj Ji is the 'incarnation of the divine. The Holy Spirit is knowledge that flows from Maharaj Ji. Humanity is inherently divine. The key is to be given the proper knowledge to discover the "goodness within:" One must relinquish one's rational capacities to allow the guru to provide knowledge that leads to 'enlightenment. Salvation is knowledge/enlightenment. Knowledge comes through the 'fourfold path: 'third eye, 'third ear, 'divine nectar, and 'primordial vibration. When the premie has achieved these four states, he or she is ready to feel a sense of oneness and unity with the deity.

Derks & van der Lans=

• SUBGROUPS IN DIVINE LIGHT MISSION MEMBERSHIP: A COMMENT ON DOWNTON by Frans Derks and Ian M. van der Lans

Before 1975 it was sufficient to have a desperate longing for "Knowledge" (in the sense Divine Light Mission uses this term); after 1975 one had to accept Guru Maharaj Ji as a personal saviour in order to become a member.

CURRENT BIOGRAPHY

The members are those who have received "the Knowledge" through a laying-on-of-hands technique taught to them in a secret rite by the Guru or one of his numerous mahatmas. That technique, according to those who use it, opens the "third eye" and enables one to "bliss out" -"to see the Divine Light, taste the Divine Nectar, and feel the Divine Vibration."

[...]

The father of the family was Param Sant Satgurudev Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, the anointed protégé of Perfect Master Shri Sarapanand Ji and the Perfect Master of his time. Shri Hans Ji Maharaj was a controversial figure among Brahmins, because he challenged the caste system by preaching to the lowest and poorest group in Indian society, the untouchables. He built up a large following, becoming recognized by thousands of Indian devotees as Satguru, the one living Perfect Master who reveals the ancient Knowledge of the inner self.

[...]

Typical of the parables he uses in giving satsang is the comparison of the Knowledge to the taste of an orange, which cannot be known second-hand but must be experienced directly. In Houston, as he has on many occasions elsewhere, he advised his audience: "Try it. You'll like it."

[...]

In the December 13, 1973 issue of the New York Review of Books Francine du Plessix Gray described a satsang given in New York City by one of the Guru Maharaj Ji's mahatmas: His teaching is not vastly different from that of the Vedantists.. . . The rational everyday mind is the obstacle, the great demon that stands in the way of Understanding; suffering is created by the duality which that mind posits; Enlightenment is the resolution of that duality and the merging into the One Consciousness. The mahatma's principal departure from rigorous Vedanta doctrine is that Maharaj Ji does not want his devotees to leave the world. Quite the contrary, we must keep our jobs and enjoy our meals. . . The new Divine Knowledge of Maharaj Ji will give us increased concentration and will make us better businessmen, musicians, writers. We can have our cake and eat it too."

Hunt

• Alternative Religions A Sociological Introduction Stephen J. Hunt

He was the son of Shri Hans Ji Maharaji, who began the DLM in India in 1960, based on the teachings of his own variety of enlightenment through the acquisition of spiritual knowledge.

[...]

He therefore changed the style of his message and relinquished the Hindu tradition, beliefs, and most of its original eastern religious practices. Hence, today the teachings do not concern themselves with reincarnation, heaven, or life after death. The movement now focuses entirely on the `Knowledge' (formerly called mahatmas), which is a set of simple instructors on how adherents should live.

[...]

The major focus of Maharaji 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 into contact with ones `own nature'. The Knowledge includes four secret meditation procedures: Light, Music, Nectar, and Word. 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 worldaffirmation. The tens of thousands of followers in the West do not see themselves as members of a religion but the adherents to a system of teachings that extol the goal of enjoying life to the full.

[...]

It is not clear whether it is possible to receive Knowledge from anyone other than Maharaji.

Stone

• New Religious Consciousness and Personal Religious Experience* Donald Stone University of California, Berkeley 1978

It suggests a shift from religious belief (or non-belief) to direct experience of the sacred; from faith (or doubt) to certainty of grace. This preoccupation with the personal experience of transcendence appears in a variety of religious or would-be religious pursuits ranging from LSD trips, to receiving the Knowledge from Guru Maharaj Ji, to asking Jesus into one's heart in a prayer meeting of the Jews for Jesus.

Saliba

• THE GURU: PERCEPTIONS OF AMERICAN DEVOTEES OF THE DIVINE LIGHT MISSION John A. Saliba University of Detroit 1980

One of the most outstanding features of the Divine Light Mission is the place of honor its guru enjoys in the lives and activities of its members. So important is the guru that only he can impart the central religious experience to the devotee, namely, the so-called "experience of Knowledge."3

One should observe that some literature is reserved only for those who have been formally initiated. Members of the Mission argue that this literature can be properly understood only by those who have received Knowledge.

[... ]

The way one recognizes the Perfect Master is by his fruit. The test of this satguru is whether he can give peace through his knowledge.12

[...]

And again he seems to insist: "I am just a humble servant of God, trying to preach this Knowledge."28

[...]

But above all this Guru Maharaj Ji gives us "that Knowledge." This is the core of what the Guru claims he has to offer. And because it is an experiential event, it is hard to describe and impossible to define. Though it is said, with regular insistence, that the Guru reveals Knowledge, initiates are somewhat unclear as to what the Knowledge really is.31

[...]

As "savior of humanity " Guru Maharaj Ji does not merely bestow the knowledge of salvation, but by his mercy and grace saves a person from ignorance. He also saves humankind from nuclear bombs. His salvific activity benefits the individual, our own planet and the whole universe. In one of their popular songs the devotees chant: "Guru Maharaj Ji paid my bail and all my sins are taken away."33 This contains the germ of a redemptive theory of salvation which has not to my knowledge been elaborated elsewhere. Further his action transforms the lives of those who accept him. He helps people forget their pain and suffering. Through Maharaj Ji confusion is removed, tears are washed away, problems are solved and fear, sorrow, and evil cease to exist. A radical change thus takes place in the initiate, as if he or she has been wakened up from a dream. To those who accept the Knowledge, Guru Maharaj Ji gives a life which has a clear direction and goal, a new birth into the spiritual kingdom.

[...]

Thus the premies ("prem" means love, hence lovers of God or of Truth, as the initiates are called) feel grateful to him for the treasure, namely, for giving them Knowledge and for helping people to get rid of the habits of drugs and drink. They declare they have complete trust in him. Enjoy life, the devotees are told, meditate on the Knowledge and let Guru Maharaj Ji take care of the rest

[....]

It is explained that the Guru is not worshipped, but rather the Knowledge is or one may worship him because of the Knowledge.39

[...]

Meditation, satsang, and service are the three musts for a devotee. But, aside from the somewhat rigid schedule of those who live in an ashram, it is left to the individual to determine the amount of time allotted to these obligations. The three are placed in a personal context for they all have the Guru as their object. Meditation is on that Knowledge given by Guru Maharaj Ji; satsangs frequently dwell on the grace the Guru has bestowed so generously on the devotee; and service is primarily directed towards the Guru or to activities to which the Guru has assigned priority.

[...]

Besides, knowledge of who Guru Maharaj Ji is can only come when one has received Knowledge. The circular argument of faith is here operative. Maharaj Ji gives one the experience of Knowledge which in turns reveals who the Guru is,45 which revelation is itself necessary for the free acceptance of the Guru's gift. His followers seem to distinguish between the knowledge of the Guru in his outward form, namely his age, family origin, cultural background, etc., and in-depth knowledge of him in his innermost nature which comes only after experiential insight.