Current teachings of Prem Rawat

Prem Rawat, known as Maharaji to his students promotes inner peace and meditative techniques he calls "Knowledge". He speaks and teaches on a number of themes relating to inner peace and personal development. The main points of the current teachings of Prem Rawat are outlined below.

For a presentation on the historical evolution of Rawat's message from his beginings as a guru child prodigy in the 1960s, see the past teachings of Prem Rawat.

Message and teachings

When Prem Rawat came in the West in 1971 as a child, he was known as a prodigy who offered a practical means to have an experience within for those willing to practice the techniques of Knowledge one hour a day, and willing to be transformed. As years passed, and as Rawat grew as a person, the formulation of his message became more universal, and as a result audiences interested in only his message and not in a certain practice have grown. At many events at public forums or at Universities, like those at the Italian Parliament [1], Salamanca University in Spain [2], or the Universal Forum of Cultures in Barcelona [3]. Rawat now attracts various audiences: some come to him for his message of peace, which they find inspiring, and others who come to him for his teachings and guidance, in the form of the Keys and the techniques of Knowledge.

The Keys

Currently, Rawat's teachings are summarized in "The Keys,” a collection of videos and written materials becoming available worldwide to all people wishing to prepare to learn the techniques which he teaches for finding peace within. The Keys are being made available on-line in digital media format at no cost and through DVD distribution on a lending basis, at cost of only shipping and handling.

In these Keys, Rawat provides a structured outline of his teachings in five segments totaling more than 5 hours. These Keys are the first ever all inclusive compilation created by Rawat of his own teachings. The first five Keys were specifically recorded in a studio by Rawat and are supported by one hundred hours of videos excerpted from his addresess. They allow people interested in taking the journey within to make their own progress at their own pace, by watching these videos completely in private and progress from one Key to the next when they feel ready. The sixth Key is the “Knowledge Session”, in which persons ready to learn the techniques are taught by Rawat via a multimedia presentation available in fifty languages. These techniques are taught at no cost.

Learning the techniques, Rawat says, is just like planting a seed that needs to be watered with the water of the person’s efforts. He asks people who have learned these techniques to maintain the determination to practice in earnest, to allow themselves to be inspired, and to court clarity. He asks them to be clear on what this Knowledge can and cannot do: "Knowledge does only one thing", he says, "and that is to allow the person with the proper understanding—and with the willingness and readiness to allow themselves to be transformed—to find peace within".

According to the Prem Rawat Foundation:

• The only requirement to start preparing via the Keys, is that the person is of legal age and 18 years old;
• People get Key One, watch the material at their own pace, and when they are ready to move on to the next one they send it back asking for the next Key, and so on;
• Each individual determines when they are ready to progress to the next key;
• Same for Key six (the Knowledge session), only difference being that people get invited for a showing of Key six at a location near them;
• A technical person and an usher assist participants during the showing of the Key six presentation. Key six is also made available for private viewing for people in hospitals or disabled;
• Prem Rawat has designed the Keys based on trust. Even though some people may attempt to "cheat" the system, Prem Rawat trust that people are honest. They also explain that a person will not benefit from watching Key six without having prepared via the previous five keys, and that "Knowledge is a journey and not a destination".

A summary of the teachings presented in the Keys is outlined below.

The thirst

There is within each person, Rawat says, a fundamental need to find peace, joy, happiness. These are different names, he says, for the same thing. He also calls this need “thirst,” and sees this thirst as the motivating force for taking a journey within:

”The thirst has always been there, but we have done a marvelous job of covering it up. And because we have covered it up, it needs to be rediscovered. Yes, the understanding once was there, that joy and happiness were the most important part of this existence. And then other things have crept along and they have taken quite a bit of the priority…And for so many centuries, a voice has been calling out: “What you are looking for is within you. Your truth is within you. Your peace is within you. Your joy is within you.” The desire to feel those things is what I call “the thirst.”

The path to Knowledge requires determination: each person, as he puts it, has to “stand on their own two feet” and make a determined choice to become fulfilled. The objective, he says, is not to just receive the techniques of Knowledge, but rather to make a lifelong journey of self-discovery towards one’s true self. Talking about this path, Rawat says that “it is very rarely that we actually allow ourselves to feel the need from within, to feel the need of the heart. So this journey is a journey toward that fulfillment. It is a journey to understanding.”

Rawat teaches that the path or journey of finding peace within is not a process of creating something, but rather of undoing. He sees this process as involving a commitment of a lifetime, and describes the foundation for this process as developing and maintaining an understanding and a trust that “what I am looking for is already within and I need to uncover it.”

Accepting the world within

To foster this understanding, Rawat says, a person needs to turn down the distractions on the outside, recognize and accept the distinction between the world outside and the world within, acknowledge life a moment at a time and make a conscious effort to sow the seed of joy in their life. Experience, he says, is key, and he maintains that happiness can only be attained by inner experience and not through thought or belief. This experience, he says, needs to be uncovered within. It cannot be created. The heart, he says, remains the judge of whether one is fulfilled, and the heart can only be content from real inner experience:

"One of the most fundamental things that we need to understand is that the contentment that we want to feel in our lives is within us. And it is not on the outside. So many formulas have come about in this world. And we look at everything as formula: “This is this.” “This is this.” “This is this.” “If I can be like that person, maybe I’ll be happy.” “If I can be like that other guy I’ll be… I’ll have, I think, what he has.” And we are speculating. And we are thinking that these are the formulas: “If I could have this and this and this and this, then I must be happy.” But happiness has nothing to do with that. Happiness is a very fundamental thing. You already have all the happiness you will every feel in your life. You already have that inside of you. But you haven’t tapped into that. And the day you tap into that then that really happiness will come and it won’t be dependant on all the things that are happening on the outside. …because this is the problem with that happiness that is dependant on the outside: When the outside changes, so does the happiness change.”

Much of people’s energy, he says, is spent denying the simple reality that peace is already within, and people tend to develop understandings that just suits them rather than help them find what their heart is looking for. Rawat does not offer solutions for the worlds’ problems, but just for people. In a recent address at the United Nations Conference Center in Bangkok, he said “its not the world that needs peace, its people. When people in the world are at peace, the world will be at peace.”

Rawat’s teachings place great emphasis on people finding this peace in the simplest of ways. Despite the crises of difficulties this world presents us, the world within presents a different possibility:

"There is good news. Living does not have to be just a matter of survival. Thriving is possible. Joy is possible. Being there on the face of this earth can be a beautiful experience. All we have to do is be there, be alive, be connected. That’s really good news. What if the most incredible thing was keeping you awake, bringing smile after smile to your face? What if this thing was enjoyable, not bothersome? What if we could have an incredible obsession for nothing less than life itself? …for nothing less than accepting the simplicity of this moment called now? … for nothing less than accepting the challenge of this unique existence that we have been given?”

"Knowledge"

For those who wish to turn within and find peace he offers a practical tool, which he calls Knowledge. He likens this tool to a bridge or a mirror. He says that the experience of Knowledge cannot be described; that it can only be experienced and judged by the heart. He describes Knowledge as not being a solution to problems, but rather as a means to extract the joy which, he says, resides within each breath. This Knowledge, he says, is a way for a person to connect with themselves. This requires sincerity and a commitment to trust one’s own heart:

"Knowledge is unique. It’s unique because, on one hand you have four very physical techniques, and on the other hand there is this beautiful joy. There is this beautiful feeling that these techniques bring. Here is an ultimate bridge between these four techniques and the heart. …because remember: heart has to be the judge. Where Knowledge takes you, heart has to be the judge. The feeling that Knowledge brings you: the heart has to be the judge. And, if you try to describe it, it is almost impossible. But you can certainly feel it. This is what it is all about. Experience... Experience and let the heart be the guide. Let the heart be the judge. Knowledge is not a solution to your problems. A lot of people… This is what they think... You know? “If I receive Knowledge then all my problems will disappear.” No. Knowledge is not a solution to your problems. You want to solve your problems? Then you need to solve your problems. The best way to solve your problems is, in fact, not to have them in the first place. Don’t do those things that create the problems. But the problems do have solutions. You can search. You can find those solutions and you can solve your problems. Knowledge is strictly for taking you to that place within, where you can feel that joy. …where you can feel that peace."

Once people have been shown the techniques of Knowledge, which are four simple meditative techniques for focusing within, he tells people to let their heart fill with the gratitude for life that naturally comes from within, and that they capture this feeling. He says Knowledge opens the door to receiving gifts “from the heart” and to feeling a joy upon which, he says, no price can be put.

See also Techniques of Knowledge.

Knowledge is a journey, not a destination

Rawat describes the practice of Knowledge as a commitment of a lifetime, which requires a lot of determination and persistence, and he offers to help people make this lifetime journey. The practice of Knowledge, he says, enables one to feel a love that lies within the heart, a love of life, a love within the breath. He sees the need for such love to be unconditional for a person to progress on this journey:

”If you are willing to pay attention… If you are truly willing to listen… If you are truly willing to have that determination to quench this thirst, this is going to be a journey you are going to love. Why? …because this is a journey, the journey that is a journey for its own sake, not a destination oriented journey. No. The sail’s up. The wind has come. And the vessel moves. Because the breath comes... Because you are alive… That is the reason. Make this journey. And the path to fulfillment is based on you, just you."

Part of making the journey to peace within requires removing doubts and shedding baggage he says. By baggage he means preconceived ideas, judgments, concepts, inherited from the world and not truly ours:

"Learn to trust yourself, because this journey is not going away from you. This is going to you. This is about looking within. We know how to look outside. We see the things. We judge the things: good, bad, right, wrong, “This is nice,” “This looks good,” “This looks great.” But really, when you start to look within it has to be without any judgment. It has to be simple. It has to be clear.”

Rawat says that the person who pursues this process will find himself, becoming more awake and aware. This person will find himself staying away from the ocean of aimless questions, and attracted to an ocean within which Rawat describes as full of answers. These answers within, he says, come in the form of feelings and many of these answers have nothing to do with any questions the person may have. He describes practicing Knowledge as a process of courting clarity:

”We know that there is something very beautiful inside of us. But what we do is, when we don’t understand it or we don’t have a means of fulfilling this feeling, we go ahead and ignore it and get on with other things. And those other things start taking priority in our life. And all those things become more important in our life. But now comes the time that perhaps we have this possibility to be able to go inside and experience it again. And this is so much the process of discovery. …because we are rediscovering. To me, this Knowledge is not creating a new experience. This is not about creating new elements. This is not about bringing new elements into our life. This is about re-discovering what we have. …because we have incredible strength and we have an incredible potential.”

The practice of Knowledge

Listening

Prem Rawat encourages his students to keep listening to his addresses via video, audio, or in person whenever possible so as to benefit from his inspiration and guidance on an ongoing basis. He has always said that Knowledge is not a static thing. Growing in one’s understanding of Knowledge, he says, needs to be a lifelong process, and the student needs to keep listening to the teacher for this process to be furthered.

Helping out, participating

Prem Rawat emphasizes that helping to make his message and Knowledge available to all people around the world is an intrinsic part of living a life with Knowledge. The fulfillment that Knowledge brings, Rawat says, naturally elicits a feeling of gratitude. This kind of participation, his students say, is an intrinsic part of the giving and receiving that is at the heart of the experience of Knowledge.

This participation need not be a contribution of financial or other material resources. He emphasizes that students can contribute whatever time, energy, and skills they have to help on a variety of projects to make his message available to more people.

Practicing the techniques

Prem Rawat asks students to practice the techniques of Knowledge one hour each day at a convenient time.

Importance of the living teacher

An important part of Prem Rawat’s teachings is that a relationship of mutual respect and trust with a living teacher is necessary in order for an individual to be able to access the experience of peace through Knowledge. Rawat has explained many times that, just as a deceased doctor cannot help a patient, it takes a living teacher to help students. He says that to progress on this path, students need to maintain a relationship of trust with the teacher that is fresh and fruitful, and that without such a relationship, the benefits of Knowledge cannot be obtained.

Rawat encourages would-be students to “find the one you can trust to help you get where you want to go and stick with him.” He recently acknowledged his very early statements about his ability to bring peace to those who would give him their trust and love, and he reiterated this promise:

“I know that a long time ago when I started, this is what it was: ‘Give me love and I will give you peace.’ This was my very famous statement in India Gate. I was a little kid and I said, ‘Give me love. I will give you peace.’ I stand by it.”

Miami Beach, Florida: April 20, 2003

www.thekeys.maharaji.net The Keys website.