Prem Rawat — The Early Years
A Short Pictorial Biography, Part 1
1950s
Prem Rawat was born in India in 1957, in a small town called Haridwar. He grew up there with his four siblings. His father, Hans Ji Maharaj, was a renowned speaker on inner peace.
Prem Rawat's father, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, spoke about peace at a public event in Patna, Bihar, India, to an audience of over 10,000 people. Aged 2, Prem joined his father on the stage.
1960s
Prem Rawat made his first public speech, aged 4, to an audience of family and friends in his home city of Haridwar.
Prem Rawat's father, Shri Hans Ji Maharaj, spoke about peace at a public event in Patna, Bihar, India, to an audience of over 10,000 people. Aged 2, Prem joined his father on the stage.
On 19 July 1966, Prem Rawat's father died at the age of 65. After a period of mourning, on 31 July, Prem publicly declared his determination to bring his father's message and teachings on personal peace to everybody in the world.
1970s
At just 13 years old, Prem travelled from India to share his message of peace with the Western world. His international reputation grew as he visited countries in Europe, North and South America, and Australia. It was also in the 1970s that Prem married Marolyn and started a family.
A pivotal moment came in June 1971: Prem Rawat made one of his first speeches outside India, addressing an audience of around 12,000 people at the Glastonbury Fayre in England. Also appearing on the Pyramid Stage that year were David Bowie, Traffic, Fairport Convention, Melanie, Quintessence, Arthur Brown, and Hawkwind, among others.
Part 2 will follow at a later date, continuing the story from the 1980s onward.