Fund Raising - Prem Rawat's Major Donors
Information sourced from the Maharaji aka Prem Rawat website, 2013:
Today's climate of stricter governance of non-profit organisations has meant that Prem Rawat's organisations should no longer raise funds to support Rawat's lifestyle. However the lack of impartial and independent appointees in the administration of the organisations that support Rawat continues to raise apprehension about the potential for the misapplication of funds. In the late 1990s, the majority of the directors of the Australian Elan Vital Incorporated resigned as a result of concerns that Prem Rawat's beneficial ownership of the Amaroo development in Queensland would place the directors at legal risk.
Direct ownership of the high value assets available for Prem Rawat's exclusive use is achieved via a number of companies controlled by boards of directors comprised of committed followers of Prem Rawat. In the US the primary holding vehicle has been SEVA Corporation of America - Nevada State Business Entity number C4482 - 1977 SEVA Corporation and its many subsidiaries are or have been the owners of Rawat's numerous residences, including Anacapa View, Malibu USA, and Swiss House, Reigate, Surrey, UK as well as the mega yacht Serenity (Serenity was sold in 2004) plus several Helicopters and executive aircraft. The Gulfstream G550 executive jet - registration number N550PR, which is flown personally by Prem Rawat is "dry leased"' from a bank (the Wilmington Trust), and is operated by "Prem Rawat and the Priyan Foundation."
The legal structuring of Prem Rawat's financial interests was conducted by tax lawyer Robert Jacobs, whose was the only non 'premie' name to appear on SEVA documents. From 1975 the legal and financial relationship between Prem Rawat and Divine Light Mission was overseen by Michael Dettmers who split with Rawat in 1987, subsequently the name of media lawyer Alvaro Pascotto has appeared on the documents of corporate recipients of funds donated to support Rawat's activities.
Rawat has established a formal network of "major donors." who fund his lifestyle via bank deposits, and by making him (or companies he controls) a shareholder in their businesses. The "major donors" are invited to special conferences with Rawat and also receive front row seats and premium accommodation at his larger events. At one stage in the late 1990s the major donors numbered over 400 but the global membership of the major donors group has fallen significantly as a result of both disaffection from Rawat and personal financial loss in the 2008 economic down turn.
Prem Rawat has been gifted shares in a number of businesses and corporations owned by his followers, the two most notable are the US based Sterling Educational Media and the Deltek Corporation. Sterling Educational Media is the trading name of Amtext an academic book buying business which reportedly underwrote the building of Rawat's US$25 million mansion, the founder of the company, Charles Nathan is said to have gifted 100% of the company shares to Rawat. Don Delaski an eccentric accountant and philanthropist who created the Deltek company also gifted shares to Rawat with totals worth 10 to $20 million dollars transferred to Rawat via a corporate vehicle named the Onae Trust. The Onae Trust has the same service address as the SEVA Corporation of America.
Nya Murray, minor Major Donor, Open Letter to Prem Rawat, 2002
In 2001 Nya Murray, an Australian pwK of 17 years standing and IT maven was invited to join a Major Donors' Conference (possibly the first one) on promise of a $5,000 donation. Her letter provides details of the conference's embarrassingly poor presentations, the paltry catering, the shameless huckstering and the grovelling these wealthy, competent and efficient people endured when they were told by Rawat that they were complete failures, that they were hopeless and they just were totally terrible at the training.
She confirms that in 2001 Rawat had at last 400 PWKs who were prepared to donate $5,000 (= $2million)to attend a "conference" with Rawat, ignore the low standard of administration and presentations and totally accept the false accusations of incompetence and humiliations and then pledge $10,000 each for 2002.
The Major Donors Inner Circle
Prem Rawat has and has had some rich devotees. In fact his career in the West was based upon and funded by many young doped-up trust-fund babies who gave up their inheritances as they wouldn't need them in the Millenium of Peace that Prem Rawat was ushering in with love and bliss for all. Among the wealthy Gift Givers Giving to the Giver of the Gifts have been:
A former American community co-ordinator and full-term ashramee who lasted until 2010 before apostasizing recalls there there were two "major donors" in his relatively wealthy local community and thought there were 70 or so in the U.S.A. in 2010. He believes there were two major donor conferences a year in the U.S. and the minimum amount to qualify was $15,000 a year and there may even have been levels. The conferences were described as intimate and friendly (and socially competitive) - and they all seemed to know each other, almost like a network.
Comments by "Jasper"
"Jasper" is a former devotee of Prem Rawat's (aka Maharaji) who had long-term close exposure to Rawat and to a lesser extent his family. Of course, this closeness was that of a servant to his Lord and Master and judging from the posts he was mainly used as a chauffeur and to provide free work on Rawat's Malibu mansion.
17th April 2011 - front row seats
"believing that "worldly" accomplishments paled in comparison to being a successful devotee and "premie," adopting a "sour grapes" attitude towards "the world" and worldly accomplishments"
Nice post Lakeshore. But I have to say Rawatism has created a special place for those premies who have found success despite its inherent distasteful connection to the "world". Success has been encouraged as long as the financial results of the devotee's worldly accomplishments end up in Rawat's bottomless pockets.
Seems like around the mid 80's Rawat began to make a concerted effort to scan the ranks for potential future bread winners. Premies who had entrepreneurial skills and good ideas for businesses were targeted and encouraged to build those up and make money. It was understood that these efforts counted as "service" as long as large percentages of the financial rewards from these businesses were sent off as donations. It still remains a very powerful subculture within the cult and has funneled tens if not hundreds of millions directly to the "boss".
So, there were options to supplement and speed up a premie's realization of knowledge. What may not have been achieved through diligence in satsang, meditation, or the more traditional service efforts (ie labor), could instead be fast tracked with financial success and donations. This eventually gave rise to the Major Donor group which is really a combination of these successful entrepreneurs, career professionals, and premies with trust funds or large inheritances.
Rawat has purposefully herded these premies together to build that subculture. He applies peer pressure and competition within the group to squeeze as much money as possible out of every one of them. Its all based on the understanding that donations will buy a front row seat; not just at programs, but for all eternity.
19th April 2011 - Re: front row seats
Good points and I agree with the fracturing of communities effect. Looking back it was a direct result of Rawat's strategy adjustment to isolate and exploit premies with higher income. Once he had a core group and subculture of major donors sustaining itself, he really didn't need communities. But for years the community where I'm from kind of hung on through the efforts of a handful of devoted grass roots premies.
Communities were there originally to facilitate propagation, support a platform for building the culture, and to provide inspiration. But they became obsolete as Rawat purposefully focused on squeezing revenue from his core group of donors. As his interest in promoting communities diminished, Rawat made a concerted effort to engage directly with the major donor group.
Within the major donor group there was and probably still is a lot going on. There were parties at the residence a couple of times a year, special private meetings at programs by personal invitation, and incessant phone calls from Rawat's Lieutenants, Mankoff and Yurim. The group was laced together with the same themes and values that originally connected communities, but the call to action was to give more money instead of propagation.
It clearly illustrates how Rawat's original intoxicating obsession for power and self glorification, evolved into his addiction to wealth and greed. Rawat's strategies were always changing to align and produce the outcome that would feed his insatiable narcissistic appetite. We were, and premies still are, just a means to his ends that are abandoned or disposed of, once their usefulness has expired.
Roger Koch - $5million Man
The DECA business sought development as a corporate jet customization operation but proved unviable when run by premies for the benefit of Prem Rawat and was soon sold, being renamed Aircraft Modular Products(AMP). Some of Prem Rawat's followers, including Roger Koch who was it's main asset, gained employment with AMP but the company had no other links with Rawat or his organizations. AMP prospered and was sold in 1998 by it's then owner, Roger Koch, for over US$100 million. Roger Koch prospered and around 2010 made a donation of US$5 million to Rawat as part of his charitable activities. Within 2 years he had become disillusioned with Rawat and his "Knowledge" despite becoming part of the Major Donors' group, a "golf buddy" of that old coconut Charanand and meeting Rawat's children. He told his story on Ex Premie Forum and his intellectual and emotional journey has been collected here.