Guru Maharaj Ji Badges

Crazes can sweep though a closed community no matter how strange they may appear to outsiders. When I first encountered premies of Guru Maharaj Ji in Divine Light Mission in late November, 1973 every second person was wearing these homemade badges with a full frontal picture of Prem Rawat, then a fat, sweaty, pimply, pudgy teenage boy.

Amongst the more eccentric (though I used the word crazier back then) premies these badges grew to alarming sizes. I presume they were worn to show one's committment and devotion and as a starting point for recruitment but luckily for me (I used to get embarrassed easily in those days) they were already going out of fashion. At least I thought so but I see from these pictures that some badges were were still being produced, sold and worn as late as 1978.