Editing Prem Rawat (section)

===1976–2000===

By 1976, most students viewed Prem Rawat primarily as a spiritual teacher, guide and inspiration.<ref>Downton (1979), p. 199</ref> In January 1976 Prem Rawat encouraged them to leave the [[ashram]]s and discard Indian customs and terminology.<ref name="Downton 1979">Downton (1979)</ref> He said that the organization had come between his devotees and himself.<ref>Björkqvist, K (1990): "World-rejection, world-affirmation, and goal displacement: some aspects of change in three new religions movements of Hindu origin." In N. Holm (ed.), ''Encounter with India: studies in neohinduism'' (pp. 79-99) - Turku, Finland. Åbo Akademi University Press - "In 1976, Maharaj Ji declared that he felt that the organization had come between his devotees and himself, and he disposed of the headquarters altogether."</ref> He decentralized some decision making to local premie communities, while he maintained his status as the ultimate authority over spiritual and secular matters. The staff at the Denver headquarters were reduced from 250 to 80.<ref name="Downton 1979" /> He described the managerial mentality that had grown in the Mission as "only cosmetic and totally unnecessary. It's like trying to take a cow and put lipstick on it. You can do it, but it's unnecessary in practical terms".<ref>Downton (1979), p. 196</ref>

His appearance on 20 December 1976 in [[Atlantic City, New Jersey]], wearing a traditional [[Krishna]] costume for the first time since 1975, signaled a resurgence of Indian influence and devotion.<ref>Downton (1979), p. 201</ref> During 1977, many returned to ''ashram'' life, and there was a shift back from secular tendencies towards ritual and messianic beliefs.<ref name="Downton 1979"/> In 1977 Rawat became a US citizen.<ref>"Guru Maharaj Ji becomes a citizen of the U.S." ''Rocky Mountain News'', Wednesday, 19 October 1977, Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.</ref>

In October 1978, the hillsides surrounding Rawat's Malibu estate were burned by a [[brush fire|brushfire]].<ref name="LAT1979" /> His family and the DLM headquarters subsequently moved to [[Miami Beach, Florida]].<ref name=Galanter1999p22>Galanter (1999), p. 22</ref> The family, which had grown to include four children, returned to Malibu in 1984.<ref name=Galanter1999p22/>

[[File:Maharaji Royal Albert Hall-cropped.jpg|left|thumb|12 October 1981. Prem Rawat speaking at the [[Royal Albert Hall]], London]]

During the '70s and '80s, the movement attracted substantial adverse publicity.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Leeming, David Adams|author2=Wood Madden, Kathryn|author3=Marlan, Stanton|title=Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion|date=September 2009|isbn=9780387718019|page=274|publisher=Springer }}</ref> In January 1979 the ''Los Angeles Times'' reported that Rawat was maintaining his Malibu following despite a rising mistrust of cults.<ref name="LAT1979">"Malibu Guru Maintains Following Despite Rising Mistrust of Cults" Mark Foster, ''Los Angeles Times'' 12 January 1979 p. 3</ref> Bob Mishler and Robert Hand, a former vice president of the movement, complained that money was increasingly diverted to Prem Rawat's personal use, and that the ideals of the group had become impossible to fulfill. The charges found little support and did not affect the progress of the Mission.<ref name="MeltonDLM"/>

In 1980, Rawat removed all the "religious" aspects of the movement and declared he now wanted "no movement whatsoever".<ref name="Björkqvist, K 1990 pp. 79-99">Björkqvist, K (1990): "World-rejection, world-affirmation, and goal displacement: some aspects of change in three new religious movements of Hindu origin." In N. Holm (ed.), ''Encounter with India: studies in neohinduism'' (pp. 79-99) - Turku, Finland. Åbo Akademi University Press</ref> The Hindu references and religious parables that had been prominent in [[Teachings of Prem Rawat|his teachings]] gave way to a focus on the meditation techniques. Once called "Perfect Master", Rawat abandoned his "almost divine status as guru"<ref name="MeltonDLM"/><ref name="Hunt"/> but affirmed his status as a master. Scholars such as [[Reender Kranenborg|Kranenborg]] and [[George D. Chryssides|Chryssides]] describe the departure from divine connotations.<ref name="KranenborgNeo178">Kranenborg (2002), p. 178</ref><ref name="Chryssides">Chryssides (2001), pp. 210–211</ref> In 1983 the Divine Light Mission was renamed [[Elan Vital (organization)|Elan Vital]] and Rawat closed the last western ''ashrams'', marking the end of his use of Indian methods for international objectives.<ref name="Miller 1995, p. 474">Miller (1995), p. 474</ref>

Throughout this period, Rawat toured extensively. In one two-year period he spoke at over 100 programs in 37 international cities, including New York, London, Paris, Kuala Lumpur, Rome, Delhi, Sydney, Tokyo, Caracas and Los Angeles.<ref name="Björkqvist, K 1990 pp. 79-99"/><ref name="HinduismToday1983">Hinduism Today 1983</ref>

In 1990 there were said to be 1.2 million followers worldwide, with 50,000 in the United States.<ref name="Chryssides"/> The year 1999 saw the commencement of regular satellite broadcasts to North America and other countries.<ref>{{cite web|title=Broadcasts|url=http://www.contact-info.net/broadcasts.cfm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151223140611/http://www.contact-info.net/broadcasts.cfm|archive-date=23 December 2015|access-date=17 July 2014|publisher=Contact Info}}</ref>