Half a million people come to hear Prem Rawat in Nepal and northwestern India

New Delhi, April 12, 2007 — Traveling through northwestern India and Nepal, Prem Rawat, known also by the honorary title of Maharaji, has addressed half a million people in Kathmandu and the Indian states of Gujarat and Rajasthan in the recent first part of a tour of the country.

Over 80,000 people from all over Nepal walked and rode buses to an event site outside Kathmandu to see Prem Rawat on his first visit to Nepal since 2000. Since his first public address there in 1997, attended by 13,000 people, interest in his message has grown. People have been gathering in local villages to watch videos of his talks, using generators to power satellite dishes and video projectors.

From Nepal, he traveled to Dausa in Rajasthan, India, where 50,000 came to hear him. “The real need of every human being is peace,” he said. “The heart wants to feel the kind of joy that can be present all the time regardless of what is happening in one’s life, and it is possible to experience that joy every day.”

About 60,000 people came to hear him in Pali and in Baran, both in Rajasthan, as well as in Bjaruch and Vadodara in the state of Gujarat. The events were attended by a broad spectrum of society, from simple villagers to town leaders, including district magistrates, senior superintendents of police, judges, and leading professionals.

In New Delhi, over 130,000 people who filled the event area were able to see Prem Rawat clearly via large daylight projection screens. One young sales representative, who had come to hear him for the first time, commented, “I was amazed to see so many people in one place, but when he started to speak, I felt he was speaking to me only.” Dinamani B., a doctor, said, “Prem Rawat's message of understanding the self and finding peace within is eye opening. In a world where humans are living miserable lives despite material achievements, this message about discovering peace within can help a lot.”

While half a million people heard him in person, another 1.4 million people, who were unable to attend in person, listened to the events via satellite broadcast.