Without the Guru: How I Took My Life Back After Thirty Years with Mike Finch

Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum with Dr. Steve Hassan

Dr. Steven Hassan

Self-improvement, Society & Culture, Education

4.8 • 684 Ratings

🗓️ 14 July 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Mike Finch has a Doctorate in Math and Theoretical Physics. He is also a Fellow of the International Society for Philosophers. Like many people I know, he was on a meditation journey and ended up with an Indian guru, then called “Guru Maharaji,” then just “Maharaji,” and later only by his given name: Prem Rawat. Mike was able to leave Rawat in 2000. Since then, Mike’s interests have included the exploration of why he surrendered to the guru, how he stayed for 30 years, and now how to deal with the aftermath. Mike’s book, Without the Guru: How I took My Life Back after Thirty Years (published in 2009), explores Mike’s journey into this rigid belief system, how he realized he was trapped in a cult, and then how he broke away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Dr. Stephen Hassan with another episode of my podcast, Cult Conversations,
0:10.1	The Influence Continuum with Dr. Steve Hassan.
0:13.8	And I have with me an old friend and colleague, former cult survivor, Michael Finch.
0:23.6	Mike and I go back decades, literally, and I can hold up the book that I purchased
0:30.6	that Mike wrote, and for those just listening, it says,
0:35.6	Without the Guru, how I took my life back after 30 years, and he was
0:41.1	in the Guru Miraji cult, who later changed his name to Premrawat.
0:47.8	Mike, we're similar age.
0:53.0	You, and there's so much you can talk about your spiritual journey.
0:58.5	But you got involved with this creepy guy.
1:02.0	I mean, it hit the public when he was a child at the Houston Astrodome.
1:08.0	There was a big meeting with him as a kid, I believe, and a lot of people followed him.
1:15.3	But a lot of people then go, Divine Light Mission, what's that? And it then morphed to Ilan Vital,
1:21.5	and now it's just the Premoat cult that you were mentioning.
1:31.1	You have a doctorate in math and theoretical physics.
1:35.7	You're a fellow of the International Society for Philosophers.
1:41.0	And since leaving Rwatt, you returned to Buddhists for a while,
1:44.1	spend time with other groups involved with inner work.
1:48.6	And you are a meditator. I also want to reference,
1:53.8	Mikefinch.com. Your website is still up. And with that,
1:59.2	I want to thank you for joining me for this conversation.
2:00.6	Thanks for having me.
	...

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