Comments on: The View from the Street: The Ordinary Sannyasin at Rajneeshpuram

By: Michael Alberty

Michael Alberty — Sat, 18 Jan 2025 16:49:13 +0000

Greetings. I am a wine writer based in Portland, Oregon. I’m working on a story about the vineyard that Rashid alludes to in his post. I’ve had wonderful conversations with Rashid, Chintan and Subhan so far. If you worked in the vineyard or have photos of the vineyard (or anyone that worked there) I would like to hear your story. My article is about the vineyard and the role of wine at Rajneeshpuram, nothing else. Cheers!

By: Arpana

Arpana — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 17:56:52 +0000

That’s a description of childhood for many.
Lots of kids have traumatic childhoods,
and even more compared with his.
Lots of kids have a horrible childhood compared to that.

I saw Tim Guest tell Gaby Logan a sannyasin grown-up
had been snotty to him, and he looked suitably gratified at
how appalled Gaby was by this horror story.

And I was sitting there thinking, “Really, Tim old bean,
a grown-up was snotty to you once? You led a sheltered
life, didn’t you?”

By: frank

frank — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 17:13:51 +0000

Everyone seems to have it in for baboons!

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/apr/24/wild-wild-country-netflix-cult-sex-noa-maxwell-bhagwan-shree-rajneesh-commune-childhood

By: satyadeva

satyadeva — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 11:12:41 +0000

Perhaps you’d have preferred “Bhagwan” to have remained at the Ranch with his presence there precipitating a potential shoot-out with the U.S. National Guard, ending up with dead and injured bodies littering the place, Shantam?

Has it ever occurred to you that your views on the various ‘powers-that-be’ in Sannyas are heavily influenced by your personal plight? And by nationalist-cum-racial preferences?

I suggest that you consider whether your final line might well apply to you rather than the ones you’re so happy to condemn.

By: shantam prem

shantam prem — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 07:20:45 +0000

You are right, with new arrivals with wealth and influence Sheela became unsure about her position. It is very much possible that Bhagwan was in the process of firing her and replacing her with real American face.

More than that, we must not forget it was not Sheela who brought Bhagwan to Mexican Authorities.

Egoist minds of disciples brought endarkenment.

By: Parmartha

Parmartha — Tue, 24 Apr 2018 20:08:34 +0000

Arps,
Thanks.
The experience I had was mine, and I do not dismiss it at all. Many fantastic experiences, and loving relationships without dependence.
Whatever Sheela was doing was all outside of that, that was my inner and to them invisible, cosmology.

So yes, it would be perfectly right to say many had incredible experiences we would never had elsewhere, but they were IN SPITE OF, not because of the Cabal, which many of us deliberately avoided from early on.

By: Parmartha

Parmartha — Tue, 24 Apr 2018 20:03:00 +0000

Well said, SS.

By: Parmartha

Parmartha — Tue, 24 Apr 2018 20:01:45 +0000

Shantam, you have not read my other posts.

I have always said that the Ranch fiasco was the result of Sheela’s cabal (an often underrated contributor), but also Osho and his household, and also the 3,000 sannyasins who lived there uncritically until the end.

Your first sentence makes no sense to me, and surprised it got through the moderator.

MOD:
WE THINK Shantam MEANS THE ARRIVAL OF THE VERY WEALTHY ‘HOLLYWOOD SET’ (AND/OR PERHAPS OTHER MEGA-RICH PEOPLE) CREATED FURTHER MISTRUST OF THOSE IN POWER AT THE RANCH AND AT THE PUNE ASHRAM – IN HIM, PRESUMABLY.

PERHAPS HE’LL CONFIRM OR DENY THIS?

By: Arpana

Arpana — Tue, 24 Apr 2018 15:17:40 +0000

Do you think that because of the emphasis on what went wrong, those eight people, there is a danger that a lot of sannyasins are actually afraid to say how much they got out of the experience; they have come to doubt the positivity of that time for them, feel what happened for them is invalidated by what they now see as foolishness on their part?

They also have to put up with constantly being told, by individuals who had run away from Sannyas, weren’t at the Ranch, what dipshits they are. (One of my 3 pet hates is people who sit in the pavilion and throw rocks at the players).

We should resist others dictating to us how we perceive and talk about
our own experiencing. I grew up during those years, and I wasn’t entirely infantile, I had a degree of maturity at the start.

P.S:
I look back on so much of my life and see dark and light mixed together
now, instead of just dark.

P.P.S:
I really like Dean Carter’s contribution. Balanced and upbeat, without being in denial.
Would like to see a lot more contributions like that, so we can publish a whacking great tome of everything that was positive about that time.

By: swamishanti

swamishanti — Tue, 24 Apr 2018 15:05:14 +0000

Also, another thing that is often unmentioned and which Sheela was not prosecuted for was the attempted murder of Vivek, who lived in Osho`s household, and the elaborate plan which was unveiled in recent years in ‘The Day We Got Guns’ by Rajesh, who worked as the technician, a plot which involved Rajesh disconnecting an electric fence, a secret tunnel underneath Osho`s trailer, which led to a trapdoor, and another syringe full of poison which was meant to murder Vivek.

Luckily for Vivek, this plan was foiled along with a lot of Sheela`s other (known) attempts.