Osho’s secy comes out of caccoon, seeks transparency in commune’s affairs

In an extensive interview with The Indian Express on Monday, this Indian sannyasin who commands affection from among Osho disciples all over the world and the citizens of Pune at large, has finally come out of the caccoon. Firing the first salvo, Neelam has demanded “transparancy in the commune administrative affairs, particularly regarding the journey of Osho’s copyrights which finally landed with the foundation at Zurich.”

She has also urged that “the leaders of the commune owe this entire information of copyrights transfer to sannyasins and if they continue to be silent over this issue, then I would not mind signing an application to gather this vital information from the Charity Commissioner’s office.” Shocked over the issue of copyrights transfer of Osho’s works, art and meditation, away from the Osho International Headquarters which is in Pune and therefore should rightfully belong to the Pune commune as Osho has desired, Ma Yoga Neelam has pointed an accusing finger at the three key inner circle members. She rues, “the three of them function in a dictatorial manner and think they are above anybody else merely because they have spent more time with Osho than others before Osho left his body. They seem to overlook the fact that Osho appointed them as trustees on behalf of all the sannyasins, so that they should take all the sannyasins into confidence and feel the pulse rather than autocratically dishing outdecisions and passing them on as Osho’s decisions. Osho had always said that the management is not supposed to govern but their function is to serve the people, the sannyasins in this case.”

Ma Yoga Neelam, who has been close to Osho since 1969 and has witnessed the metamorphoses of the master and the commune, critically states that “Many of us who were close to Osho for nearly three decades and more, know for sure that certain decisions attributed to Osho by the three people could never have been taken by Osho. Osho was oppossed to any rigid organisation and wanted the commune to function as organism. These people are doing just that.”

Reiterating her stand, on the copyrights of Osho works, art and meditation techniques to come back to Pune, she clarifies, “I’m not saying that the copyrights should come to India because I’m an Indian. I am Osho’s sannyasin who does not differentiate between any nationalities. Osho always insisted that the international headquarters of his commune must form the nucleus of all activities, be it meditation techniques, publishing works or whatever. Since Pune is rightfully the commune’s headquarters, there is no question of having copyrights anywhere in the world. New York is merely the extension of Pune’s headquarters and cannot pose as Osho’s international headquarters.”

Citing an example, Ma Neelam states that “When Osho left Pune for Oregan, all the rights were transferred there and then when he left the USA and finally came to Pune, second time round, all these copyrights, his books, watches robes – whatever there was – Osho wanted them to come back to Pune. He always wanted it that way. However, as we found out recently, the copyrights never came back to Pune, much to our shock.”

Neelam reveals that commercialisation of the Osho Commune began about six months after Osho left his body and the early manifestations came in the form of tarnishing this spiritual outfit, with a generous dose of a plush, and fun-filled holiday resort. “Thus short-term visitors, particularly the fly-by-night western sannyasins who came for having pure fun in the form indulging more in MedClub activities rather than looking into their inner selves were given more importance,” says Ma Neelam. “And the long-term sannyasins who used to come here for a few months to create an energyfield were discouraged. Of course, it was Osho’s vision to add modern facilities in order to cater to the modern man but the three inner circle members picked only this fragment, to project it as Osho’s vision.”

An ardent follower of Osho, who left her luxurious home and a happy marriage in Ludhiana to fly off to the unknown territory of Oregan, just to be with her master, Neelam is deeply agitated over the transformation of the tranquil environs of Osho Samadhi into “group sessions where therapies like No-mind healing take place, which requires participants to shout, scream, abuse and hit violently on pillows in order to release garbage from the body.”

Ma Yoga Neelam, refusing to remain silent anymore, says that “going to the press is the first step towards alerting sannyasins and people all over the world, of the distortion of Osho’s vision by this trio” and would be gearing into required action.