INDIAN SANNYASINS AND FOREIGN SANNYASINS SYNDROME

Before the year 1970 most of Osho's talks were in Hindi language. These talks were in the beginning published in small booklets and pocket books. Some big volumes in Hindi series had also been published but their circulation was limited to India. From the year 1970 Osho started speaking in English because by that time His lovers from the foreign countries had started reaching to him for participation in the meditation camps and listening to His discourses. During some of the meditation camps Osho also talked in Hindi as well as in English alternatively in the same discourse because there used to be large number of Indian as well as foreign lovers. The number of foreign lovers from different countries was increasing day by day.

Up to the year 1970 almost all Osho lovers who were attending to him and carrying on the work of recording Osho's discourses, editing and publishing the same in book forms, were Indian. Swami Yog Chinmaya used to be Osho's secretary. Ma Yoga Laxmi succeeded him in the year 1973 Neo-Sannyas movement was started in the year 1970 when Osho initiated into Neo-Sannyas few of His lovers. Since then lovers of Osho were used to be called sannyasins: those who live in the world but are not attached to it.

As the number of sannyasin had increased and work relating to spreading the message of Osho also increased, more space was required. Therefore, Osho shifted to Pune in Maharashtra and His sannyasins established a commune there in the year 1974. By that time the foreign sannyasins had outnumbered the Indian sannyasin. Among these foreign sannyasins, there were many having international caliber. There were writers, editors, artists, book designers, film producers, photographers, Lawyers and academicians of different subjects of international standard and repute. They took over most of the technical work of recording and reproducing the audio and video discourses. They started editing, designing typesetting these discourses and making arrangements for publishing and printing in the form of books and magazines of international standard. Most of these foreign sannyasins were of very sound economic back ground and who had seen the futility of the power and prestige. Seeing their dedication and ability, Osho also started to prefer them for His overall work. Seeing this entire changing step, most of the Indian sannyasins started feeling jealous. This proved the genesis of differences among the Indian and foreign sannyasins. This substantially affected the future course of Osho's movement for the birth of a New Man.

By the year 1980 the strength of foreign sannyasins had reached around 90% of the total strength of visitors to Pune commune. Same was the ratio of sannyasins attending to Osho and managing the Pune commune. Osho was more concerned to spread his message to foreign countries; therefore He found it proper and useful to give more attention towards the foreign sannyasins so far as work relating to making His movement worldwide was concerned. Therefore, most of the sannyasins who earlier used to be near to him and who subsequently were replaced by foreign sannyasins were not happy with the change. They started feeling jealous of their successors whose performance and manner of working and dealing with Osho was better. Therefore the gap between Indian and foreign sannyasins was widening day by day. However this was restricted only to those Indian sannyasins who were enjoying some powerful position and were frequently meeting Osho in connection with various activities of the Movement. Other Indian lay sannyasins and those who were connected with not so much important work were not at all concerned with these changes. Their relations with other foreign sannyasins were very loving and harmonious.

The real problem started when another Indian born American Ma Anand Sheela entered in the scene. She used to work in the Commune and was also near to Ma Yoga Laxmi, Secretary of Osho. She was intelligent, sincere and hardworking.

Osho found that she was utterly materialistic, but very practical, very pragmatic, strong-willed, could be used in the beginning days of the commune... because the people who are spiritually-oriented are stargazers. It was now clear that Ma Yoga Laxmi was going to be replaced by Ma Anand Sheela. She also proposed to Osho to shift to America where His health could be taken care of better and it was easy to find sufficient suitable land for establishing new commune. Osho agreed for the same. It was a good proposal for the western sannyasins but a shock to the Indian sannyasins particularly to those who were holding some important job in Pune commune. They were well convinced that western sannyasins were, with best intentions, involved in shifting Osho from India to America. It, therefore left a wound in their hearts which continued hurting them, and played major part in widening the gap between Indian prominent sannyasins and Western sannyasins.

The gap between chief Indian sannyasins and chief foreign sannyasins became more visible during Osho's stay at Manali, H.P., India and at Kathmandu, Nepal. The Indian Government, under pressure from U.S. Govt. did not want Osho's foreign sannyasins to take care of Him and His work. These were the sannyasins who had connections and good acquaintances all over the world. They had qualifications and expertise of international standard to record, transcribe, edit Osho's words and make arrangements to make these available to the world press as well as to the masses. They also had means and ability to ensure Osho's physical security. Their dedication to Osho was fortified by their high profiles and very sound financial back grounds. Without the help of these sannyasins the U.S. Government's bad intentions to isolate Osho from the world would have been fulfilled. In this setup almost all chief Indian sannyasins were seen far back in the line. They became more jealous towards the western sannyasins.

These chief Indian sannyasins tried to keep away Western sannyasins from Osho. They posed to be able to take care of Osho and His work and that Osho need not to depend on western sannyasins. They also made contacts in the concerned ministry to apprise them that for taking care of Osho and His work, western sannyasins were no longer required. This was the reason for cancellation of visas of western sannyasins. Indian sannyasins wanted that Osho should not leave India. They spread rumors that western sannyasins were kidnapping Osho. They virtually tried to snatch Osho. This was revealed by Sunnyo in her book 'My Diamond Days with Osho' in the following words:-

"The day before Vivek left for Delhi I heard her talking to Neelam, telling her that Osho had said that if we were all to be deported, then He would come too. Vivek was asking Neelam, "Please, don't let Him follow us, because at least in India He is safe." Hasya and Anando had been busy in Delhi making appointments to see officials there. Arun Nehru was the Minister for Internal Security then, the man at the root of this problem (cancellation of foreigners visas), but their appointments with him were continually cancelled. When they did see an official they were to be told "confidentially" that we should look within our group to see from where the trouble came. It appeared that Laxmi had written to the Home Office giving full details of all the foreign disciples and her words were to be repeated to us that " it was not necessary that Osho needs foreigners to see to His welfare." It was necessary actually, because more important to Osho than life itself was His work, and Westerners were needed for that. Osho was to say, "My Indian disciples meditate, but will not do anything for me. My Western disciples will do anything for me, but will not meditate." I did not understand this at the time, but was soon to learn.

That afternoon, just before Osho was to take His walk along the river, there was a great commotion at the main gate of Span. I went to investigate, the staff of Span were in a desperate struggle with a busload of drunken Sikhs who had arrived and were shouting aggressively about Osho and wanting to see Him. …

We went inside and I closed the curtains of the sitting room. Rain started to fall outside and the room darkened as I looked at Osho and He said:

"Sikhs! But I have never said anything against Sikhs. Such stupidity! What do these people want?" And then, as He sat at the edge of the sofa with His shoulders hunched He said, "This world is insane, what is the point in living?"

"Laxmi had confused the situation even more by spreading rumors with the sannyasins who lived in Delhi that Hasya and Jayesh were trying to kidnap Osho. In a valiant attempt to save their master the Delhi sannyasins tried to snatch Osho back, but were thwarted by Anando. Osho took the plane to Nepal, just in time, just in time to avoid arrest by the Indian police. The Span property which I had heard Laxmi telling Osho about, had not been purchased by her, it was not even for sale."

The Indian sannyasins made the same scene when they tried to assure Osho that they have found a castle suitable for Osho Commune where Osho can live comfortably. But seeing the video of the same the place was not at all suitable.

"Some sannyasins arrived a couple of days later in Kathmandu with an offer of a palace in India in which Osho could live. They did not understand that at this point He could not go back to India, but Osho talked to them. A video of the palace had been made for Osho to see, so He agreed and to my surprise invited all of us to watch the video with Him." "We sat at Osho's feet in his living room and the film began. After ten minutes of trees in the drive way of the palace, we saw a row of five or six stone huts with the roofs completely fallen in. These were the servants' quarters, and obviously a lot of work had to be done on them--- but that was nothing, we have worked before on buildings. The camera then scanned up and down a few more trees and I thought to myself that someone must have told the cameraman that Osho loved trees."

"Osho asked if there was any water in the palace. "Yes, Yes" was the reply from the bearer of the video. After five more minutes travelling up and down the trunks of the trees, we saw the" palace". It had only four rooms, and they were in the advanced stage of dilapidation. " Is there any water in the property?" asked Osho. "Yes, Yes", came the reply. The four room palace must not have lived in for at least fifty years. "What about the water?" began Osho… Aah! There it was! A thin trickle of water ran down some moss covered stones in the garden. "And do we have rights to this water?' asked Osho. " The water belongs to the girls' school, next door," was the reply, "but, no problem."

"Now I understood. This is why Osho wanted us all to watch the video with Him, so that we could have some idea of how difficult the situation was when trying to get done with some of His sannyasins. That their hearts are with Osho is without question, but they must be crazy to want to take Him back to India, and even crazier to think He could live in the remains of what was a four roomed house, and without water!"

"Osho said to them that their asking Him to remain in India was out of love, but it was absurd. He said that it would create trouble for Him and trouble for themselves, and He told them to go back, think over it, and return after seven days. They never came back and Osho said that they must have understood the implications, and their insistence had been out of love, not out of reason."

The widening gap between most of the "old Indian sannyasins' and western sannyasins in Osho Commune, Pune was also sensed by Swami Anand Subhuti which he revealed in his article for Osho Times International, July, 1997 issue. He writes, "During my stay,( in Pune commune) I became aware of another phenomena: a growing discontent among some "old sannyasins" (most of the old sannyasins were Indians) --- people who have been around since Pune One and Oregon ---who express uneasiness at the changing face of Osho Commune International and who say they have difficulty finding a role for themselves here."

The root of discontent was the historical shift from "Osho as a man" to "Osho as a Vision'. It was the change which was made in functioning of Osho Commune, Pune. First, most of the Indian old sannyasins were not happy with the change of name of Osho Commune International to Osho Meditation Resorts. Second there was complete good bye to the hierarchy as to the old sannyasins and new sannyasins; sannyasins having so called powerful position in the commune and others; those who were near to Osho and those who were not; third, there was major change in the system of Sannyas initiation which was giving birth to Gurudom and hierarchy as to higher and lower and so on. This change apparently was the product of some conscious beings and was made keeping in view the future course of Osho's Vision. Nothing in it was against Osho's Vision; rather it was according to the wishes of Osho. But it was certainly against those so called old sannyasins who were hoping to become the Gurus and Leaders and thereby nourish their egos. Seeing that their hopes are not going to be fulfilled in Osho Commune, Pune; they left the commune with one pretext or the other. They started their own commune and fulfilled their long cherished desires to become the Gurus and Head Priests of a commune. They maintained the old systems which had been stopped by Osho Commune, Pune. They made a tradition out of Osho Vision and gave birth to orthodoxy. Incidentally all those sannyasins were old Indian sannyasins. But in the base of all this was the wide gap between "Old Indian sannyasins" and "western Sannyasins" syndrome.

This disease has now been developed into a chronic one. All Indian sannyasins who had left Osho Commune, Pune in distress in the year 2000 are now on one platform known as Osho World Foundation and by means of their website oshoworld .com and Osho World Magazines are spreading lies about the functioning of Pune Commune and telling people that the commune is being run as a business and ceases to be a place for learning meditation. They are telling lies about the Sannyas Initiation. They are telling lies about the copyrights of Osho's works and OSHO trade mark just to block its financial sources.They claim themselves to be the true representatives of Osho's Vision and claim maintaining a true tradition. But this all is just to harm Osho Commune, Pune and thereby Osho Movement of a New Man. But their real problem is the jealousy towards western sannyasins who are managing the Pune Commune so well and exactly according to the Vision of Osho. Let the people know it.