Of all the most influential eastern-type gurus, Osho seems to be the one with the most sticking power, even after he has, thankfully, left the body.

In the late 70's I knew a group of very crazy Orange People, as they then styled themselves. I came across them again a few years ago running a local cafe. They are now relatively calm and normal and run a very good cafe, although I am leery of the salad bar. They are still totally devoted, Osho books and tapes are everywhere in the cafe, and seem to have no problem at all rationalising all the bad behaviour of the higher ranks.
The next generation, however are a different story. Their kids, now young adults, are some seriously confused and frightened people who are desperately trying to make sense of the need to straddle the standard, non-Osho world and the feel-good bubble that their parents live in.

I've read some of Osho's books and watched some video, he was clearly a highly intelligent master manipulator, he certainly knew how to ride the zeitgeist of that era.
A lot of his followers seem to have very successfully diversified into the straight business world. Its a great pity that their kids seem to be paying the price.

I recently contacted an old friend I had not seen for many years; she's in her late 30's, and when I first knew her she was a fairly average person with a good job as a publisher's salesperson; she's single, has a lovely little cottage of her own. The only slightly weird thing about her back then was that she was on a strict Atkins diet. Anyway, a few weeks ago I found her telephone number in an old address book and gave her a call. She has now become an Osho-ite, goes to Poona freqently, etc. She still lives a normal life with her job and all the works, and I frankly didn;t want to go into the details of her new hobby, but I found it really weird that after all the bad press Osho has had someone of her maturity could get into it. I guess it takes all sorts.

I found this summary of the current state of Osho-world and am rather surprised at the acceptance it has latterly gained, particularly after Osho himself was refused entry to 21 countries--a clear sign that those governments recognised his power to appeal to the masses. (This is from wikipedia, so is highly likely to have benefitted from the concerted attention of politically aware devotees):

Osho, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

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'Legacy
While Osho's teachings met with strong rejection in his home country during his lifetime, there has been a change in Indian public opinion since Osho's death. In 1991, an influential Indian newspaper counted Osho, along with figures such as Gautama Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi, among the ten people who had most changed India's destiny; in Osho's case, by "liberating the minds of future generations from the shackles of religiosity and conformism." Osho has found more acclaim in his homeland since his death than he ever did while alive. At a celebration in 2006, marking the 75th anniversary of Osho's birth, Indian singer Wasifuddin Dagar said that Osho's teachings are "more pertinent in the current milieu than they were ever before." In Nepal, there are 60 Osho centres with almost 45,000 initiated disciples (reported in 2008). Osho's entire works have been placed in the Library of India's National Parliament in New Delhi. Prominent figures such as Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Indian Sikh writer Khushwant Singh have expressed their admiration for Osho. The Bollywood actor and Osho disciple Vinod Khanna, who had worked as Osho's gardener in Rajneeshpuram, served as India's Minister of State for External Affairs from 2003 to 2004.

Over 650 books are credited to Osho, expressing his views on all facets of human existence. Virtually all of them are renderings of his taped discourses. His books are available in 55 different languages and have entered best-seller lists in countries such as Italy and South Korea. Internationally, after almost two decades of controversy and a decade of accommodation, Osho's movement has established itself in the market of new religions. His followers have redefined his contributions, reframing central elements of his teaching so as to make them appear less controversial to outsiders. Societies in North America and Western Europe have met them half-way, becoming more accommodating to spiritual topics such as yoga and meditation. The Osho group runs stress management seminars for corporate clients such as IBM and BMW, with a reported (2000) revenue between $15 and $45 million annually in the U.S.

Osho's ashram in Pune has become the Osho International Meditation Resort, one of India's main tourist attractions. Describing itself as the Esalen of the East, it teaches a variety of spiritual techniques from a broad range of traditions and promotes itself as a spiritual oasis, a "sacred space" for discovering one's self and uniting the desires of body and mind in a beautiful resort environment. According to press reports, it attracts some 200,000 people from all over the world each year; prominent visitors have included politicians, media personalities and the Dalai Lama. Before anyone is allowed to enter the resort, an AIDS test is required, and those who are discovered to have the disease are not allowed in.'



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/07/2010 09:18PM by Stoic.