Osho commune allows entry to disciples from rival faction
he ashram management on Tuesday allowed the Osho disciples to enter wearing the sanyas mala, taking a defensive stance against the background of the unity of the maroon army
Pune: The two warring factions of Acharya Rajneesh alias Osho heaved a sigh of relief on Tuesday as one of them was finally allowed inside the commune by another faction controlling the campus.
The ashram management on Tuesday allowed the Osho disciples to enter wearing the sanyas mala, taking a defensive stance against the background of the unity of the maroon army. The main opposition faction which has christened itself as the “Maroon Army” claimed that around 2,500 disciples from across the globe gathered at the Osho Ashram entrance marking the 70th enlightenment day of Osho.
Amrit Sadhana, trustee and spokesperson, Osho International Foundation that runs the meditation centre, said, “We waived the rule of wearing the mala today at the request of the Pune police to maintain law and order. So, we allowed the visiting group to wear the mala just for today, and they agreed to pay ₹970 per head for entry. From tomorrow, our regular rules and regulations will be applied again.”
Commune rival Swami Chaitanya Keerti said, “The management of Osho International Meditation Centre (OIMC) is consistently working towards killing the Osho ideology by ceasing various celebrations like Osho birthday, Osho death anniversary, Guru Poornima, Osho enlightenment day and prohibiting entry of disciples wearing sanyas mala. The management is reportedly trying to sell the ashram land to private parties. The disciples had organised agitations against this motive of the management.”
“Due to the interference by the police officials, we have been allowed to enter the ashram. Our fight has achieved a minor success. We are determined to continue this fight to save the ashram and Osho ideology,” he said.
According to Sadhana, Osho had asked his followers to discard the malas and any outer things because outer symbol creates an impression of religion. Osho is a very modern master and he does not want to create any religion or binding which creates divisions and differences and people start fighting. Hence, he was against any symbol or celebration of any day.
“Some factions are old fashioned who want a mala, photo, special day and enlightenment day which is totally against Osho’s guidance. They brought people in big number telling lies that this place is being sold. As they went to the police, we allowed close to 900 people inside the commune today,” he said.