Sunday, March 23, 2014

Controversy over Osho’s bequest


       
                                                                                                      
The controversy sparks even after the death of Osho when his last will and testament appears mysteriously 23 years later of his death on 8th June, 2013. The will was produce by Osho International Foundation situated in Zuric Switzerland during a trade mark dispute in European Union. The documents include a sworn affidavit by Mr. Philip Toelkes (Sw. Prem Niren), who claim himself as Osho International Foundation’s layer. Since the death of Osho, the legal tussle has been going on between Osho International Foundation and those rebellious groups who are not part of this foundation over the inheritance of Osho’s intellectual and other properties. The case has been filled against Osho International Foundation in Bombay High court, and abroad.

When Osho was physically present, every big city around the world had Osho meditation center but after his inexplicable death, Those Osho meditation center were closed because of the harassment and torture given by Osho International Foundation (OIF) in the name of fabricated copyrights and trade mark issue. Accept OIF, no Osho center believe on Osho’s last will, Swami Ananda Arun, the founder of Osho Tapoban Nepal, very close disciple of Osho is against the copy right and will which was not left by Osho.

I was suspicious in 19th January, 2012 when Swami Ananda Arun and other Osho disciple from Nepal were not allowed to get inside the Osho commune in Koregaon Park, Puna Indian. The Puna commune people did not allow us to get inside Ashram for meditation and to visit Osho Samadhi (final resting place), where Osho gave his first lecture after arriving to Puna in 1974.  The Puna commune managers of OIF deny the existence of any Samadhi at the Osho Commune premised in Koregaon Park, Samadhi has a special significance in eastern cultures and a very important place for the followers. They did not let us call it Samadhi; they guide us to call it Chuang Tzu hall because they do not want any traditional misunderstanding of Osho’s wishes. According to them, “Osho opposed any kind of personal worship or anyone to be immortalized by any temporal or non-spiritual aspect like structure, idol etc. Not only that, OIF and associate has changed the commune name “The Osho Commune” into “Osho International Meditation Resort” following the death of Osho.

Somehow, after a long waiting of HIV/AIDS test, I was selected as a translator for my group where I translated their instruction against Osho Mala and premises rules and regulation, I was astonished by seeing Osho Royal Royce car in front of Chuang Tzu hall, his personal library containing thousands of book, his personal dental check up chair, indoor garden and his final resting place decorated with a magnificent circular chandelier, marble floors, walls and pillars but got annoyed by seeing the Osho Samadhi’s appearance which is not similar as I have seen in Osho documentaries and photography before. Another socking event was in the night at discotheque inside the Commune where meditation therapy leader were dancing with whisky and Vodka.

Those people who has seen the Osho documentary “I Leave You My Dream” can take it as an evidence for it where Amrito, Osho’s personal physician recounted his personal conversation with Osho just before his death on 19th January, 1990 and said when we asked Osho,” What we should do to his Samadhi,” Osho had replied: “You just put my ashes in Chuang Tzu under the bed. And then people can come in and meditate there” Amrito again quoted Osho as saying that his bedroom “should be good for Samadhi”. Despite of all evident, I am suspecting on Amrito’s recount and the way they conducted Osho funeral procession in same day within the couple of hours of living his body. Osho himself said that, “When I am dead, don’t burry my body, don’t burn it, because I will be involved in you, many of you. And if you can feel, then a sage remains alive for many years, sometime thousands of years because life is not only of the body. Life is energy phenomenon. It depends on the involvement, on how many people he was involved in. And a person like Buddha is not only involved with person, he is involved even with trees, birds, animals; his involvement is so deep that if he dies  his death will take at least five hundred years.”

The controversies are warming up with the fake will dated on 15th October 1989, bearing Osho signature running into five paragraph state as follow: Recital: “ In 1975,1978 and 1981, I execute assignments concerning my work. Also, in 1981, I executed a broad power of attorney will the stated intention to divest myself of all worldly property, and also an amendment in 1982, with the result that all such property is now owned by Neo Sannyas International Foundation, a Swiss charitable entity. To be completely certain that all such property interests are so divested. I make this last will and testament.

LAST WILL and TESTAMENT: Being of sound mind, and acting of my free will, I make this last will and testament. I, Osho, birth name Chandra Mohan Jain, formerly known as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, hereby devise and bequest any and all right, title or interest of any nature in any and all property of any nature and in any form, owned by me, now or in the future, including but not limited to, all ownership, publishing or related rights, to all my work, published to date or in the future, in any form, to Neo Sannyas International Foundation. If for any reason that entity cannot or does not accept this bequest then the alternate beneficiary shall be a non-profit, charitable entity dedicated to the dissemination of my work, such entity to be designated by my executor. Executor: I name as my executor Sw. Anand Jayesh, aka Michael O’Byrne, executed this 15th day of October, 1989, at Poona, India. Signed on a stamp paper of Rs. 10, Michael O’Byrne President of Osho Foundation International, Zuric, has been identified as the executor of the will and two other foreigners, who are member of this Foundation, as the witnesses, namely, witnesses John Andrews (Sw. Amrito, Osho’s personal physician)  and Philip Toelkes.

Osho has left behind a “colossal legacy” which includes archives of 9,000 hours of audio discourses in Hindi and English, 1,870 hours of video discourses, 650 titles of transcribed book in Hindi and English which are being translated in 65 languages around the world, about 850 paintings by Osho, 80,000 books in Osho’s personal library which contain his notation, Osho’s Samadhi and prime real estate Puna and elsewhere valued at more than Rs. 1,000 crore Indian currency.

There is mounting evidence that the alleged last will of Osho submitted in the course of the legal dispute over the use of Osho’s name as a trademark is actually a forgery. The signature in the last will paper comes from a letter handwritten by Osho to his friend in 1976. The graphological expert could not find any difference in the signature of his last will and letter to his friend.  The graphological assessment Ms. Ciccolo from Italy and Mr. Patric from India said that the duplicate signature has been prepared by scanning, carbon tracing, copy and paste, photo-static process etc. They have also pointed out that Rajaneesh’s name in the will is stated as “Chandra Mohan Jain” when in fact his birth name was “Rajneesh Chandra Mohan Jain”.

Mr. Yogesh Thakkar (Sw. Prem Geet) and Kishor Raval (Sw. Prem Anadi) had filed the complaint against the Trustees of Osho International Foundation name followed by Mr. Michael O’Byrne (Sw. Jayesh), Mr. D'Arcy O’Byrne (Sw. Yogendra), Dr. John Andrew (Sw. Amrito), Mr. Mukesh Kantilal Sarda (Sw. Mukesh Bharati), Mr. Klaus Steeg (Sw. Pramod) along with Mr. Philip Toelkes (Sw. Niren) that on their behalf the forged last will of Osho has been prepared and submitted to the Bombay high court on the 8th of June 2013. The properties controlled by the OIF in Pune include the Samadhi of Osho where his ashes have been interred and are of deep spiritual and sentimental value to his sannyasin is located at Koregaon Park amidst cluster of other Osho properties of the OIF spread over 25-30 acres. Mr. Thakkar and Raval raised an alarm after they discovered that the OIF had quietly moved applications with the Charity Commissioner, Mumbai, to allow it to gift properties to Darshan trust, namely, Vidya Khubchandani, Lal Pratap Sing and Anand Kumar Awasti who had previously served as OIF trustees. Darshan trustee had got the favors of OIF such as contract for construction of guesthouse and meditation hall in Koregaon Park, Puna. The properties gifts were being made as “Maintaining and managing them had become a burden” and because these properties were ‘excess space”, not needed by the OIF.

Amrito’s press release after Osho death, hasty funeral activities of Osho, changing the name of Osho commune, Stooping the publication of “Osho Times” magazine and removal of Osho picture from the newly published book, denial of the existence of any Samadhi, against the Mala (symbol of new sannyas moment), harassments and torturing the commune leader around the world, transaction of Osho Properties to unknown Darshan trust of Delhi  and mysterious appearance of fake will of Osho after 23 years of his death, every things comes under doubt that some organized group are trying to eliminate Osho’s work from the world, It’s a long planned project. The reason behind the denial of existing Osho Samadhi will ease their work of transaction of property without legal problem under the supported of leading politician of Maharastra. Swami Ananda Arun, Coordinator of Osho Tapoban, Nepal demanded that the Government of India Initiate CBI or judicial enquiry into the points  mentioned in the petition and take prompt action by competent law enforcement authorities against six administrators of OIF, named in FIR for allegedly forging signatures of Spiritual Guru Osho and for creating his fake will. Presently, Osho sannyaisn from Nepal are in campaign on community petitions, each Osho lovers are requested to cast their vote in “avaaz.org” by signing their email address, name, country’s name and postal code number. The spiritual leader Bhagwan Shree Rajaneesh died in Puna on January 19, 1990 and there was no mention of any will left behind by Osho in the press conference held by the Osho trustee following his death.



 By Giri Bahadur Sunar 
The author is a sociologist and meditation practitioner, can be reached at




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