Pass that Book on!
Swami Prem Martyn (UK) is incensed by a suggestion, said to arise from within Osho International, that sannyasins should not give books, etc to each other, in order that revenues from sales of Osho books, videos, etc improve. He responds here, and throws in a whole range of related reflections
Me: Sannyasin for 30 years.
Sannyasins have been giving each other and passing on free copies of anything Osho related for years… copies of cassettes, bootleg videos, books.magazines, etc. I never heard of a centre in the west depending on sales of Osho stuff to survive… EVER…
No, the western centres all manage to survive on therapist’s desires to run their own business! Yes, the business of selling therapy, and, oh yes, Osho’s meditations!. These therapists appear to love doing Osho’s work, strangely, (ha) it also makes them a very pleasant living swanning around the world sitting on cushions helping people to breathe etc!!. How demanding is that??
And the Poona (Pune) centre (ashram/Resort) , has made millions, gazillions of lakh $$ rupees in providing an erm, er, a holiday centre for the bourgeoisie, to have permission to do er, more therapy ?!! Hooray, what rebels - and life must be so hard for the majority of the white middle class sannyasins to talk endlessly about their growth. (I’m white, I’m middle class, I know).
It was a great day when the US decision went against the tight arses of POONA.(Pune). For years they had been (its claimed. …’cough) paying backhanders to corrupt Indian officials to pay for the very existence of that commune.
None of that money ever found itself back to the local Osho centres…for them it was sink or swim. In fact zillions were given in free voluntary worship (work) in the commune… whaddya mean, nothing was ever given free..? It was work for the vision, give your money, your time, your energy - everything including your girlfriends and boyfriends belonged to the commune..
Democracy ha, VISION OF INSPIRED COMMUNE, double ha. Most people given the chance of preferential positions weren’t comm-une at all!! It is and always was a structural unaccountable hierarchy and so were/are most of its satellites around the world…
Osho talked and talked, loved and lived, and spread his joy, with his eye for opportunity,.. Anarchist one minute, Capitalist authoritarian the next.. Do we really recognise his legacy in Pune, or of Oregon - or of being a Wanderer with his people…
Well, apparently whatever Pays is his legacy, because that will make for an enduring vision. How pragmatic! Do you know how many millions was spent by Pune on protecting their failed Osho goods trademark?? Have the accounts ever been verified?? (you’ll need a big calculator).
Do you know how much money was lost in Oregon (that WAS free if you count donating all your money for free, then seeing it stolen by the Hierarchy! ). Do you know that that Osho Internaitonal bought and sold houses after Oregon with ashram money in London and New York and lost the lot on failed business ventures? With no democratic control? So now we are asked that in the name of Osho and meditation we must help the centres by not offering our last Osho’s books, dvds, videos, etc for free.
Well if you (the pay per view brigade) want even more money, why don’t you ask for some back from the Ashram after 30 years of millions of people passing through the gate with vast revenue.$$$$.KERCHINGGG.
I don’t give a flying fuck about the poverty versus capitalist questions but I do give a stuff about manipulative idealistic hypocrisy.
With or without Osho in his body, I’m glad some of us know when its time to shout SHOUT NOW. KEEP EVERYTHING OSHO IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN, FOR OSHO’s INSPIRED LIBERTARIAN ALTERNATIVE TO YEARS OF ASHRAM/ THERAPIST/ AUTOCRACY.
With Torrents and downloads for free it’ll get there before u can say ‘jack shit’ anyway. Work out a different business model instead..There’s an economist sannyasin out there I know there is! 
I am a former teacher, member of Osho Ko Hsuan School Community ( here in the UK, post Ranch).. I know these battles very well.. too well. We didn’t sell Osho books, we sold educational experience on our own merits, with profits divided amongst all the community… every single former teacher got an equal share…
If you need to sell Osho books to make a living, sell them, but try and be a little bit more outward reaching than using someone else’s ideas (Osho’s) to sponsor your lifestyle.
Don’t lets be priestly leeches, Pune breeds the devoted ones by the bucket load and made sure you accepted their version of LERVVVVE.(to their advantage)
Train in Gardening (simple) or Major in Economics (harder) or something not including your soul, that you can sell instead.
…Something without added halo or status or hallelujahs. But something which you thoroughly LIVE, in a thriving network that does good and feels good in millions of ways….but please, not focused on selling Osho to survive.
Have a look at how and what people have done over the ages to stay real - its tricky, but.. its not nuclear physics..
Good luck and Love to all the crazies of Osho.
YA FUCKING HOO
(This article originally appeared in an Osho World Forum and is reproduced with permission from the author).