Was Osho’s Will Forged for Personal Monetary Gains?

The case around Osho’s will may help one understand the mystery around his death, writes Bhavya Srivastava.

Was Osho killed by his own followers? Or was he poisoned by the Americans? When Osho finally returned to India and settled in Pune, he was fraught with numerous health challenges. Osho knew the limitations of his body, as he flamboyantly expressed what is good for your body and what is even better for your soul.

He was, undoubtedly, the most famous global faith leader from India who challenged religion and became a messiah of spiritual seekers. Osho died of a heart attack, as has been claimed by close insiders. But now the doctor who was present at the ashram has raised a few questions.

According to “Osho World”, the sequence of Osho’s death was something like this:

In January 1990: During the second week in January, Osho’s body becomes noticeably weaker. On January 18, he is so physically weak that he is unable to come to the Gautama Buddha Auditorium. On January 19, his pulse becomes irregular. When his doctor inquires whether they should prepare for cardiac resuscitation, Osho says, “No, just let me go. Existence decides its timing.” He leaves his body between 5pm and 7pm.

The Poison Theory

In an old edition of Osho World, the sequence of his poisoning was described by the spiritual guru himself. The opening line states, “From 4 October 1987, Osho is seriously ill and nearly dies. On 6 November resuming discourses, Osho discloses that his doctors believe he was poisoned while in the custody of the United States government”.

Osho said:

“For seven weeks continuously I have been only filled with your love, your patience, your thirst, your longing. Seven weeks before, I was infected in the ear. It was a simple thing; according to the best expert available here, Dr Jog, it cures in four days at the most—but it continued for seven weeks. He has never come across such a case in his life. He could not believe it, because no medicine was working. He tried all kinds of medicines, all kinds of ointments. Finally he had to do an operation, but then the wound of the operation was not healing. Doctor Devageet thought perhaps it was something to do with my teeth— he is my dental surgeon —but nothing was found.

My personal physician, Dr Amrito, immediately informed all sannyasin doctors around the world and asked them to contact the best experts about poisoning, because his own analysis was that unless I have been poisoned there is no possibility to explain why my body has lost all resistance. And as this idea became stronger in his mind, step by step he started searching into the matter and he found all the symptoms that can happen only if some kind of poison has been given to me.”

Osho’s Will Under the Scanner

Osho’s life was never a mystery, but his death is. His real name was Chandra Mohan Jain and he was born in Kuchwada, Madhaya Pradesh. He taught students in the Raipur and Jabalpur college for few years. Gautam Buddha and J Krishnamurti influenced him a lot. He was a public speaker and a rebel. And this makes him Bhagwan Shree Rajnish. This was his anointment to become an authority to guide the mankind.

Osho revolutionised discourses. The world was churning at that time, socialism was fading and religion took over like a pincer.

Now, as the Mumbai High Court has asked the Pune police to investigate the veracity of Osho’s will, his death seems even more mysterious. The petition filed by Yogesh Thakkar has named Michael Byrne and Dr John Andrews as the ones behind the conspiracy.

Impact of the Case

When Osho died, there were three people in the room, Michael Byrne, Dr John Andrews and a woman follower.  Around 1997, the Indian branch of Osho Foundation found out that Zurich OIF has seized all documents, pictures, audio and work of Osho and copyrighted and trademarked them.

Delhi Osho Foundation then fought a case and won the battle. The impact of Mumbai case is now minimal as the material is now open for use. But if the will is proved to be forged then that can lead the Indian authorities to investigate the funneling of money by means of capturing the intellectual property rights of Osho. Additionally, the Pune Osho commune is managed by the Zurich HQ.

Osho, the one who was ‘never born and never died’, surely lived a great life and impacted the time with his impressions. The way he acted, moved, changed the discourse around religion and faith was incomparable in history. Let’s remember him as a soul who dared to ask the faithful about dogmatic things.

(The writer is a former TV journalist and member, International Association of Religion. He can be reached at @MeBhavya. This is a personal blog and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)

Also read: Was Osho Killed? 7 Haunting Questions Return After 26 Years!