Test -- Rajneeshpuram Timeline

This page is under construction 

The material in this timeline is mainly boiled down from the exhaustive timeline found in Max Brecher's book, A Passage to America, reproduced whole at Rajneeshpuram news summary 1981-1986 (source document). Entries with shortened dates have been processed, with many entries deemed inconsequential left out. Underlined entries are from other sources.

1980

Oct 21: Shannon Ryan takes sannyas, becomes Ma Amrita Pritam. She was a prominent symbolic figure at the Ranch and in that era, being the daughter of Leo Ryan, the American congressman murdered in Nov 1978, while investigating Jonestown.

1981

Jan 12-18: Ma Anand Sheela (Sheela Patel Silverman at the time) visits Chidvilas Meditation Center in Montclair, NJ, where Ma Amrita Pritam and Sw Samir are resident. It has been in operation about a year. In the 1970's Sheela had lived in Montclair with her first husband, American Mark Silverman and taken some courses at Montclair State College.

Apr 30: Sannyasins buy the 30-room Rhine-style Kip's Castle for $370,000. Depending on source, castle has 7.2 acres or 15. According to The Oregonian series, "For Love and Money", the castle was purchased Apr 21.

May 1: Osho has not been coming out for discourse or darshan since Mar 24, originally because of a chicken pox quarantine, but now his period of public silence officially begins, with " Satsangs" as the format for his public appearances, consisting of live music alternating with short readings from Kahlil Gibran and others, Gachchhamis and periods of "silent commentary".

Jun 1: Osho leaves India on Pan Am Flight 1, arriving at the Castle in New Jersey. His departure shocks everyone, save the few people in the know.

Jun 12: According to July 6, 1985 The Oregonian article from the "For Love and Money" series, the search for American land, which was decided in November 1980 and in high gear in mid-May 1981 comes to fruition on this day as Sheela and Jayananda (John Shelfer) visit the Big Muddy for the first time and decided almost immediately to buy it.

Aug 12: 35 people attend a meeting at Antelope School and worry about what's going to happen on the Big Muddy. "An Antelope woman, [named], said she was concerned that the Ranch owners would begin selling printed material now distributed through the New Jersey center. She said she considers the material pornographic. Jefferson County District Attorney Michael Sullivan said he would like her to furnish him with the materials she considers pornographic to see if it meets with the criteria for pornographic material under Oregon law. Mayor Margaret Hill [who came to teach at Antelope school in 1966], who had a brochure advertising sale of items from the Montclair center, said if not pornographic the material was 'at least far out.'" -- reported by Bend Bulletin

Aug 13: Some are worried about property values going up and others are worried about property values going down.

Aug 29: Osho flies on rented Learjet 35 (cost $15,500) to Redmond (OR) and arrives at Rancho Rajneesh.

Aug 30: An Oregonian article says the local people haven't seen "so much excitement since the sheepherders and the cattlemen were feuding decades ago. 'This town is so conservative, the women stand in one group and the men stand in another,' said Ray Reynolds, 57. 'That's the type of community it is, and we like it.'"

Sep 4: Wolfgang Dobrowolny's 1978 documentary, Ashram, highest grossing Germany documentary of 1980, opens in San Francisco.

Oct 14: Rajneeshees submit petition in The Dalles to incorporate their own city. "'It is sort of a foregone conclusion that the petition will be approved,' said Sue Profitt, Wasco County clerk. Judge Richard C. Cantrell said, 'There are no problems as far as the court is concerned. As long as they are legal, they have just as much right as any other citizen.' Although new towns may seem rare, according to the Oregon Blue Book, 11 cities were incorporated in Oregon during the 1970s." Bend Bulletin

Oct 23: Osho applies for extension of stay in US to March 1, 1982, based on medical reasons.

Nov 1: The Oregonian editorial. "Rajneeshpuram would not be the first Oregon community settled by a religious, ethnic or cultural group, but all others were opened to settlement by outsiders long before revenue sharing. The community of interest in Rajneeshpuram is understandable: a group of people sharing one religion, a common lifestyle, and seeking to cultivate agricultural land that, until their settlement, was only marginally productive. In fact, that sounds like the way many cities throughout the United States got their start. In addition, many company towns have become cities. Before 1906, the Oregon Legislature incorporated cities. In 1941, the law was changed to allow formation of cities by 150 persons if they so desired."

Nov 4: About 250 people, including 26 Rajneesh disciples, crowded into the Wasco County Court House for 2 hour public hearing. By a vote of 2-1, The Wasco County Board of Commissioners voted to allow an incorporation election of Rajneeshpuram. The Oregonian, November 6. The Bend Bulletin described it as "the biggest crowd the second-floor circuit court room has seen in quite some time."

Nov 24: Osho applies for permanent resident status as a religious leader and teacher.

1982

Jan 1:Bend Bulletin lists Rajneeshpuram as the number 2 story of 1981.

Mar 11-17: Governor Vic Atiyeh, campaigning in Central Oregon, various negative comments reported, see Max for details.

Mar 27: Shots fired by four Prineville men at a sannyasin in Antelope, " an attack at the minority religion", according to the victim.

Apr 13: "Better dead than red" bumper stickers are pictured in the Bend Bulletin.

Apr 15: Over 100 media representatives present for Antelope disincorporation election, fails by a vote of 55-42. More media than voters. Bend Bulletin editorial says "vote was an outrage to Oregon."

May 1: Three sannyasins involved in a boating accident in John Day River, one dead, Sw Prem Ambara, (age 29, see work group shot here).

May 18: Rajneeshpuram incorporation election held. The vote is a resounding 154-0 in favor.

Jul 3-7: 1800 tents are up and $3 million spent to host 6,000 people from around the world for the First Annual World Celebration. Also mentioned are stories of Christians starting to get obsessed with Osho. (Lots of such stories in Max's timeline.)

Jul 24, Aug 30 Two stories of sannyasin firefighters assisting locals with summer wildfires.

Sep 6: Osho gives an interview with Kirk Braun.

Oct 14: Osho travels to Portland for an interview with the INS.

Dec 17: Census: Rajneeshpuram 600, Antelope 70. Ranch residents outside city, 100.

Dec 21: INS denies Osho's application for status as permanent US resident, on the grounds that he cannot be a religious leader since he is not speaking in public.

1983

Jan 2: Rajneeshpuram reports 700 residents. UPI mentions Rajneeshee story as one of the major events of 1982. The Bend Bulletin selects it again as the second biggest story of the year.

Feb 27: Sannyasins file one of many freedom of information act (FOIA) requests, which is delayed for 1.5 years and then denied.

Mar 15: Klamath Falls State Senator Fred Heard defended freedom of religion before a group of Bend Senior Citizens. "'I'm arguing a very unpopular stand,' said Heard. 'I'm arguing for freedom of religion.'" Bend Bulletin, March 16, 1983

May 18: Attorneys for Osho file rebuttal with INS, consisting of 3 videotapes, 51 photographs, 48 pages of brief, and 628 pages of evidence. "Rebuttal" of what is not 100% clear, presumed to be the last relevant INS entry, in Dec 1982.

Jun 10-23: Stories on an Oregon ballot initiative to "expel Rajneeshees", its ups and downs and ins and outs.

Jun 24: The Oregonian guest editorial by Dr. Ted L. Shay, professor of political science at Willamette University and father of Ma Amrit Roshani-to-be, recounts some of prejudices against Rajneeshees going beyond a legitimate fear of Jonestown.

Jul 4: Thirteen non-Rajneeshee residents remain in Antelope.

Jul 29: Three bomb blasts, one at 1:22 a.m. and two at 2:57 a.m., in the Hotel Rajneesh in Portland. One of the culprits, Stephen Paul Paster, age 34, from Los Angeles, is caught with hands blown off, but cannot get convicted.

Sep 7: Sannyasin Disco in Berlin firebombed. $70,000 in damages, but reopened 10 days later.

Oct 6: Oregon Attorney General Dave Frohnmayer files his church-state case against Rajneeshpuram and calls a press conference.

Oct 9 and Nov 1: Editorials in The Oregonian taking Dave Frohnmayer to task for a mediocre and possibly biased case against the incorporation of Rajneeshpuram.

Oct 23: 1202 residents in Rajneeshpuram.

Nov 25 - Dec 2: Bomb threats, shots fired, rock thrown through window are reported at various sannyasin enterprises.

Dec 18:1000 Friends' Rajneeshpuram Alert has been mailed to 500,000 households since September. Director Henry Richmond says the mailing has produced membership or donations from 3250 households and the membership is now 8,500.