News from Poona - Jun 15, 1981

The wiki has received copies of some dispatches from ashram / commune / resort authorities to inform the wider sannyas family as to "newsy" developments. The master page for these newsy items is Communiqués. This one is the second of three from late Pune One; it concerns the enormous news of Osho's having disappeared from Pune on Jun 1. (They say it was May 31.) A pdf image file of the original news release can be found here. The letterhead suggests it has been issued by the Press Office. Below is the text extracted from this doc.

ZEN HE WAS GONE

Ascending to the high seat, Dogen Zenjo** said: "Zen Master Hogen studied with Keishin Zenji. Once Keishin Zenji asked him, 'Joza, where do you go?' Hogen said, 'I am making pilgrimage aimlessly'. Keishin said, 'What is the matter of your pilgrimage?' Hogen said, 'I don’t know'. Keishin said, 'Not knowing is the most intimate'. Hogen suddenly attained great enlightenment." To listen to a Zen sutra is one thing; to be part of a living sutra is a totally different matter. And when on May 31 this year, a very familiar white-robed figure suddenly went away to an unknown destination, we all dived into a Zen sutra. Where had he gone? When was he coming back? What's going to happen at the ashram? When are we moving North? These and many more questions bubbled to the lips of several thousand sannyasins. And although it was certainly possible to try and find answers to at least some of these perplexing questions, greater fun was to be had in not knowing anything. The greater exhilaration was found -- by many of the people here -- to reside in the state of not knowing, to be thrown back on ourselves and our own aimless pilgrimage; to experience, at a time when the whole mind is burning with the desire for information, the unfamiliar joy of conscious ignorance. So it came to pass that, after May 31, the gossip-rating in the ashram actually fell back several points instead of soaring to new inquisitive heights. People got on with their work, went to morning satsang and indulged in the characteristic sannyasin pastime of finding new ways to celebrate. The latest, and surely one of the most unexpected, was waltzing elegantly to Strauss in Buddha Hall. This startling sight was witnessed on Sunday, June 7, at about 8 p.m. as Ma Prem Arup led off the first dance with Swami Anubhavo, a sannyasin from the group department who got the idea while cleaning in Chaitanya therapy chambers. The "ball" continued for several hours, and was followed shortly afterwards by another featuring the fox-trot, the tango and the rumba. What better way to celebrate? So while the Indian newspapers worked themselves into a frenzy of speculation about the ashram being wound up here, and springing up again in the North, the Master disappearing here, and reappearing somewhere else, the commune of beautiful people in Poona glided joyfully around the oval ballroom of Buddha Hall. In the outside world however, thousands of people were in need of information. In response to their inquiries, a circular letter from Rajneesh Foundation was sent out in May, announcing a move to the North, and this was followed in June by another: "Beloved Friend, Love. In view of our move we suggest that you postpone your visit for a few months. As Bhagwan is travelling He will not be available here for the time being. All our programmes will continue as scheduled until 1st July. For those who had already arranged groups or courses by mail, we will keep a record of the bookings, and once groups start again, and when you come, we can take care of it. His blessings, Ma Prem Arup" Meanwhile many sannyasins at the ashram have taken this opportunity to go back to their own countries to take care of their affairs, or have a holiday, and the numbers of sannyasins in Poona has dropped considerably . The overall impression here at the moment is of a sunburst of orange energy shooting out from Poona, with hundreds of people going back to their own countries and pouring their energy into the Buddhafields there. Added to this are several big events, like the Orange Full Moon Affair in Amsterdam on Guru Poornima Day (July 17), at which Ma Prem Arup, Swami Anand Somendra, Swami Chaitanya Hari and Swami Anand Harida will be present. This event will also mark the start of a brief tour by Arup of centres in Europe and America which are eager to share her organizational experience. Many of the ashram’s group leaders are also touring Europe, and Paras RMC in San Francisco has invited a special "mystery guest" from Poona to be present at their Guru Poornima celebration. Meanwhile, all the way round the other side of the world, the rapidly increasing numbers of sannyasins in Sydney, Australia, are busy organizing a major "Buddhafield" event that is due to explode there in the first week of September. Among those attending this three-day event will be Swami Prem Prasad, Swami Ananda Teertha, Ma Prem Aneeta, Swami Prem Anubhava and Swami Deva Indivar. Swami Krishna Prem, the ashram's sagacious Press Officer, will also be going along to explain the nature of meditation and celebration to millions of interested Australians. Meanwhile, in Poona, the dance continues. Take your partners please, for "The Orange Danube"....