Testimonial letter from Ma Prem Amitabha
This letter is one of a remarkable series of over 2650 letters amassed in 1983 to support Osho's attempt to get permanent resident status in the US at the time of the Oregon ranch. The image is reproduced here with the kind permission of The Oregon Historical Society. Information about their collection of these letters and other supporting material -- the "Jeffrey Noles Rajneesh Collection", named for Osho's immigration lawyer Jeffrey Noles, who compiled them in 1983 and donated them to the OHS -- can be found at this page. The wiki is grateful to the OHS for making access available for these documents. For more information and links to all the letters, see Testimonial letters.
This letter is from Ma Prem Amitabha. It is "Exhibit A-2081" in the Noles collection.
The text version below has been created by optical character recognition (OCR), from the images supplied by OHS. It has not been checked for errors but this process usually results in over 99% correct transcription. Most apparent "errors" are correct transcriptions of typos already in the original. The image on the right in the text box links to a pdf file of the original letter, it has one page.
 July 20, 1983 TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: It is my feeling that Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh should be granted permanent residency in America. He is enabling thousands of people worldwide in this search for understanding humanity. It is possible to find Bhagwan's books in bookstores across the country and particularly in campus bookstores; where the general population is there to learn. While I was attending the University of Maryland, though I learned a lot of useful information, studying kinesiological sciences, somehow nothing ever answered my deepest questions. Until I met Bhagwan, it is necessary only to read some of Bhagwan’s books to realize that He is speaking of truth. I have only recently arrived at Rajneeshpuram and seen Bhagwan personally. From the outside, it’s obvious that there is something special here. This is the only place I can remember that I’ve ever felt safe, or free from any worry of crime. Also, where else do people work happily from 7.30 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. every day of the year. Here people are truly free to be themselves. The higlight of every day here is Bhagwan’s drive through the town. I certainly can’t describe what happens as He passes by me; sometimes it really moves me: I feel like laughing or shaking, but usually I just feel very centered and peaceful. Really, it is necessary to come see Bhagwan to understand what a true spiritual leader is all about; you can read some of His books and see that He is truly an extraordinary teacher. Bhagwan is the inspiration of what is making Rajneeshpuram such a beautiful and safe place to live. Finally, I feel that everybody should have the chance to experience Bhagwan and what better country than America -the land of the free. My own inner growth is accelerated in His presence; I am learning more every day about humankind. It is important to me to understand humanity, because when I’m ready I want to help people particularly in the healing arts. My background at the University of Maryland gave me a good background in the physical aspects of man and right now Bhagwan is helping me to understand the psychological aspects. I feel that Bhagwan’s presence in America is a blessing to us all. Thankyou, |
(Please note: We assume that the above letter is still copyrighted, but we regard its historical interest to constitute a Fair Use exception for publication in this wiki.)
