Testimonial letter from Ma Prem Arup

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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 Arup. It is "Exhibit A-98" 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 3 pages.

AFFIDAVIT OF MA PREM ARUP

I, Ma Prem Arup, being duly sworn, do depose and say as follows:

This Affidavit is to testify to Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh's exceptional ability as a religious teacher.

1. I am an Acharya of Rajneeshism, appointed on March 22, 1978. I am director of the Rajneesh Institute for Spiritual Therapy at Rajneesh International Meditation University, Rancho Rajneesh.

2. I became a neo-sannyasin in July 1974. For the next few years I regularly practiced Bhagwan's active meditation techniques. During the years I was in Poona I attended most of Bhagwan's discourses and His evening Darshans. He often gave me religious guidance, including meditation techniques. I attended the morning Satsangs after Bhagwan entered His silent phase.

3. I participated in work/worship at the Shree Rajneesh Ashram in Poona, learning to guide other spiritual seekers toward finding suitable meditation and inner growth programs, helping would-be sannyasins prepare for initiation, and being trained to help seekers find their feet on their spiritual journey.

4. In my capacity as Acharya, I perform marriages, neo-sannyas initiations and give spiritual counseling to many visitors and neo-sannyasins. I have officiated at Rajneesh celebrations around the world, including the Orange Full Moon Affair in Amsterdam in July 1981, the Orange Connection in Berlin in November 1981 and several others My extensive travels in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia have shown me firsthand Bhagwan’s worldwide impact as a religious leader. In dozens of countries I visited, He is recognized, revered, loved and respected by Rajneeshees and non-Rajneeshees alike. His meditation techniques are widely practiced and the eagerness with which His spiritual guidance is sought clearly demonstrates that the scope of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh’s religious leadership is truly international. He is such an exceptional teacher, such an exceptional personality, that even on videotape, people are touched by Him.

5. In the past year, I have seen many people come to visit Bhagwan in Central Oregon, seeking His spiritual guidance. I helped organize the First and Second Annual World Celebrations and I personally spoke with thousands of festival participants. Many came to me with personal, spiritual questions, seeking Bhagwan's guidance. I relayed their questions to Bhagwan's Personal Secretary. When I received Bhagwan’s reply, I passed it to the questioner, often translating it into their native language for greater clarity. I observed the profound effect Bhagwan’s guidance had on these individuals. In my opinion, Bhagwan is the most insightful man I have ever met. His capacity to provide each person who comes to Him with insight into and understanding of their situation and their potential for spiritual growth is remarkable.

6. As an Acharya and as Director of the Rajneesh Institute for Spiritual Therapy, I have observed in the past year that thousands of participants have been benefited by the meditation programs and therapies created by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh. Many participants have told me that they feel profoundly affected and greatly benefited by Bhagwan's teachings and by His presence. They have also told me that the effects of participating in the Institute's programs and of being in Bhagwan's presence have tremendously improved their relationships with families, and with their work and social environments. I have observed that after even a few days of meditation and living within the (?)limate of Bhagwan's teachings at Rajneeshpuram, many participants are visibly changed. I have seen that their inner joy has surfaced and they literally exude a shining aliveness that was not there before they came. Many staff members of the Institute have also told me that Bhagwan's presence has inspired them to create the best spiritual therapy programs imaginable and that they have witnessed remarkable transformations in program participants.

7. Before coming to Bhagwan, I was the director of two institutes of human growth and learning in the Netherlands - the Netherlands Gestalt Institute and "Center," an organization for humanistic growth potential. I have learned from many outstanding teachers in the field of humanistic psychology and I can categorically state that Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh is an exceptional man in every way. He has the most profound insight into human nature and has the ability to help people from all races, nationalities, cultures and religious backgrounds to transcend all that is destructive in human nature and to develop their potential toward all that is beneficial to mankind. To have Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh residing in the United States means the increased happiness, well-being and spiritual upliftment of thousands of individuals who benefit from His teachings and presence. The foregoing is within my personal knowledge and if called as a witness I would testify competently thereto.

Dated this 26th day of September, 1983.
[signed]
Ma Prem Arup, D.Litt. (RIMU),
Acharya
[notary stuff]


(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.)