Testimonial letter from Ma Prem Madir
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 Madir. It is "Exhibit A-1887" 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 2 pages.
 P.O. Box 10, Rajneeshpuram To whom it may concern For years I was aware that my life was not satisfying. I was on an outward search for happiness. Somehow, even though short pleasures seemed to work, always underneath was a darkness, and a knowing that something was missing. I joined with different meditation groups and more was found, there was a taste of the journey inward toward myself, but each adventure ended and I knew still there was more to come. And then I left my childhood country and went to America with my husband whom I had met and married in England, this was in 1977. And there I met Bhagwan! I was meeting sannyasins (Rajneeshees) and going to do therapy groups at a center in San Francisco. Very soon I realized these were no normal therapy groups. Bhagwan was present through his disciples, his books, his videos and tapes and photographs and the feeling of love and acceptance and Joy and laughter was overwhelming. And gradually these feelings became more and more available to me (or rather I became more available to them) and I learned that I could start daring to be myself. Since that time I have never looked back, never regretted that choice. My life has opened into new dimensions as I grow in Bhagwan’s love, and learn to trust existence and live my life with more joy, more laughter, less seriousness. And now my family is enormous and each one of Bhagwan's lovers is my brother, my sister, and the love and support that happens as a result of us all being in love with the same master is phenomenal. I have seen the work of artists and poets. However, this man is an artist of the very highest degree. He is a man of exceptional ability. Through his love, his compassion, his brilliance, his wisdom, his wit, he is changing the lives of thousands all over the world. His discourses are all recorded on videotape, audiotape, and in books, and the sale of these is increasing rapidly as more and more people want to receive his teachings. Major bookstores such as Daltons and Waldens are ordering Bhagwan’s books regularly and stocking them in hundreds of their branches all over the country. Now he is not speaking to us through words. He is communing to our hearts through silence and the teaching becomes deeper as we learn to drop our unnecessary mind chatter and listen to his silence with our moments of silence. It is extraordinary what can happen as we learn to allow these silent spaces in our being. Tremendous energy gathers and comes out in the expression of our work, which we call our 'worship'. This is why such miraculous things are happening in this previously dry arid desert area in the Oregon mountains. It is being rapidly transformed into an oasis of love and harmony. Silence works wonders. This man, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, is the inspiration of all this creativity. His love inspires us to go beyond our limits and create the most incredible home. So enormous is the enthusiasm and the feeling of unity amongst all sannyasins, that we were able to make it possible, miraculously, for 15,000 of Bhagwan's lovers to come from all over the world to share in the summer second annual world celebration. Another incredible work of art. I hope the time is here that America awakens to the enormity of the honor it is that this incredible being Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh has landed here. He wants to be on American soil. America should rejoice. This is an extraordinary happening. This man is the most beautiful man walking on the earth. His lovers know it, and thousands of professionals in all the areas of the arts and the sciences know it and many more are daring to come to know it. My worship is in the Rajneeshpuram Post Office. Before I became a sannyasin I could not hold down a job for more than a few months as I always got bored. Now I have been doing the same kind of work for 2 years, and my work is my worship, my love. I am totally happy in it, and certainly owe this change in me to Bhagwan’s genius. Each day he drives by in silence and my heart understands I make a mistake then I look inside myself and in the silence my heart understands. I watch the lightening in the sky over his house, something is understood. I chatter a little less, allow that silent space for God to enter, and a little more is understood. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh is what this country needs, and this blessed country has him living here - unbelievable!! Very sincerely, |
(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.)
