Testimonial letter from Ma Prem Turiya

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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 Turiya (Prinzessin Wirke von Hannover/Trobe). It is "Exhibit A-856" 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.

Prinzessin Wirke Von Hannover/Trobe
Rajneeshpuram
Oregon 97741

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN

I am writing as a sannyasin and as the Princess of Hannover, a member of one of the oldest european royal families. I studied graphic arts and photography at the "Folkwangschule" in Germany, one of the best art Institutes in Europe. After that I was trained by various humanistic psychology therapists, such as Jim Simkins, Malcolm Brown and Stanley Kellermann, and was part of the foundation of "Zist" -in 1972, the first german center for humanistic growth and have led bioenergetic groups there under the guidance of Dr. Wolf Buntig. I lived 4 years as a staff member and groupleader in that Center and worked with Universities, psychology students, M.D. and other helping professions.

My first contact with Bhagwan happened in a bioenergy group led by Marianne Ingenhousf, a well known dutch bioenergy therapist in 1974.

Becoming his disciple in 1975 and being in the ashram in Poona changed my work as a therapist fundamentally. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh opened up in his lectures a whole new vision, where western humanistic psychology was and is very limited. He taught me to deal with the celebration that comes after you have completed, worked out your problems. He opened up an understanding on love and aloneness that I never had before, and that changed my work. His answer came in the lecture series: The Fish In The Sea Is Not Thirsty: "Aloneness is totally different. Aloneness is a flower, a lotus blooming in your heart. Aloneness is positive, aloneness is health. It is the joy of being yourself. It is the joy of having your own space. Yes, when you are in love, you feel aloneness. Aloneness is beautiful, aloneness is a blessing. But only lovers can feel it, because only love gives you the courage to be alone, only love creates the context to be alone. Only love fulfills you so deeply, that you are no more in need of the other - you can be alone. Love makes you so integrated that you can be alone and ecstatic. Love becomes the contrast: love and aloneness are two polarities of one energy."

The whole western approach is problem and neurosis oriented, while he constantly reminded us that we are buddhas and the orientation of his teaching was to open up that beauty, that divine in us. He gave me guidelines for the re-education of the heart that is very important to my work.

By his silent presence at Rajneeshpuram he is showing me every day, that there is a higher dimension, that is available to us. The main transformation in my work happens through love and celebration, and not through explaining or analysing somebody. Seeing him driving by I am filled up with love and beauty and that makes it possible to give it to the participants in the groups. This would not be possible for me without his silent presence.

In 1981, my husband Prince Welf of Hannover died of a berry aneurysm in Poona. Bhagwan gave me incredible support and insight in how to deal with death, that was not possible before I met him. He taught me to celebrate life and give my beloved husband a beautiful farewell - to sing, dance and celebrate his physical leaving. This event changed my life so profoundly, that I can say without him I would not have survived at all. He’s shown me the way out of darkness into the light.

Now I have been working all over in the world, in India, England, Germany, Holland, Italy and France. His silent presence inspires me to extraordinary work, his silent presence makes my heart overflow, my batteries are filling up, so I can go on giving this to people who come here looking for help from all over the world.

This community is my home. The people that live here are my family. I get the love and the support here that as a child I was always longing for, but was just not available from my own parents. There is an energy flow happening here, a happiness, a lightness, that I’ve found nowhere else in this world. To be able to live with a spiritual teacher of such knowledge and understanding of man and his complexities is an incredible gift for me, specially as a therapist, working with people.

Bhagwan has combined western psychology and eastern religion, like it has never happened before.

It is my own personal opinion that as a religious teacher he is unparalleled today in the world.

I sincerely believe that his silent presence and vast religious vision is offering America something very positive, culturally enriching and fresh in such a time of world strife.

We need him here!

Love,
[signed]
Ma Prem Turiya
(W.T. Prinzessin v. Hannover/Trobe)


(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.)