Testimonial letter from Sw Anand Kundan
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 Sw Anand Kundan (James H. L. Ewan). It is "Exhibit A-2056" 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, TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN This letter is in support of the petition to give a visa to Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh as a person of exceptional abilities in the Arts & Science. My reason for sending this recommendation is based on my own personal experience of Bhagwan's abilities to help people to go through a positive personal transformation on a level far beyond what can be found elsewhere in the world. I was born in 1945 and raised in the affluence of Southern California. My formal education culminated with my study of English literature at California State University at Los Angeles. I was not living on welfare, but I was not settled. At the end of 1975, I had had several jobs, was healthy and still looking. I had met many people who had impressed me as exceptional, but, they all would reach a point where their understanding stopped. It was at this time that I first came into contact with Bhagwan through one of his books. My first impression was that he understood what I had learned through my own experience and knew so much more beyond that. Six months later I was in Poona, India for my first visit. It is now seven years later. I have had His personal counsel, I have used the techniques that He has devised, I have been present at hundreds of his discourses and I have most importantly been in His presence. This time with Bhagwan has been interspersed with longer periods away from His physical presence, but, I have been remembering what I absorbed from him. What has been the transformation? My view of the world is still realistic, but, it is one of directing my energy in a positive way rather than grumbling or fighting. I now use the political system as a vehicle for expressing what I feel is needed for the benefit of this country and the world. I am now living in the present through a direction that I have found within myself. Through Bhagwan I have learned that what is needed next is only evident if you are fully involved in what is needed now. My present work is in construction and during the last few years I have watched this time and again. There are times when planning is needed and there are times when action is needed. Each of these is interrelated and on many levels. Each time you cut a board, you make one cut. Even if you are cutting fifty pieces the same, each cut is individual. This same awareness is required when I am coordinating a crew. There is the total crew to be concerned with, but, also each member is a distinct individual. That I am coordinating construction crews brings me to responsibility. Responsibility is a quality that has been expanding in myself immensely since my first contact with Bhagwan. Being more responsible for myself and my actions by being more conscious of myself and where my actions originate, I am also more able to respond genuinely and with increasing care for other people. All of this has been made possible with Bhagwan's help to enable me to understand and accept myself and therefore others and the rest of life. His understanding has never stopped. 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.)
