Testimonial letter from Sw Prem Vikas
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 Prem Vikas. It is "Exhibit A-1522" 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.
 Swami Prem Vikas TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN I am writing to support the exceptional application of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh to remain in this country. I am an attorney at law, having been admited to practice in New York State in 1967. I hold a Juris Doctor degree from New York University. My varied legal experience has included positions with the United States Department of Justice as a trial attorney and with the General Electric Company as counsel to a Division and several large Departments. In relation to the law and its practice, it is clear that Bhagwan is a person of exceptional ability as a religious teacher and spiritual leader. Bhagwan's outstanding contributions are happening in many ways. Bhagwan teaches meditation and growth of awareness. I have found that being more meditative and aware affects a profound advance in handling day to day legal issues as well as the formulation of laws. Understanding what needs to be done, and doing it, becomes much easier using Bhagwan's teachings. Another tremendous contribution of Bhagwan is manifest in the Rajneesh Neo-Sannyas Commune at Rajneeshpuram, Oregon. This Commune is a model of a beautifully functioning legal Government unit. The simple but essential teachings of Bhagwan have made the commune flourish. His teachings of love, meditation, awareness and communal living have fostered the growth of the commune with a minimum of laws. The message is clear that a very different and less cumbersome legal system is possible when the exceptional teachings and abilities of Bhagwan are available. There is no question that Bhagwan does communicate through his silence to the people there. At this stage in his teachings, heart to heart communication in silence is used. This communication is strongest during the Festivals held at Rajneeshpuram. Bhagwan meditates with us during these times. He also greets us daily during his drive through the Ranch. However, even when he is not directly in view his presence at Rajneeshpuram is felt constantly. Another thing must be clearly understood. Bhagwan's presence with his disciples at Rajneeshpuram creates a remarkable source of energy and love. It inspires more beautiful and long "worship" (this is how work is viewed) than I would have thought possible. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh is offering a great gift to this country by wishing to stay here. The United States should welcome it with willingness. 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.)
