Some idolized him, others despised him and for the rest, he was an uncanny figure who, despite being probed much into, still seemed incomprehensible. Also known as Acharya Rajneesh, Osho was born in Kuchwada, a hamlet in Madhya Pradesh. He majored in Philosophy from D.N. Jain College in Jabalpur and went on to pursue his post-graduation in the same field from the University of Sagar. Osho’s biography is not limited to the mysticism that the world knows him for today, he worked as a professor of Philosophy for around nine years.
Osho’s Biography
| Full name | Chandra Mohan Jain |
| Date of birth | 11 Dec 1931 |
| Birthplace | Bhopal, British India |
| Father | Babulal |
| Mother | Saraswati |
| Occupation | Godman, mystic |
| Education | M.A. in Philosophy |
From Academia To Mystical Spirituality
However, from an early age, he was fascinated by mystical spirituality and did intense experiments with various meditation techniques. Even when he was working as a professor, he traveled widely, challenging the old-age religious beliefs and addressed large public gatherings. Since then, his life was no short of controversy.
Having already amassed substantial followers, by 1966 when Osho left his job at the university, even westerners started to attend his teachings. The Dynamic Meditation technique wherein practitioners breathe chaotically to throw off their accumulated stress and jump around followed by a period of silence and stillness, was introduced by Osho. It has been widely adopted by psychotherapists and doctors around the world.
From India To The USA
Some of the Ashrams that he set up include the Jivan Jagruti Kendra Foundation and the Pune Ashram. His aim was to replace the idea of family with community and religion with meditation and personal experience. By 1980, the community that he created, was known as “the world’s finest growth and therapy center”. While some described Osho’s Biography as ‘extraordinary’ and ‘remarkable’, there were others who found his teachings ‘highly disturbing’. However, his influence was so far-reaching that the ‘city of Rajneeshpuram’ was incorporated in the state of Oregon.
As tumultuous as Osho’s rise had been, his downfall was equally tragic. Despite the seemingly obscene meditation techniques that he was known to encourage, there are thousands of people who still cite his way of teaching as revolutionary.
