Bhagawati’s review of Neeten’s latest book.
Neeten is widely known for his detailed work and devotion in regards to the archive of Osho’s written legacy in English and Hindi.
Best known among his papers so far is the comprehensive study ‘Osho Lao Tzu Library’; however, after years of research he has now completed the all-inclusive ‘Osho Source Book’ and made it freely available (PDF format) to all interested in Osho’s life and work.
It represents Osho’s formative years from early childhood’s socialization through his meetings with religious traditions to academic years in Jabalpur and his time in Bombay with the first Westerners arriving. As Neeten points out, “The emphasis in this bio-bibliography is on those early days when Indians were his followers and Hindi the language for the initial transmission of his message.” For the first time those phases are presented to a global audience.
Osho is portrayed in his cultural and political context as a figure in a wide Indian landscape, and this extensive biography shows among its focus points his voracious reading, his book collecting and the conveying and publishing of his vision.
Osho’s very first publications are presented in the Bibliography up to 1974, and Osho’s many discourses may be read and understood in an inter-textual universe, where he is presenting primary canonical texts from all major religions and embedding these texts in a new context to his listeners. Appendix, Notes and References offer many insights into his early life and lecturing. The entire work is based on Osho’s own words, the many biographies and two decades of field work in India.
This is an incredible meticulous work with a wealth of previously not or rarely published information about Osho’s life from 1931 to 1974 (from Gadarwara to Jabalpur to Bombay – until leaving for Poona), and includes 150 photographs.
In his postscript, Neeten says: “What happened to Osho after he left Bombay in 1974 is indeed an adventure story which has been covered in depth by numerous writers and scholars since the 1970s, and in due time we intend to follow up on Osho Source Book. Thus we will present Osho’s entire publishing in a bibliography with a framework of events which in certain parts might be subtitled a ‘spiritual thriller’.”
With gratefulness to you, Neeten, for your dedication and impeccable presentation!
Related article Osho Lao Tzu Library
Anand Neeten is a retired Assistant Professor at the Royal School of Library and Information Science in Denmark. He took sannyas in 1981 and travelled India widely for years, visiting crucial hubs where Osho had lived or visited, met with local sannyasins and people who knew Osho personally, and interviewed all of them at length. He lives with his wife Susen in Skagen, Denmark. www.pierreevald.dk
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