Osho’s 90th Birthday at Osho Dham

Events

Largest celebration gathering in India attracts more than 400 sannyasins and friends, writes Kul Bhushan.

“Celebration is my religion,” says Osho. And on December 11, 2021, when he would be ninety years old if he were still in his body, his disciples and lovers did just that, with added verve and rapture.

Over 400 people gathered in luscious green Osho Dham on the outskirts of New Delhi to meditate, laugh, meet, hug, sing, and dance at this historic occasion.

Osho Dham reopened with new paint, better facilities, special decorations, and new lighting after being closed for nearly a year due to a covid lockdown. The open, huge meditation centre, surrounded by large fields and an endless sky, was infused with an air of bouncing joy.

Buddha and creation
Evening celebration
Glimpses of Osho 90th Birthday Celebration, December 11, 2021 at Osho Dham, New Delhi_01

The celebrations took off with gusto on the eve of Osho’s birthday when a colourful circular memento made of mild steel, towering eight feet high, was unveiled while a gathering of Osho sannyasins shouted his name joyfully, reaching out skywards with raised arms. This unique design of seven vibrantly coloured circles was created by the Master himself to portray the seven steps to samadhi, to enlightenment. Back-lit and mounted on one another, the circles keep getting larger until the seventh merges with a golden background, meriting the name, The Golden Future.

Meditation
Buddha Hall outside
Glimpses of Osho 90th Birthday Celebration, December 11, 2021 at Osho Dham, New Delhi_29
Glimpses of Osho 90th Birthday Celebration, December 11, 2021 at Osho Dham, New Delhi_06
Glimpses of Osho 90th Birthday Celebration, December 11, 2021 at Osho Dham, New Delhi_27

On the big day, the schedule started with Dynamic Meditation and followed with an Osho discourse. After a tea break, it was time to dance and sing enthusiastically, and that’s exactly what the ever-growing group did as they moved beyond the huge Buddha Hall. Spilling into the open-air court at the back of the hall, they celebrated under the sunny sky with gusto until it was time for a delicious special meal.

Glimpses of Osho 90th Birthday Celebration, December 11, 2021 at Osho Dham, New Delhi_02
Glimpses of Osho 90th Birthday Celebration, December 11, 2021 at Osho Dham, New Delhi_22
White Robe evening

Over twenty eager people were initiated into sannyas by Ma Dharm Jyoti at the evening White Robe assembly. The celebration music had everyone dancing with abandon to become one with the Master before they came up for their initiation. The euphoria lasted for about an hour, during which everyone was transported into a deep meditation of divine love.

I am in tremendous love with life, hence I teach celebration,” says Osho. “Everything has to be celebrated; everything has to be lived and loved.”

At Osho Dham, which witnessed India’s largest birthday celebration, his lovers certainly lived up to his words.

Quotes by Osho
  • Nansen: The Point of Departure, Ch 10
  • Come, Come, Yet Again Come, Ch 2, Q 2
Related links
  • The 90th birthday of Osho was celebrated by over 400 of his sannyasins and lovers at Osho Dham, Delhi: oshoworld.com
  • Unveiling of Golden Future the 8ft tall 400 Kg MS installation in Osho Dham:
    oshoworld.com
Kul Bhushan

Anand Kul Bhushan is a writer, journalist, UN media consultant and workshop/meditation leader.

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