Osho was born as Chandra Mohan Jain on 11 December 1931 in Kuchwada village of Madhya Pradesh. Subsequently, after enlightenment, he was known by many other names like Acharya Rajneesh, Bhagwan Sri Rajneesh, Osho,

He is the eldest of the 11 children of a Jaina cloth merchant. His father Mr. Babulal Jain, was a successful business man. His mother, Smt. Saraswathi Jain was an artist. As a child, he was rebellious and inquisitive of the conventional beliefs and rituals. He spent his early-childhood days, till he was 7 year old, in maternal grandparents’ house and was greatly influenced by his grandmother who was a wise woman
He started college in 1951, at the age of 19 at Hitkarini College, Jabalpur, but was asked to leave after conflicts with an instructor. He then completed his B.A. in Philosophy from D N Jain College, Jabalpur in 1955. Even here, having proved himself to be disruptively argumentative, he was not required to attend college classes, except for examinations. He then completed M.A. Philosophy from University of Sagar, in 1957 in distinction. As a college student, he was a national-level debate champion and a gold medal winner in the university
Soon after M.A., he joined as a lecturer at Raipur Sanskrit College, but the vice-chancellor there asked him to take a transfer as he considered him a danger to his students’ morality, character, and religion. Then he joined Jabalpur University and within 2 years, by 1960, he became a professor. A popular lecturer, he was acknowledged by his peers as an exceptionally intelligent man who had been able to overcome the deficiencies of his early small-town education. Following a controversial public speech in 1966, he resigned from his job upon request by the University. This put an end to his professional life as a professor of philosophy
sho declared that he became enlightened on March 21 1953, when he was 21-year-old. By this time, he began speaking in public at the annual “Sarva Dharma Sammelan” (meeting of all faiths) held at Jabalpur, organized by the Taranpanthi Jain community into which he was born. He continued his speeches here till 1968. However, 1960 onwards, he also started travelling throughout the country under the name Acharya Rajneesh, giving critical lectures on socialism and Mahatma Gandhi. He criticized orthodox Indian religions. All these made him controversial, but also gained him a loyal following that included a number of wealthy merchants and businessmen. In a 1968 lecture series, later published under the title “From sex to super-consciousness
Osho relocated to Mumbai (Bombay) in 1970. There he introduced his disciples to a new technique of meditation given by him called “Dynamic Meditation”. His travelling became rare now as he started giving lectures from his Woodlands Apartments in Mumbai. His contact with western visitors began here. He could not adjust to the humid climate in Mumbai as he developed multiple aliments like diabetes, asthma, and numerous allergies. Hence in 1974, he shifted to Pune (Poona). At Pune, he moved to a property at Koregaon Park, a six-acre land with two adjoining houses, purchased with the help of a Greek disciple. This place is still the heart of the present day “Osho Commune International”. This is the period during which Osho has given maximum spiritual discourses. He used to give 90 min lecture almost every day, alternating between Hindi and English every month. In the evenings, he would answer disciples’ questions. Many sannyasins were initiated. By late 1970s, ashram became too small as visitors increased rapidly. Then Osho asked for a larger place. Though some place in Gujarat was found by his disciples, it did not materialize due to mounting tensions between ashram and Murarji Desai Government
n 1981, the increased tensions around the Poona Ashram, along with criticism of its activities and threatened punitive action by the Indian authorities, provided an impetus for the ashram to relocate to USA. Osho and his secretary Sheela had discussed the idea of establishing a new commune in US in late 1980s. Finally, on 1 June 1981, he travelled to US on a tourist visa, ostensibly for medical purposes, and spent several months at a Rajneeshee retreat center located at Kip's Castle in Montclair, New Jersey. He had been diagnosed with a prolapsed disc and was treated by several doctors. Soon his secretary with the help of her husband, who was also a disciple, bought a huge land of 64,299 acres (260 km2) ranch for US $5.75 million, located across two Oregon counties (Wasco and Jefferson). Later, the ranch was named “Rajneeshpuram”. However, from day 1, problems persisted between the natives and ashram inmates. It became increasingly bitter and over the following years, the commune was subject to constant, coordinated pressure from various coalitions. At one point, the commune imported large numbers of homeless people from various US cities

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