The inner journey

Osho International Meditation Resort, Pune, India

KS takes you to a place where spiritual nourishment combines with creature comforts to provide a total inner journey.

The hectic pace and the mechanization of life today are thoroughly exhausting for many people — and when mind and body are tired, you naturally start searching for peace and silence.

This desire for tranquility has created a number of getaways, retreats and even resorts. The Osho International Meditation Resort at Pune, India, features large among these holiday spots. It is becoming well known as a place for inner transformation — “a paradise on earth” say its fans, “where the music of life flows incessantly”. The appeal of Osho stems from the fact that it has been created by meditators and creative people who have been influenced by the man who gave his name to the resort.

The Osho Meditation Resort is situated in a lush 40-acre campus with white marble pathways, elegant black buildings and gorgeous landscaped gardens. “It is,” say its creators, “a tropical oasis where timeless nature and the 21st century blend seamlessly in a perfect setting where you can take time out for yourself.”

Osho defies categorization, reflecting everything from the individual quest for meaning to the most urgent social and political issues facing society. Osho has been described by the Sunday Times in London as one of the “1,000 Makers of the 20th Century” and by Sunday Mid-Day in India as one of the ten people — along with Gandhi, Nehru and Buddha — who have changed the destiny of India.

Osho has a stated aim of helping to create the conditions for the birth of a new kind of human being, characterized as “Zorba the Buddha” — one whose feet are firmly on the ground, yet whose hands can touch the stars. He is synonymous with a revolutionary contribution to the science of inner transformation and an approach to meditation which specifically addresses the accelerated pace of contemporary life.

The unique Osho Active Meditations are designed to allow the release of accumulated stress in the body and mind so that it is easier to be still and experience the thought-free state of meditation.

When you visit the Meditation Resort you set your pace and agenda by choosing if you want to do something or would rather rest — or just simply be. You can also learn the Osho Active Meditations, which are techniques specifically designed for “our contemporary over-charged minds and stress-impacted bodies”.

Meditations are held from 6am to 11pm in the Osho Auditorium, a huge air-conditioned hall with all modern amenities.

This vast soundproof pyramid, with space for five thousand people to sit together, may well be the only one of its size in the whole world which is used for meditation. To go inside you need to walk over a bridge, and it seems as if the structure itself is emerging out of the water; this is to remind you to “drop your mind” before entering.

Besides the Auditorium, there are more mysterious pyramids on the other side of the Resort. And a big open-air expanse of marble, known as Buddha Grove and surrounded by tall bamboo trees, provides the space for a number of classes like Tai Chi,

Chi Gong, archery and painting from 7:30am. There are also dance meditations there in the afternoon and evening.

Meditation is the core of all activities at the Resort. It runs through everything like an undercurrent; the objective being to fill every nook and cranny with peace and calm. In addition, the eco-friendly atmosphere, health-conscious way of living, world-class food and festive music provide a background lively enough to suit the need for positive activity. Combining celebration with meditation is unique to the Osho vision. Zorba and Buddha are inseparable buddies here, and so discos, variety shows, poolside parties, waltz and Indian stick dances are organized frequently to add color and sparkle to the nightlife. Osho aims to be a Wellness Center — of the inner and the outer — in the true sense of the word.

The Resort also houses the Osho Multiversity, the largest center in the world for personal growth processes. All the current Western therapeutic approaches, the healing arts of East and West, esoteric sciences, creative arts, centering and martial arts, Tantra, Zen, Sufism, and Meditative Therapies are offered. You can also learn new life-skills, tools to take home that will help you remain relaxed even in the busiest of workaday environments. There is a stunning selection of individual sessions and classes to nourish your body-mind and soul as well as longer workshops, courses and professional trainings. All the methods have meditation both as their base and their objective.

Aside from the meditation, the plush Osho Guesthouse is of itself an attraction to the resort. As the tastefully decorated, quiet rooms are almost on top of the Auditorium, it makes attending Dynamic Meditation at 6 in the morning no chore.

There are 60 rooms, all with double beds, air conditioning, and attached bathrooms. Four of them are designed to accommodate people with physical difficulties.

You can book your room online at guesthouse@osho.com. There is a special Amazing Weekend Package offered till Oct 31st which makes “the five star facilities available at three star rates”: two nights and three days for one person $184 (Rs 8,250/-) for double $268 (Rs 12,050/-).

This includes registration fees, food, two robes, meditation sessions, health club facilities (including the Olympic-size swimming pool), Buddha Grove classes and evening celebrations.

The food is both Indian and international and strictly vegetarian. From Italian pastas and pizzas to Japanese sushi and miso soup, to Indian cuisine, a surprising array of dishes is displayed in the extensive kitchen serving area. Fruit and veggies are organically grown and prepared in state-of-the art kitchens, and all food and drinking water is tested by the resort lab twice a day.

You will find this oasis of wellness and meditation in the affluent area of Koregaon Park, Pune, Maharashtra, and very easy to reach from the Pune airport or railway station.

Text: Amrit Sadhana • Photos: Courtesy OIMR