Building Utopia: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

War is looming between the Rajneeshees and a town of just 39 people — a “ghost town,” as Sheela calls it. Bhagwan’s followers are about to go to battle with the people of Antelope.

It’s the holiday season in Rajneeshpuram! We’ll explore the Rajneeshees’ three major holidays and see how they were celebrated during Bhagwan's first year in America. This culminates in the First World Festival in July 1982, which attracted 5,000 visitors and helped lay the foundation for the city of Rajneeshpuram. We’ll close by hearing Bhagwan’s thoughts on Santa Claus.

How do the Rajneeshees go about fulfilling their Master's vision of a new utopia on their ranch? We see what life was like for the hundreds of commune members who toiled from sun-up to sundown each day to make it happen. And later, we catch up with the big man himself. Bhagwan had entered into a silent phase before leaving India. So if he wasn’t talking… what was he doing in his secluded compound?

Bhagwan develops a bizarre — and potentially lethal — way to escape his silent isolation at Rajneeshpuram.

How could Sheela and Bhagwan establish their new commune in America when most of their members came from other countries? The answer rested in a sacred institution — one the sannyasins were not afraid to twist to their own advantage.

The Rajneeshees extend themselves into the community in an effort to sway public opinion and make some money. But now their enemies have easy access to them — a vulnerability that is violently exploited on July 29, 1983.

Sheela is given a new mission in 1984: win the Wasco County election, no matter what it takes. The plan she and her lieutenants put into place sets the state of Oregon into crisis mode, from the local politicians all the way to the governor's office.

What was it like to be a child living at Rajneeshpuram? In this minisode we’re joined by a special guest — a person who lived at the ranch as a teenager for nearly four years — who discusses his unique experiences living, learning, working, and loving at Rajneeshpuram.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains a discussion of child sexual abuse and statutory rape.

The largest bioterror attack on U.S. soil hits the sleepy town of The Dalles, Oregon, two months before a high-stakes county election. But it’s just a dress rehearsal for the bigger scheme that Sheela’s closest ally—an enigmatic nurse named Puja—has cooked up in her secret laboratory at Rajneeshpuram, amid her rat cages, incubators, and petri dishes.

Bhagwan, who once called organized religion "the corpse of religiousness," becomes the head of his own religion in 1983. But the Oregon Attorney General proves that "Rajneeshism" is the greatest existential threat the new commune has ever faced.

A quick update about upcoming episodes of Building Utopia, as well as an exciting new project!

NEW EPISODES! While external enemies mass against Rajneeshpuram, Sheela fixates on powerful disciples within the commune whom she believes pose an even greater threat. Her efforts to neutralize them lead to unintended — and catastrophic — consequences. Also, an update on my forthcoming book, "Rajneeshpuram: Inside the Cult of Bhagwan and Its Failed American Utopia," available for pre-order now!

In the summer of 1985, commune leaders begin plotting the assassination of people who oppose them. In this episode, we examine the events that led them to believe that murder was the only way to preserve their community and their master. Explosive public hearings, concerns about the commune’s arsenal of semi-automatic weapons, and a sprawling surveillance apparatus all contribute to a frenzied atmosphere of paranoia.