{"product_id":"rajneeshpuram-inside-the-cult-of-bhagwan-and-its-failed-american-utopia-9781641609029","title":"Rajneeshpuram: Inside the Cult of Bhagwan and Its Failed American Utopia","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"Russell King has written the most definitive account of this grand American saga. \u003ci\u003eRajneeshpuram \u003c\/i\u003eis rich storytelling.\" \u003c\/b\u003e--Chapman and Maclain Way, directors of\u003ci\u003e Wild Wild Country\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In 1981, ambitious young Ma Anand Sheela transported the Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh to the United States to fulfill his dream of creating a utopia for his thousands of disciples. Four years later, the incendiary Rajneeshpuram commune in Oregon collapsed under the weight of audacious criminal conspiracies hatched in its inner sanctum, including the largest bioterrorism attack in US history, an unprecedented election fraud scheme, and multiple attempted murders. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eRajneeshpuram\u003c\/i\u003e explores how this extraordinary spiritual community, featured in the Netflix docuseries \u003ci\u003eWild Wild Country\u003c\/i\u003e, went so wrong. Drawing from extensive interviews with former disciples and an exhaustive review of commune records, government and police files, and archival materials, author Russell King probes the charismatic power that Bhagwan (later known as Osho) and Sheela exercised over the community and the turbulent legal and political environment that left commune leaders ready to deceive, poison, and even murder to preserve their home and their master. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRajneeshpuram\u003c\/i\u003e is a fresh examination of the Rajneesh story, using newly available information and interviews with high-ranking disciples who have never before shared their stories.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eRussell King\u003c\/b\u003e is a writer, investigator, and attorney. In 2018 he created the podcast \u003ci\u003eBuilding Utopia: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh\u003c\/i\u003e, which explores the history of Bhagwan and his disciples using an immersive narrative nonfiction approach. A former partner at an international law firm, King draws on his experience piecing together factual narratives based on contradictory evidence to tackle this rich and complicated history.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Chicago Review Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50568516501778,"sku":"9781641609029","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_316bf979-55f3-447b-b097-1f69afa55b06.jpg?v=1744215523","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/rajneeshpuram-inside-the-cult-of-bhagwan-and-its-failed-american-utopia-9781641609029","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}