‘Wild Wild Country’: Ma Anand Sheela Is Still ‘So Devoted’ to Bhagwan Rajneesh Despite His Betrayal
Ma Anand Sheela’s life and actions continue to fascinate the world. The intriguing woman became a follower of the Indian mystic and guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh when she was 21.
Sheela rapidly became one of his closest aides, first as his secretary and later as his lover and the official spokesperson of the Rajneesh Movement. Wild Wild Country, a wildly successful 2018 Netflix documentary series, recounts her experience.
Surprisingly, nearly 40 years after Rajneesh’s betrayal, Sheela is still devoted to him. Here’s why.
Rajneeshpuram: A cult or way of life?
Wild Wild Country tells the tale of Rajneeshpuram, a commune founded by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh in ’80s-rural Oregon. Throughout six episodes, filmmakers Chapman Way and Maclain Way speak with members of the commune, law enforcement officials, and locals of the nearby small town of Antelope, Oregon.
Before his death in 1990, spiritual guru Rajneesh gained tens of thousands of followers in India and the West. In 1981, Rajneesh, with the support of Sheela, who eventually became his personal assistant, purchased a property outside the small town of Antelope, Oregon. He moved his cult there, establishing a new town he named Rajneeshpuram.
For seven years, Sheela used her considerable talents to build Rajneeshpuram. It covered 64,229 acres and included a fire department, police force, restaurants, malls, townhouses, an airstrip, a public transportation system using buses, a sewage reclamation plant, a reservoir, and a post office with a ZIP code.
When members of the commune moved to Oregon, the Antelope locals did not welcome them with open arms. There was instant friction between the “free sex” Rajneeshees and the “conservative” Antelope residents.
Conflicts escalated at Rajneeshpuram, leading to attempted murder and mass poisoning. Wild Wild Country is a compelling account of the story’s progression. The Netflix documentary utilizes archival film and in-depth interviews with Sheela, who effectively ran the commune.
Ma Anand Sheela was sentenced to 20 years in prison
At the height of the Rajneeshpuram saga, Sheela was accused of orchestrating a bio-terror attack, which resulted in the Salmonella poisoning of 751.
Rajneesh himself blamed Sheela for everything. He accused her of bioterrorism, murder conspiracy, and the theft of almost $500,000 from the Rajneesh Foundation. According to the spiritual guru, everything that had gone wrong for the community was Sheela’s fault. He said he was utterly unaware of these wrongdoings.
Sheela admitted her guilt in the bio-terror incident. She received a 20-year prison sentence. However, after 39 months in jail, she was released on parole.
Upon the fall of Rajneeshpuram, Rajneesh relocated to India. There, he reinvented himself as Osho. His spiritual teachings expanded, and he developed several new meditation techniques and exclusively Zen-focused talks.
Sheela is still devoted to Bhagwan Rajneesh despite his betrayal
Even though Rajneesh abandoned Sheela and branded her a “perfect bitch,” she says the spiritual guru will always be significant to her. She said to The Guardian, “How can one’s opinion change because someone said something negative about me? I love the man. I still love him.”
Sheela also hates it when people refer to Rajneeshpuram as a cult. According to her, the commune gates were always open. Residents could leave if they so wished. To Sheela, dismissing something as a cult is condescending — the same as if a racist assumed everyone with dark skin was a bad person.
Talking about her experience with Rajneesh, Sheela maintains that she doesn’t feel duped. “I was there because I wanted to be there, and I would do it again. It was a very powerful creative project,” she said.
These days, Sheela, who is 72 years old, is known as Sheela Birnstiel after adopting the surname of her late husband, Urs Birnstiel. She’s lived in Switzerland for the past two decades. There, she runs two facilities for the elderly and disabled.
