Bhagwan Rajneesh Dies At 58 -- Former Oregon Guru Had Been Living In India

CUTLINE: HARLEY SOLTES / SEATTLE TIMES, 1985: ARMED GUARDS PROTECTED RAJNEESH AFTER CITIZENS IN OREGON BEGAN TO RESENT THE COMMUNE.

CUTLINE: AP, 1985: FOLLOWERS LINED THE ROADS OF THE COMMUNE WHEN RAJNEESH DROVE HIS ROLLS-ROYCE ON HIS DAILY TOUR.

The Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, the guru who drew thousands of followers to central Oregon by preaching a blend of Eastern religion, pop psychology and free love, died today of heart failure. He was 58.

Rajneesh, known as Osho Rajneesh in recent years, died at his commune in the southern city of Poona, where he had lived since being deported from the United States in 1985.

``Osho left his body at 5:30 p.m. The doctors say it's heart failure,'' Swami Kirti, a spokesman, said in a telephone interview.

``I'm totally upset,'' said one Seattle follower, Manda, when told today of Rajneesh's death. ``You always know it's going to happen, but you are never prepared.''

Manda said she and a friend had just finished their meditations early today at the Suravi Meditation Center on Capitol Hill, a center devoted to Rajneesh's teaching.

Rajneesh was deported from the United States in 1985 after pleading guilty to violating federal immigration laws. His once-famous commune near the town of Antelope in central Oregon, the 64,000-acre Rajneeshpuram, was disbanded.

Rajneesh's Oregon commune was once home to more than 7,000 disciples before an internal power struggle fragmented the sect in 1986. His red-garbeddisciples were called sannyasins.

The commune, which was started in 1981, was controversial for several reasons, but especially because the guru fought local people for control of Antelope.

Reaction today from Antelope, the tiny Central Oregon town the sect tookover, was one of good riddance. The Rajneeshees moved in, took control of the town's council and nudged out many of the longtime residents, mainly ranchers and retirees.

John Silvertooth held the distinction of being the only non-Rajneeshee on the Antelope council after the bhagwan took over. He said he tried to work with the Rajneeshees but eventually was run out of town like many other longtime residents.

``The bhagwan's legacy around here is one of massive resentment,'' said Silvertooth, an attorney. Silvertooth began supplying information on the sect to federal investigators and the press but left town when he learned the Rajneeshees found out.

Deschutes County Circuit Court Judge Michael Sullivan was a Jefferson County district attorney when Rajneesh announced to the world that Sullivan was incorrectly diagnosed as having pneumonia two years before. Rajneesh said members of his sect had poisoned Sullivan.

Doctors were unable to trace remnants of the poison in Sullivan's system because of the time lag, but said he showed the same symptoms of Rajneesh's personal physician, who was poisoned.

``It's hard to mourn the passing of a con man and that's exactly what he was,'' said Sullivan. ``Oregon lost some of its innocence because of him. The things he was doing always happened somewhere else.''

At a Rajneeshee meditation center in Lake Oswego, Ore., a follower said she didn't believe the guru's death would change the devotion of his followers.

``We're going to still meditate and be with Osho. He's just left his body, that's all. His body has left, but the spirit is still there,'' said the woman, who asked not to be identified.

Rajneesh, whose followers in the United States had bestowed dozens of Rolls-Royces on their revered guide, was expelled from this country after it was determined he helped arrange sham marriages to protect foreign members of the sect from deportation.

Several of the sect's top officials, including Ma Anand Sheela, the guru's pistol-packing personal secretary, were imprisoned after the virtual shutdown of the ranch, which was found to contain a large cache of weapons and contingency plans for a range war with people of other faiths.

Sheela was imprisoned for attempted murder and other charges after pleading guilty to masterminding food poisonings that sickened more than 750 diners at restaurants in the town of The Dalles in northern Oregon. She was later deported.

-- Times staff reporters Richard Seven, Dee Norton and Carol M. Ostrom contributed to this report.