Report a problem? Holding on to the teachings she picked up over the years, she aims to spend her life in service and now runs two nursing homes:Matrusaden (mothers home) and Bapusaden (fathers home), both of which offer shelter for the elderly suffering with mental illnesses. In 1985 she pleaded guilty to attempted murder and assault for her role in the 1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attack, it said. When Sheela left Bhagwan, she was accused of stealing the organisations funds. If there is anything truly enigmatic in Sheela, it is her enduring ability to look an interviewer in the eye and answer without hesitation, deviation or self-pity, but still appear to leave much unsaid. Select any of the newsletters below to "Subscribe" with your email address {0}. Join our discussions. And when the local residents looked on course to defeat the Rajneeshis attempt to win county elections, Sheelas group attempted to suppress opposition voters by making them sick with salmonella. Hoihnu Hauzel is a writer based in Delhi NCR. And I have no complaints about it, either, she tells Variety. But the psychologically healthy think that they're going to achieve enlightenment or be led to enlightenment" She breaks off and smiles. After her husband died, she married John Shelfer who was also a disciple of Osho. I called him my caveman, because if he saw me he would grab me, throw me over his shoulder and run away with me," she says, leaning back and shaking with laughter. Sheela in the large field outside a residential home he runs in Basel. My personal interest in Oshos philosophy waned in a couple of years mainly because of the hedonism present in the community and contradictions in his philosophy but my friendships continued. At the end of our day together, I feel like I've gotten to see a compassionate side to Sheela. After escaping imprisonment for her crimes, the 69-year-old now lives in Switzerland managing a nursing home. "I've never been interested in meditating," Sheela tells me, sitting cross-legged on a rug in her room, shifting quickly from one thought to the next without any warning. Thats all we know for now. "You can complain about it only when you can do something about it," she said, adding that it's the same passion which inspires her to start a sanitation drive in India. Thats a journalists dream but can be a family members nightmare. A ranch in Oregon in the US was purchased for close to $6 million and was renamed as Rajneeshpuram. Too late now. She was also Bhagwan's personal secretary and confidant. But Bhagwan was even bigger as an orator., She did not mind giving offense. "Bhagwan always got so angry when I told him that members thought they were now enlightened. Sheela was apprehended in Germany and extradited to the US, where, in 1986, she ended up pleading guilty to assault and attempted murder charges for the bioterror attack. It is good to be conscious of this event instead of denying it. She pointed to the many framed pictures of her past on the walls of her home. As we head upstairs to her room to chat, she leads me past patients' rooms and down corridors that smell of disinfectant. There are several vehicles in the car park and horses stabled at a vet on the other end of the road. She served three years in a California prison. Fireworks Ensued. The fine lines on her countenance reflected wisdom and her eyes glinted with the sparkle of many untold stories that I was holding my breath to hear. As I am a bit early for my appointment, I wander towards a mare and her foal. Ma Anand Sheela runs two nursing homes in Switzerland. They would call me up and say, Stop being rude with the media! And I would tell them, Dont give me advice, I have another adviser, and thats my bossBhagwan. It was during that time that the couple became disciples of Rajneesh and Sheela changed her name to Maa Anand Sheela. I was trained byBhagwanhimself to be quick and witty. The book refers to an incident when Osho suddenly asked Ma Sheela to get him 30 new Rolls Royce cars. Sheela Biernstiel - aka Ma Anand Sheela - has created a new life for herself in Switzerland as a carer for the mentally disabled, leaving behind her notoriety as the suspected mastermind. In 1986, she was convicted for attempted murder and assault for her role in the 1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attack . They could not understand what they were seeing me as on television. She was the one, who initiated the largest bioterror attack in American history causing health problems to 750 US citizens. When you are protecting a community and an asset likeBhagwan, you have to show your strength. It was bound to happen, wasnt it? she admitted to India Today. Sheela was released for good behaviour after serving just under three years of her 20-year sentence. Her work today is all consuming with a total of 29 patients in the two homes under her care. I also learned the value of time and to accept my own reality better. Director Shakun Batra pitches the film as tracking a character who is constantly under the weight of public scrutiny. As of 2018,. She wasnt hiding but nobody had made the link between Sheela the carer and the controversial Ma Anand Sheela of the Rajneeshpuram commune. Rajneeshees in Oregon -- The Untold Story: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh's former-aide, now running care homes for disabled in Switzerland, will not discuss her crimes. Below, we reveal five surprising things you probably never knew the star subject of Searching for Sheela, Sheela Ambalal Patel. The couple sealed the deal with an on-flight wedding ceremony while on their way to Mumbai, most likely while flying over Turkey. One of the homes is Wohnheim Matrusaden, perched on a hill that's surrounded by a forest,. He asked me if I was the same Rajneeshpuram Sheela and when I confirmed his hunch he changed his article from senior homes to me. Also known as Osho or Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, the Indian spiritual guru gained a following in Mumbai from 1970 onwards before relocating to nearby Pune where his followers built a retreat for him. Sheela, who had taken the title of Ma Anand Sheela after getting involved with Guru Rajneesh, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison but was paroled after just 39 months due to good behavior. A lot of mentally disabled people have a massive anxiety of dying. He is also a private detective for hire with an intimate knowledge of the SWI swissinfo.ch offers a selection of Swiss films in English chosen from the Swiss streaming platform Play Suisse. . Follow Us. I learned patience there. In an interview with The Guardian, Sheela (who is still alive, BTW) revealed that she never watched the entire Netflix series that she took part in. Ma Anand Sheela (alias Sheela Birnstiel) is an Indian-born American-Swiss. Tell us all about the making of the book. In that context, do you think she was used in some ways by her beloved Bhagwan? In it, Bhagwan said that Sheela "was not the perpetrator, but a victim". In 1984, the Rajneeshees Bused 3,000 Homeless People to Live in Their Oregon Compound. Barely out of her teens, the young Sheela quickly ascended the organization that followed Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh. Hundreds of people fell ill after eating salmonella and Sheela was accused of sprinkling the bacteria on the salad bars across many restraunts. Home By My Own . My parents and Bhagwan are prominent in my life. Now that you know about her life, clickhereto watch the new Netflix documentary. That means an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.". We'll send you a newsletter with what you need to know every week. I had had enough of him. Nevertheless, as she's shown in the past, she can be manipulative when it comes to her interactions with others. Jun 7, 2016 In her memoirs, By My Own Rules , Ma Anand Sheela bares all-her life, her lessons, her . A password reset e-mail has been sent to your address. She argues that shes served her time and, therefore, can no longer be considered a criminal. This angered Osho (Rajneesh), who broke the vow of silence and accused her of several crimes, which turned out to be true. Ma Anand Sheela wrote a book titled Rajneeshism, where she shares insight into the life of Osho and his perspective with people however, the name of the author has not been credited and the editor has listed it as Academy of Rajneeshism. 5000 copies of this book were burned at Rajneeshpuram. Inspired by her parents . "[Rajneeshpuram] Mayor Krishna Deva said during a recent 'Town Hall' forum that the disciples are considering ways to move their city underground before the inferno begins.". Not just running. I am proud to say his training comes in handy but this is my life's work. She also shared an interesting insight into her relationship with Osho (Rajneesh), Ma Anand Sheelas biopic was announced that would be produced by. And opposite my working desk, too. You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. No, Ma Anand Sheela confessed to Vogue. He asserted that Sheela was simply power-hungry. "Rich and famous people wanted to be seen with Bhagwan, to feel special, to sit in the front row, so to speak," Sheela scorns. Glamour may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. ", If sex was encouraged, having children was not. From childhood we were taught not to be afraid, to say your mind, say your truth, say your reality and stand your ground, she tells Variety. At the age of 18, Ma Anand Sheela studied at Montclair State College where she met Marc Harris Silverman, and fell in love with him, and got married eventually. It is now the comparatively sedate Southpark Seafood. Sheela shows me a profile of her father written in a book detailing Gandhi's inner circle. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories. There she now owns two nursing homes in Maisprach und Waldenburg. Sheela Birnstiel, formerly known as Ma Anand Sheela, or more simply Sheela, emerged as by far the most colorful character in the Duplass Brothers' " Wild Wild Country " documentary. Earlier, she denied the allegations and said that money must have been spent on Bhagwans luxurious lifestyle. For Bhagwan, it was not strong enough. Sheela is one of them. Now we have to move on.. I had read a book on Osho and was so blown away by it that I decided to visit his ashram. He was told that he had only two years to live by the doctors but, he lived well beyond the tenure that was mentioned by the doctors. Every hour of my existence now hasfragrance of Bhagwan's teachings that I have carried in my heart and my brains." I couldn't convince him to give it up, and because it was my job to protect him and I couldn't, I decided to leave the movement. Her answer to so-called cancel culture is to stand her ground and refuse to be canceled. He defended Tonya Harding in the Nancy Kerrigan case, and then-Mayor Sam Adams during the Beau Breedlove scandal. After his demise in 1980, she married John Joseph Shelfer, another American. When she wanted to see me in person, we I, along with my very supportive husband and children packed our bags and flew to Switzerland in June 2019. As a federal prosecutor, he brought charges against Sheela and the Bhagwan. When I ask Sheela about Bhagwan's then-partner, Vivek, and her terminated pregnancy, her mood suddenly changes. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed the news on February 19, revealing that Chopra Jonas will be starring as the terrorist behind the 1984 Rajneeshee attack in Oregon. The controversial Ma Anand Sheela served Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh in his Ashram in Oregon and then did 39 months in a US prison, accused of serious crimes. "With mentally ill people, you always know what you're going to get. After She eventually found a job as a housekeeper for an old couple in Basel. Her Wikipedia pageExternal link, that I had consulted earlier, does her no favours. People understand me from where they are from what is their understanding about themselves and their lives, they project it on me. I had to play the role. It was Sheela who organized the largest bioterror attack in U.S. history by infecting the salad bars at 10 local restaurants with salmonella, poisoning 751 individuals. Over the last many years, she has been living in Maisprach, Switzerland, where she runs two nursing homes for old people with problems such as dementia, something which was explored in. Twenty years ago, two Swiss villages were the scene of the mass deaths of 48 members of the esoteric Order of the Solar Temple cult. ", In Rajneeshpuram, however, her sex life was very different. There, she met and married Marc Harris Silverman from Highland Park, Illinois, and took up the name Sheela P. Silverman. It felt right because I was missing my parents very much. He died in India in 1990 at age 58, of congestive heart failure. I don't think his views were harsh or unfair.". Ma Anand Sheela rose to fame afterbeing spotlighted in the popular Netflix documentaryWild Wild Country,and with the excitement around Searching for Sheela'strailer, it's safe to say that she continues to be a topic of major interest around the world. Sheela was extradited from Germany where she had fled and was charged with attempted murder among other crimes. I am happy with both my legacies: with and without Bhagwan., More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative. She continues to claim that her guilty plea was only to protect the Bhagwan. Netflixs Searching for Sheela is an hour-long documentary wherein the controversial Ma Anand Sheela, one of the top aides/secretary of Indian mystic Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, aka Osho, seems to present her side of the story. Ma Anand Sheela and her husband Marc Harris Silverman purchased 64000 acres of land in Oregon (US) to establish a recreation center called Chidvilas Rajneesh Meditation Center for Rajneesh devotees to propagate his philosophy to the western world. You're running two nursing homes in Switzerland? That experience, combined with her time in Rajneeshpuram, convinced her that her true calling was looking after others. Elaborating on how she started her nursing homes, Sheela said that she rented a home and took in five elderly people. Ma Anand Sheela was sentenced to prison for 20 years for the convicted charges and was on parole for 39 months in 1986. Almost three decades later, she is still in love with Bhagwan and his teachings. It might have been a moment of pride, but scarcely hubris. People are punished because once they have served their sentencing the account is zero-zero. But for the uninitiated, she was thespokeswomanof the Rajneesh movement and the secretary of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh from 1981-1985. Produced by Dharmatic Entertainment, Searching for Sheela is easily one of the most anticipated documentaries of the year, and is all set to release on Netflix on April 22, 2021. He then went into private practicewith even more high-profile clients. I feel like an intruder when I enter her bedroom at her assistants bidding. It is my concept. 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