Written by Garima Mishra | Pune | Updated: April 28, 2017 1:45 pm

Sometime in the mid-1970s, during a meeting with the spiritual guru Osho Rajneesh, superstar Vinod Khanna asked him, Abhinay mein kaise safal ho sakte hain? (How can one succeed in the acting world?) To which Osho replied, Jeevan ko aise jiyo jaise wo abhinay hai aur abhinay aise karo jaise wo jeevan hai. Phir tum dono mein safal ho jaoge. (Live life as if you are acting and act as if its your life. Then you will succeed in both. These and many such words of wisdom stayed with the late actor and left a great impact on him. From the time he came in contact with Osho, the actor gradually came to shed his celebrity status and never behaved like a star, said Swami Chaitanya Keerti, editor, Osho World magazine.

Khanna was initiated into Oshos neo-sanyas in the late 1970s. He would frequently visit the Osho Ashram (Osho International Meditation Resort) on weekends after wrapping up his film shoots and indulge in meditation. In 1975-76, he even stayed there for a long time. Though initially when he started visiting Osho Ashram in Pune, he was an introvert, seeking answers about life. Gradually, with deep meditation and sharing knowledge with Osho and other fellow travellers at the ashram, he was at peace with himself and transformed completely, said Keerti, adding that at the ashram, he was friendly, easygoing and someone who laughed a lot and didnt carry his star status with him. At the gate of the ashram, the auto-rickshaw drivers would often stop him, requesting an autograph or a photo, and he would happily oblige them, he adds.

In 1982, when Khanna was at the peak of his film career, he shifted to Rajneeshpuram at Oregon in the US to be with his guru. As per the tradition of the ashram, all the disciples were assigned a task which they were supposed to perform daily. And Khanna, who was named Swami Vinod Bharti by Osho, was given the job of a gardener and had to look after the upkeep of the garden that involved watering, pruning, trimming, planting etc.

Vinodji meditated deeply and worked as a gardener in Oshos garden till 1985. Work itself became his meditation, his worship. He flowered into a spiritually evolved human being and a kalyan mitra to fellow travellers on the spiritual journey, sharing his insights and wisdom, said Keerti.

Later, even after Khanna joined politics and became the Member of Parliament, he did not lose touch with the thoughts and philosophy of Osho. Till two years ago, he would often visit Osho Nisarga, situated in Dharamsala in the Himalayas. Deep within his heart, he remained a sanyasi throughout his public life, says Keerti. Among many of Oshos discourses, the one that influenced Khanna deeply talked about devoting oneself to sakshibhav (witnessing consciousness) and shraddhabhav (trust). Such was the impact of the discourse that Khanna went on to name his son and daughter Sakshi and Shraddha, respectively.

Keerti said that after Khanna stopped coming to Osho Ashram, people would often question him if he had quit following Osho, and he would show them the wooden bead mala given to him by Osho, which he always wore. He would tell them what Osho told him once, The whole world is meditation.

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Khanna was Swami Vinod Bharti, a gardener, at Osho ashram in the US - The Indian Express