Although not a yoga travel retreat in the standard sense, the Osho ashram in Pune, India focuses on meditation and a little bit of Hatha yoga on the side. It’s hardly that we write negative reviews, nevertheless on this case we felt karmically compelled to tell. Should you’re searching for enlightenment, knowledge, wisdom, or discipline, avoid the Osho Meditation Resort. Should you’re searching for a warm community, look elsewhere. Should you’re seeking to throw away a hearty sum of cash, you’ve got come to the precise place.

Let’s back up for a moment. The Osho Meditation Resort has its positives. It unquestionably lives as much as its name as a yoga travel ‘resort.’ The zen-inspired pyramid structures amongst the green lushness of tropical India can are breathtaking. Nonetheless, behind the veil of beauty lies an unscrupulous cash-cow of a business. The Osho ashram is a business and nothing more. A fast Web search will show you that a overwhelming majority of reviewers agree. Being in Pune, we decided to see for ourselves.

A single room on the Osho guesthouse runs 3500 rupees per day (US $77). Compare this to the Bhakti-inspired yoga travel ashram at Amritapuri which asks for a mere 100 rupees per day. The guesthouse fee only covers boarding. The additional fees include:

* Orientation fee of 1500 rupees which incorporates a compulsory HIV test (??).
* Fee of 700 rupees each following day to take part in meditation.
* Robes that have to be purchased that conform to the mandatory dress code
* Essential mats and pads for meditation sessions. Unless you’ll be able to endure sitting on ice cold marble floors.
* Food vouchers. In our humble opinion, the one reason a business would use prepaid vouchers over money is the hope that some will go unused and add to the profit line. Not very zen.

Should you do the mathematics, in every week you might spend more at this “ashram” than your entire plane ticket to India.

As for the teachings of Osho himself, any amount of research will uncover stories of controversy. During his lifetime, Osho had been deported from the U.S., denied by over 20 countries, marked as an insatiable seeker of wealth, and dubbed the “sex guru.” His teachings, personally speaking, seemed empty and infrequently disrespectful to other gurus including Buddha himself. We will not comment on the yoga offered there as the category we tried to attend was cancelled and sticking around for the following one wasn’t in our cards.

India has a wealth of quality spiritual offerings. Avoid the Osho Meditation Resort. For a similar cost you might stay at any 5-star Hilton and experience a more fulfilling spiritual lesson from the concierge. We highly discourage our readers from this yoga travel locale.