Building Utopia: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

The full weight of United States law enforcement finally lands on Bhagwan, Sheela, and their community.

In the summer of 1985, commune leaders begin plotting the assassination of people who oppose them. In this episode, we examine the events that led them to believe that murder was the only way to pres…

NEW EPISODES! While external enemies mass against Rajneeshpuram, Sheela fixates on powerful disciples within the commune whom she believes pose an even greater threat. Her efforts to neutralize them …

A quick update about upcoming episodes of Building Utopia, as well as an exciting new project!

Bhagwan, who once called organized religion "the corpse of religiousness," becomes the head of his own religion in 1983. But the Oregon Attorney General proves that "Rajneeshism" is the greatest exis…

The largest bioterror attack on U.S. soil hits the sleepy town of The Dalles, Oregon, two months before a high-stakes county election. But it’s just a dress rehearsal for the bigger scheme that Sheel…

Sheela is given a new mission in 1984: win the Wasco County election, no matter what it takes. The plan she and her lieutenants put into place sets the state of Oregon into crisis mode, from the loca…

The Rajneeshees extend themselves into the community in an effort to sway public opinion and make some money. But now their enemies have easy access to them — a vulnerability that is violently exploi…

How could Sheela and Bhagwan establish their new commune in America when most of their members came from other countries? The answer rested in a sacred institution — one the sannyasins were not afrai…

Bhagwan develops a bizarre — and potentially lethal — way to escape his silent isolation at Rajneeshpuram.

How do the Rajneeshees go about fulfilling their Master's vision of a new utopia on their ranch? We see what life was like for the hundreds of commune members who toiled from sun-up to sundown each d…

It’s the holiday season in Rajneeshpuram! We’ll explore the Rajneeshees’ three major holidays and see how they were celebrated during Bhagwan's first year in America. This culminates in the First Wor…

War is looming between the Rajneeshees and a town of just 39 people — a “ghost town,” as Sheela calls it. Bhagwan’s followers are about to go to battle with the people of Antelope.

As Sheela and the first Rajneeshees arrive at the Big Muddy Ranch in July 1981, we explore why Oregon was about the last place they should have picked for Bhagwan's new commune. To transform the huge…

We visit the launching pad for Bhagwan’s American experiment: a castle in Montclair, New Jersey. Bhagwan's followers scramble to prepare for his arrival, and then he manages to get into some trouble …

Our first "minisode" provides some additional color on topics covered in the first three episodes. We’ll revisit Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh as a boy and look at the life-or-death events that may have tur…

As Bhagwan's dreams for the future continued to blossom, outside pressures, like the Indian government, threatened to squeeze the life out of his ashram. We'll also examine the efforts to find a new …