AT the start of ''Ashram,'' a title announces that this film has been condemned by the followers of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, even though Wolfgang Dobrowolny, who wrote and directed ''Ashram,'' was a Rajneesh disciple at the time the film was made. Mr. Dobrowolny may not have intended any treachery, but it's understandable that the Rajneesh organization would be upset by even a straightforward, unbiased film record of its activities. That is largely what ''Ashram,'' which opens today at the Waverly theater, appears to be.

The group's practices, including therapy sessions in the nude and very violent encounter sessions, cannot help but look foolish on the screen. When they are seen writhing on the floor in the manner of ''Altered States,'' for example, the devotees are bound to appear more debased than enlightened. But these people, when interviewed at calmer moments, also say credibly that they've never been happier in their lives, and they have a look of contentment to prove it. Mr. Dobrowolny's film, which is valuable chiefly for the bizarre spectacle it presents, also poses a provocative riddle. Will a complete lack of inhibition lead the way to wisdom? To put it another way, can inner peace be achieved by methods that, on the surface, appear absurd?

The film's answer is a resounding ''Why not?'' Though it mildly mocks the guru and his tactics at times - for instance, when it labels his new cream-colored Mercedes-Benz ''one of his jokes that cannot be understood in a poor country like India'' - it also offers evidence of the disciples' serenity. ''Ashram'' was filmed in Poona, India, where large numbers of well-off seekers come to learn from a man whose teachings - at least on this film's evidence - are none too remarkable. And yet any of these students is liable to experience ecstasy if the guru so much as touches his or her brow.

''Ashram,'' which has been filmed and assembled in very ragged fashion, offers a candid glimpse of life inside this community. The place seems ruled by a gentle but very firm hand, as witnessed by a sign near the schedule of lectures, ''Friends, it is not possible to leave the discourse before it is over.'' For a relatively high fee, visitors have the opportunity to hear the master, mingle with one another and experience Rolfing, primal-scream sessions and some of the ashram's more idiosyncratic therapies. A great deal of physical interaction is encouraged, leading the disciples to drop their inhibitions about violence and about sex.