In 1982 while Osho was in public silence, he answered several questions put to him by Ed Bradley of the 60 Minutes team, one of them about enlightenment.
Q: All of the following, like you, were or are able to strongly influence the masses. Were or are any of the enlightened? – Pope John Paul, Rabbi Ba’al Shemtov (‘the Master of the good name’ who taught that man reaches god through joy rather than sorrow). Martin Luther King, Hitler.
Religion is absolutely an individual and private experience, like love. In fact, there is no way to know whether Hitler knew any experience of love or not. At the most through their words and acts we can infer:
– Pope John Paul certainly is not enlightened
– and Rabbi Ba’al Shemtov is certainly enlightened.
– Martin Luther King is a good man, but not enlightened
– and, of course, Hitler is not and cannot be enlightened.
The really enlightened person has no desire to influence the masses. If they are influenced, that is another matter: “The wild geese do not intend to cast their reflections; the water has no mind to receive their image.”
Osho, Silent Period, Ch 1
Published in The Rajneesh Times, November 5, 1982
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