Over a hundred sannyasins came to the unveiling of the uniquely designed temple which Deva Dosa describes as a “sacred home for the infinite Self.”
After a long monsoon season, a brilliantly sunny morning welcomed the consecration of the brand new Kabir Das Temple at Osho Tapoban. Before breakfast, the forested campus of Tapoban rang out with the haunting and visceral songs of Kabir, more relevant than ever. Kabir Das, India’s most famous and beloved poet – a “common” man, a “simple” weaver, was an Awakened One who lived around 500 years before Osho. The ancient tunes seemed made for this incredibly special day.
Coinciding with the 47th sannyasin birthday celebration of Bodhisattva Swami Anand Arun, the creator of the new temple and founder of Osho Tapoban, the temple opening gathered over a hundred of Osho’s sannyasins to witness the unveiling of the stunning, colorful Kabir statue. Arun talked about his lifelong love for Kabir and how he very much wanted to “bring Kabir home” to Tapoban. He said that other Kabir temples are typically poor and untended, and he was very pleased that this was the most beautiful and expensive temple ever made for the singing saint.
With unstoppable creative energy undaunted by the pandemic, Arun has completed two new temples at Tapoban in the last month.¹ He also commented that he is very proud that Tapoban is the only large, operational Osho Ashram in the world today, along with the only active Osho Samadhi.
Arun frequently talks about international solutions for a world in crisis. He says that we live in a time when meditation is essential to awareness and mental health. He celebrates the songs of Kabir which address the need for dropping the ego and establishing roots in daily life. Kabir’s wondrous celebration of elevated consciousness describes the human experience of reaching inward to touch the divine. His lively songs are written in such a way that anyone can understand them.
Why a Kabir Temple at Osho Tapoban? Spanning centuries, creeds, classes, and cultures, Kabir unites humanity and shows that all Enlightened Mystics speak the very same language of the Self, as human beings who had opened the “tenth door” and realized their infinite nature. Kabir’s existential understanding, and the immortal perspective is intriguing, alchemical, and even magical. Breathtaking and beautiful, the infinite Kabir still touches our souls and now has an exquisite home at Osho Tapoban.
Kabir, a rustic villager who left behind some 500 piercing songs, uses vernacular language and simple imagery to create a democratic sense of the divine. Singing to everyone, not just the erudite, Kabir makes us feel that the divine is within our reach. Rich or poor, educated, or illiterate, Hindu or Christian, anyone can instantly relate to Kabir’s imagery. What better metaphor to wake up the narcissistic mind than a frenzied dog barking in a hall of mirrors and attacking itself. This is visceral, unforgettable poetry at its best, where familiar images – dog, parrot, and elephant – become brand new and ignite understanding.
Osho states that the mystical poet is one who has “arrived.” Having arrived, Kabir injects raw spiritual power into his seemingly ordinary words; he unhinges our old patterns and reshapes our consciousness, all in the space of a line or two. Kabir sings, “You have yourself forgotten the self. Like a deluded dog, trapped in a palace of mirrors, ends his life barking at his own image.”
Explaining his shared view of awareness with Kabir, Osho says, “The moment consciousness joins the insignificant, the insignificant becomes vast.” Osho also reveals how Kabir himself is like the three sacred rivers of India that braid together, for Kabir contains all three paths of bhakti (devotion), karma (service), and jnana (knowing) within himself. Osho’s shining elucidations and Kabir’s haunting images stick to the mind and insist on a permanent home in our understanding.
As travelers prepare to visit Osho Tapoban, they can expect to enter into a mystical atmosphere of powerful secrets kept by Awakened Souls. The new Kabir Temple is a sacred home to the infinite Self. Expect a magical touch from the illuminated ones who have always been and will always be. Prepare to enter a crystalline doorway through which the sweetest moonlight of the East pours lavishly on the soul.
¹ Note by Osho News: The second temple is a super-high energy meditation temple dedicated to Osho and we will have photos to show soon.
Quote by Osho from
The Fabric of Life – On the Songs of the Mystic Kabir, Ch 5 (translated from Hindi (સૂનો ભાઈ સાધો) – Suno Bhai Sadho)
Article by Deva Dosa
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