Calling your name

Tiny Meditations

A meditation explained by Osho in a discourse.

speaker

This Zen anecdote looks absurd but it is very meaningful. The master, the monk, used to call himself — this is what meditation means, calling yourself — he used to call his own name. He would say, “Are you there?” And he himself would reply, “Yes sir, I am here.” This is an effort, a peak effort, to be alert. You can use this, it will be very helpful. Suddenly, walking on the street, you call yourself, “Teertha, are you there?” Suddenly thinking stops, and you have to answer, “Yes sir, I am here.” It brings you to a focus. When thinking stops you are meditative, alert.

This calling to oneself is a technique. Going to sleep, putting off the light in the night, suddenly you call, “Are you there?” And in that darkness alertness comes. You become a flame and inside you answer, “Yes, I am here.”

And then this monk used to say, “Sober up!” Be sincere, be authentic; don’t play the game. He used to call to himself, “Sober up!” And he would reply, “Yes, I will make every effort that I can.”

Our whole life is a fooling around. You can do it because you are not aware of how you waste time, how you waste energy — how life is wasted you are not aware. It is going down the drain. Everything is going down the drain. Only when death comes to you, you may become aware, alert: What have I been doing? What have I done with life? A great opportunity has been lost. What was I doing fooling around? I was not sober. I never reflected upon what I was doing.

Osho, A Bird on the Wing, Ch 11

Meditations compiled by Nirav Jayant from Osho’s books – www.youtube.com – Photo by Possessed Photography

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