Part 1 of 3 of an essay by Shanti: How long is that road from the man we are to the man we can be, from our present state to our potential as a human being and as mankind?
“Whatsoever you think about yourself, starts happening. You create your world by your thought, you create your world by your desire,” states Osho.
Osho relates a story attributed to St. Augustine of Hippo (354 – 430 CE). The answer is: “Just love.”
Osho states, “…millions of gifts are showering on you; just look at those gifts, and you will be surprised. You will be surprised at how you have been missing them..”
Osho says, “If you float with the river of life, you will come to find your question and you will come to find your answer.”
Osho tells a story about faith versus prayer.
“For your foolishness, I cannot punish myself… It is for you to decide to insult or not, but it is my freedom to take it or not,” said Buddha – as told by Osho.
Osho relates a story about Edmund Burke who used to go to church on Sundays – he was not a believer, but he liked the preacher and the way he talked about things.
“A man of understanding understands that somehow everybody has to be right in some sense or other,” says Osho.
“You are a man on the earth, a woman on the earth; enjoy this gift of God! In deep gratefulness, sing the song, dance the dance that is waiting deep inside your being to be expressed. Be creative. Flower,” comments Osho.
Farid said, ”I am talking in metaphors. Scissors I don’t need, because scissors cut things apart. A needle I need, because a needle puts things together. I teach love.”
Osho states, “Existence needs you as you are.”
Osho explains the origins of women’s headaches.
Osho relates a story by Lao Tzu where he says, “If you want to survive in this world be like this tree – absolutely useless.”
Osho speaks about gratefulness for all that existence is giving: “The mystic said, … I have been trying to wake you up. Existence has given you such precious things and rather than being grateful, you are behaving in such an ugly way.”
Osho speaks on the meaninglessness of boundaries and nations: “It is a mad world. All boundaries are absolute nonsense. Anything that divides man from man is inhuman, uncivilized, uncultured.”
Osho relates the story of a young brahmin who angers his father so much with his questions, that he gives him to Death. Once found, Death confesses: “I have never killed anyone!”
“If you cannot follow your own advice, what right have you got to give it to somebody else?” states Osho.
Osho states, “Lust for power is the foundation of all wars. If you look at human history… the whole of human history is nothing but a history of wars, man killing man.”
“The watcher is not on the screen, he is sitting in the movie hall. But the problem arises when the watcher becomes identified with something on the movie screen,” says Osho.
“Each moment is so full of blessings, each moment is such an eternity of joy, each moment is such a dance of beauty,” concludes Osho.
“Every child comes with tremendous energy and potential, but the whole of society around the child starts moulding him, giving him ideals”, states Osho.
“Now this is a totally different approach… There is no fight between the man and the tree, there is a friendship. This is absurd for a Western mind,” states Osho.
Osho speaks on death as “… a peaceful acceptance, a loving entry into the unknown, a joyful goodbye to old friends, to the old world. There should not be any tragedy in it.”
Osho says in this anecdote: “Then an old angel came close to him and whispered in his ear, ‘The only place man may never think of is within his own heart. You just sit there…'”
Osho mentions Kabir’s son, Kamal, who corrected his father’s sentence to “The dewdrop has not disappeared into the ocean, but the ocean has disappeared into the dewdrop.”
Osho states, “God has been invented. It was people’s need; people needed a protector. In the immensity of the universe, a man feels so alone, so small.” From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho comments: “His reasoning was so absolutely correct: If people go on gathering money on one side, then who is creating the thieves?” From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho says, “Everybody is playing a certain role that has been taught to him, for which he has been brought up.” From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Life is like playing on the sitar, if you are too loose, you are lost, if you are too tight, you are lost. The wise have always followed the middle path,” says Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Light a candle of awareness and your emptiness will be full of light,” states Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho says, “Hassids are Jews, but not accepted by the orthodox Jews. There is something in Hassids which I appreciate.” From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho relates a tale showing what happens when one interprets a situation. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“When you tell somebody to believe in something, you are creating a neurosis in him, you are creating a division,” states Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho comments on a beautiful parable in the Upanishads. “The deepest core of being is non-being. The foundation of isness is nothingness.” “Life and death are not two things but two wings – two wings of the same phenomenon.” From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“If you believe in God, you can believe in a witch, it is the same package. If you can believe in one kind of nonsense, you can believe in all kinds of nonsense,” states Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Desire means rejection of something – desirelessness means acceptance – you are happy as things are. In fact, things are irrelevant, you are happy. You are happy, that’s the point.” says Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“For thousands of years the human mind has believed that by going to a holy pool, to a river or to a pond, all will be good. You want to find cheap ways to get rid of all that you have been doing, you don’t want to take its responsibility on yourself,” states Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho speaks about a letter written to Dale Carnegie and how Carnegie’s answer was transformed over and over again. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“If you are humble, the whole existence becomes a teacher to you,” says Osho commenting on a Sufi story. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
Osho speaks about the mind being the disease, “If you bring your mind to reality you will see something which is not there.” From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Love is the whole Torah, the rest is commentary. And what is love? – do not do unto others that which you would not like to be done to you,” comments Osho on this anecdote. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“If you are intelligent you will see the futility of greed. If you are intelligent you will not miss today for tomorrow. You will not sacrifice this moment for another moment, you will live this moment in its totality,” states Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Live consciously, don’t live according to a dead discipline”, says Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
In answer to the question, What is this ego? Osho tells an ancient story. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“People are trying different methodologies, practising a thousand and one things, to get out. And in fact they are out.” says Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“If you can be angry, then why can’t you be loving?” asked Rinzai. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Nirvana is the stuff you are made of. Just a remembrance is needed,” concludes Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“God is not an argument … nirvana is not an argument, it is not a conclusion; it is an experience,” says Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.
“Whatsoever you repress will become your attraction,” says Osho. From our series 1001 Tales, compiled by Shanti.