#Osho Facts

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Osho Rajneesh Biography: History, Beliefs and Facts

Introduction

Osho Rajneesh: कहा जाता है कि किसी व्यक्ति का पर्सोना उसका स्वभाव अथवा चरित्र होता है जिसे वह दूसरों यानी जमाने के सामने पेश करता है. ऐसे में अगर कोई व्यक्ति ही रहस्य की खान बन जाए तो स्वाभाविक तौर पर उसे जानना, समझना और परखना बहुत कठिन-जटिल हो जाता है. ऐसे व्यक्ति को परखना इसलिए भी मुश्किल है कि वह अपने भीतर और बाहर दोनों तरफ रहस्य का आवरण ओढ़े होता है. कई बार ऐसा भी होता है कि व्यक्ति बिना प्रयास के ही रहस्यमयी शख्सियत बन जाता है.

अपने विवादास्पद बयानों के लिए मशहूर ओशो प्रशंसकों के लिए आध्यात्मिक गुरु थे तो कुछ के लिए सेक्स गुरु. वह आध्यात्मिक गुरु जो अंधकार से निकलने से पहले उसे भुगतने और परखने को कहता है. व्यावहारिक दृष्टिकोण के चलते रजनीश उर्फ ओशो को प्रशंसकों के साथ आलोचक भी सराहते हैं, क्योंकि वह सच को कटुता के साथ कहते ��े, फिर चाहे किसी को बुरा लगे या भला. यही वजह है कि ओशो को शुरुआती दिनों में भगवान रजनीश के नाम से पहचान मिली. 11 दिसंबर, 1939 को मध्य प्रदेश के रायसेन जिले के कुचवाड़ा गांव में जन्में ओशो के जितने प्रशंसक हैं उससे ज्यादा आलोचक.

यही वजह है कि आज भी जब कभी ओशो का जिक्र आता है तो दुनिया दो धड़ों में साफ-साफ बंट जाती है. जाहिर तौर पर इनमें एक धड़ा ओशो को भगवान मानता है तो वहीं, दूसरा उन्हें खलनायक कहने में संकोच नहीं करता. विवादों के स्वामी बन चुके ओशो को दुनिया के 21 देशों में बैन तक कर दिया गया था. इतना ही नहीं, ओशो को वर्ष 1985 में जर्मनी में गिरफ्तार कर लिया गया था. विवाद और रहस्य से घिरे ओशो पर कभी इसका फर्क नहीं पड़ा कि कौन उनके साथ खड़ा है और कौन उनके खिलाफ है. लाइव टाइम्स की इस स्टोरी में आध्यात्मिक गुरु ओशो के बारे में वह बातें बताने जा रहे हैं, जो आपने शायद ही सुनीं हों.

Table Of Content

साधना खत्म होने से 3 दिन पहले मौत

ओशो को था नहाने का शौक

बचपन में जाया करते थे श्मशान

ओशो एक, नाम कई

प्रभावशाली प्रवक्ता के तौर पर शुरुआत

मौत का रहस्य कायम

दिल का दौरा लिखने के लिए डाला था दबाव

अंतिम संस्कार पर टूटा नियम

20वीं सदी के सबसे महान आध्यात्मिक गुरु

पुणे से अमेरिका का रुख

साधना खत्म होने से 3 दिन पहले मौत

‘मुसीबतों से निखरती है शख्सियत यारों, जो चट्टानों से न उलझे वो झरना किस काम का…’ ऐसा लगता है यह पंक्ति ओशो के लिए ही लिखी गई है. 11 दिसंबर, 1931 को मध्य प्रदेश के रायसेन जिले के कुचवाड़ा गांव में जन्में ओशो का असली नाम चंद्रमोहन जैन था. उनका जन्म अपनी नानी के घर हुआ था. बचपन से ओशो का स्वभाव और व्यवहार सामान्य बच्चों से अलग था. कहा तो यहां तक जाता है कि जब वह पैदा हुए थे तो 3 दिन तक न हंसे थे और न ही रोए थे.

ओशो को था नहाने का शौक

बचपन में जाया करते थे श्मशान

ओशो एक, नाम कई

प्रभावशाली प्रवक्ता के तौर पर शुरुआत

जब ओशो बड़े हुए तब उन्होंने अपने करियर की शुरुआत वर्ष 1957 में रायपुर (तब मध्य प्रदेश और अब छत्तीसगढ़ में है) के संस्कृत विश्वविद्यालय में बतौर प्रवक्ता की. उन्हें जानकार प्रवक्ता माना जाता था. वर्ष 1960 में वह जबलपुर विश्वविद्यालय में दर्शनशास्त्र के प्रोफेसर बन गए. दर्शनशास्त्र का अध्ययन करने के दौरान उनका आध्यात्म की ओर गहरा लगाव शुरू हो गया. इसके बाद आध्यात्मिक गुरु के रूप में उन्होंने अपना करियर शुरू किया. इसके अगले चरण में उन्होंने पूरे भारत का दौरा कर राजनीति, धर्म और सेक्स पर विवादास्पद व्याखयान देना शुरू कर दिया.

यह भी पढ़ें: 10 Temples in India: देश के 10 ऐसे मंदिर, जहां महिलाओं की एंट्री पर लगा हुआ है बैन

मौत का रहस्य कायम

युवावस्था में रजनीश को हमेशा सिरदर्द की शिकायत रही. पढ़ाई के दौरान भी उन्हें सिरदर्द रहता था. एक बार जब उनका सिरदर्द बहुत ज्यादा बढ़ गया तो उनके फुफेरे भाई क्रांति और अरविंद चिंतित हो गए. तंग आकर ओशो के पिता को बुलवाना पड़ा. ओशो के पिता का मानना था कि ज्यादा पढ़ाई करने के कारण रजनीश के सिर में दर्द होता है. स्कूल के दिनों से ही रजनीश अपने माथे पर बाम लगाकर पढ़ा करते थे.

यह भी पढ़ें: कंजूस नहीं थे संजीव कु��ार, उनके करोड़ों रुपये पचा गए फिल्म इंडस्ट्री के लोग

‘दिल का दौरा पड़ा है’ लिखने के लिए डाला था दबाव

अंतिम संस्कार पर टूटा नियम

इससे भी बड़ी बात यह है कि ओशो के आश्रम में किसी संन्यासी की मृत्यु को उत्सव की तरह मनाने का चलन था. पहले भी कई बार मृत्यु पर उत्सव ही मनाया गया था, लेकिन ओशो के निधन पर ऐसा कुछ नहीं हुआ. निधन की घोषणा के एक घंटे के भीतर ही ओशो का अंतिम संस्कार कर दिया गया और उनके निर्वाण का उत्सव भी संक्षिप्त रखा गया. यह कुछ सवाल हैं जो उनकी मृत्यु को रहस्य बनाते हैं. 19 जनवरी, 1990 को महाराष्ट्र के पुणे में रजनीश ‘ओशो’ का निधन हुआ था. कुल मिलाकर 20वीं सदी में हुई ओशो की मृत्यु के कारणों का रहस्य 21 वीं सदी में भी बरकरार है. यह भी कम रोचक नहीं है कि ओशो की मां आश्रम में ही रहती थीं, लेकिन उन्हें भी बेटे के निधन की जानकारी देर से दी गई.

20वीं सदी के सबसे महान आध्यात्मिक गुरु

इसमें कोई शक नहीं है कि रजनीश ओशो महान दार्शनिक थे. उनके विरोधी भी दर्शन को लेकर उनका लोहा मानते थे. एक आध्यात्मिक गुरु के रूप में रजनीश ने सदियों से चली आ रही धार्मिक धारणाओं और कर्मकांडों के ख़िलाफ़ अपनी आवाज उठाई. इसके साथ ही ओशो ने धर्म और राजनीति पर टिप्पणी करते हुए कहा कि इन दोनों का एक ही मकदस है और वो है लोगों पर नियंत्रण करना. जाने-माने लेखक खुशवंत सिंह ने उनकी प्रशंसा करते हुए लिखा था- ‘ओशो भारत में पैदा हुए सबसे मौलिक विचारकों में से एक थे.

यह भी पढ़ें: भारत का ‘नन्हा नेपोलियन’, जो दो-दो बार चूका प्रधानमंत्री बनने से; ‘समधी’ से ही खानी पड़ी मात

पुणे से अमेरिका का रुख

कहा जाता है कि लंबे समय तक पुणे में रहने के बाद वहां से भी ओशो का दिल भर गया. इसके बाद उन्होंने अमेरिका के ओरेगन में एक आश्रम बनाने की योजना बनाई. उनका इरादा था कि आश्रम ऐसा हो जिसमें हजारों लोग एक साथ रह सकें. 31 मई, 1981 को वो मुंबई से अपने नए आश्रम के लिए रवाना हुए. कहा जाता है कि उनके 2000 से अधिक आश्रमवासी भी ��मेरिका के लिए रवाना हुए. इनमें मशहूर फ़िल्म अभिनेता विनोद खन्ना भी थे, जिन्होंने ओशो से मिलने के बाद फिल्मों से संन्यास ले लिया था.

ओशो साल 1981 से 1985 के बीच अमेरिका में रहे. अमेरिकी प्रांत ओरेगॉन में उन्होंने आश्रम की स्थापना की. ये आश्रम 65 हज़ार एकड़ में फैला था. ओशो ने यहां पर 93 रोल्स रॉइस कारें खरीदीं. हालांकि, अमेरिका ओशो के लिए अच्छा साबित नहीं हुआ. उन पर नियमों का उल्लंघन करने के लिए मुकदमा चलाया गया. इस दौरान ओशो को 17 दिन अमेरिकी जेल में रहना पड़ा. जेल से निकले तो उन्होंने अमेरिका छोड़ने का मन बना लिया.

इसके बाद ओशो ने कई देशों में शरण लेने की कोशिश की, लेकिन एक के बाद एक सबने उन्हें अपने यहां लेने से इन्कार कर दिया. कहा जाता है कि 21 देशों ने उन्हें अपनी शरण देने से मना किया था. आखिरकार वो अपने देश भारत वापस आने के लिए मजबूर हुए. भारत लौटने के बाद वे पुणे के कोरेगांव पार्क इलाके में स्थित अपने आश्रम लौट आए. उनकी मृत्यु 19 जनवरी, 1990 में हो गई. उनकी मौत के बाद पुणे आश्रम का नियंत्रण ओशो के क़रीबी शिष्यों ने अपने हाथ में ले लिया. आश्रम की संपत्ति करोड़ों रुपये की मानी जाती है और इस बात को लेकर उनके शिष्यों के बीच विवाद भी है, जो अब भी जारी है.

यह भी पढ़ें: अमृता प्रीतम का इमरोज-साहिर से था कैसा रिश्ता ? आखिर क्यों अधूरा रह गया मोहब्बत का अफसाना

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[1introvertedsage]

When a mature person gives love, they give without any strings attached to it: they simply give.

And when two spiritually mature persons are in love, one of the greatest paradoxes of life happens, one of the most beautiful phenomena: they are together and yet still 'alone'; they are together so much so that they are almost one. But their oneness does not destroy their individuality, in fact, it enhances it: they become more individual.

~ Osho ~

[fairymischief]

Ahh! I just had a mini spiritual epiphany about some things in the Bible. Just FYI, I come from a belief in manifestation, magic and the idea that all is God acting upon Itself, and that's what this is partially concerning.

Because of Neville Goddard, Osho, and a few other mystics, I've gotten used to interpreting spiritual texts like the Bible in symbolic ways from a different framework of thought. I was just listening to a video by this excellent YouTube channel which has like 900+ talks about this stuff, and he quoted these verses from the Bible:

The subconscious mind is equated with "female" (the woman) and the conscious mind is equated with "male" (the man.) The conscious mind can direct the subconscious mind about what it wishes to manifest, and the subconscious mind will accept it as fact and deliver to you whatever you believe in. But your subconscious mind is the servant of your conscious mind! I believe that this meant to be understood as "Order your thoughts, get them under control, so you can create the correct conditions for your life."

I think the Bible was written in deep symbolism and it's fascinating to keep discovering layers to it.

[radical-revolution]

This is what our whole life is. A dream of millions of forms, a dream of millions of names, a dream of millions of identities. We become this, we become that. We are born, we live, we love, we do a thousand and one things, and we die. And in fact, all was just forms. Empty forms, empty shadows. The real is the flame of life, the white flame of life. To know that white flame of life one has to drop all forms from the eyes. The eyes have to become utterly empty. Hence, the Zen emphasis on being empty.

OSHO

[mountain-sage]

Thoughts are like dirt, clinging to the mirror of the mind. Thoughts, desires, imaginations, memories --all are forms of dirt. Because of them, the purity of the mind is lost. Because of them, the capacity to reflect, the mirror-like quality of the mind is lost. A continuous cleaning is needed.

So, meditation is not something that you do once and forget about, because each moment of life you go on gathering dust. It is just like a traveler who is travelling.

Each day he goes on gathering dust on his clothes, on his body. Every day he has to take a bath to cleanse his body. Again the next day he will be gathering.

Meditation is like a daily bath. It is not something that once you have done it, you are finished. It should become like a natural thing, matter of fact. As you eat, as you go to sleep, as you take a bath, meditation should become a natural part of your life. At least twice a day you should cleanse your mind.

The best times are the morning, when you are getting ready for the day, the workaday world.... Cleanse your mind so you have clarity, so you have transparency, so you don't commit errors, mistakes, so you don't have any evil thoughts, so you don't have any egoistic thoughts. you go in a purer way to the world. You don't go with corrupting seeds. And the next best time is before you go to sleep, again meditate. The whole day the dust collects. Clean the mind again... fall asleep.

If you really start cleaning it, you will see tremendous changes happening...

In the morning, again meditate. And if you meditate rightly and you become a silent pool of energy, you will move in the world in a totally different way -- non-conflicting, nonaggressive, in harmony. Even if somebody hates you, you will transform that energy into love.

OSHO

[santoschristos]

"Holding the hand of your woman or man, why not sit silently? Why not close your eyes and feel? Feel the presence of the other, enter into the presence of the other, let the other's presence enter into you; vibrate together, sway together;

if suddenly a great energy possesses you, dance together – and you will reach to such orgasmic peaks of joy as you have never known before.

Those orgasmic peaks have nothing to do with sex, in fact they have much to do with silence." ~ Osho

This whole existence is one cosmic unity.

Out of this understanding comes nonviolence.

The second is non-possessiveness. If the whole existence is one, and if the existence goes on taking care of trees, of animals, of mountains, of oceans -- from the smallest blade of grass to the biggest star -- then it will take care of you too.

Why be possessive? Possessiveness shows simply one thing: that you can't trust existence; you have to arrange separate security for yourself, safety for yourself. You cannot trust existence.

Non-possessiveness is basically trust in existence.

There is no need to possess, because the whole is already ours. --Osho

Cosmic Love Art by Fatih Gözenç

[zerogate]

Before we enter into this sutra, you have to understand this word KARMA. It means action. But action can be of two types: either it can be a reaction or it can be a response. Somebody insults you. You become angry -- he has pushed your button. In fact he is the master, you are behaving like a slave. He has managed to create anger in you. He is in control. If he wants to change the situation he can say, "I am sorry," and things will be different. You are just a victim; you don't have any control of the situation. When somebody insults you, you are immediately reacting out of your past experiences. This reaction is really karma. It is a binding force; it creates chains for you.

-- Osho, Bodhidharma - The Greatest Zen Master

[cobotis]

The ignorant man, if he becomes conscious of his ignorance, becomes very humble. If we remember our ignorance, if we can remember, "I do not know, I am ignorant," then there are no grounds on which the ego can stand... Where can ego build its structure when it has no foundation? It is interesting to see that if the ignorant man becomes conscious of his ignorance, then his wandering loses momentum, he finds himself still, and his mistakes cease to happen; he begins to travel on the right path... And the learned person who is sure in his belief that he is a learned person has begun his journey into greater darkness. When the ignorant becomes conscious of the fact that "I am ignorant," then his journey towards wisdom begins...

~ Osho

[madamlaydebug]

“Sadness gives depth. Happiness gives height. Sadness gives roots. Happiness gives branches. Happiness is like a tree going into the sky, and sadness is like the roots going down into the womb of the earth. Both are needed, and the higher a tree goes, the deeper it goes, simultaneously. The bigger the tree, the bigger will be its roots. In fact, it is always in proportion.

That's its balance.”

Osho

[kellymagovern]

"Sadness gives depth. Happiness gives height. Sadness gives roots. Happiness gives branches. Happiness is like a tree going into the sky, and sadness is like the roots going down into the womb of the earth. Both are needed, and the higher a tree goes, the deeper it goes, simultaneously. The bigger the tree, the bigger will be its roots. In fact, it is always in proportion. That's its balance." —Osho

[eyeoftheheart]

“Just look around! This immense universe is functioning so perfectly well that nothing can be added to it. It needs no improvement. Seeing this, one relaxes. If stars can go on dancing and flowers can go on blooming and birds can go on singing, why not you? You also belong to this universe. You are part of it. In fact, you are the most valuable part of it, the greatest flowering is going to happen in you—the flowering of consciousness, the golden flower of being.”

― Osho, The secret of secrets

(from his talks on the Secret of the Golden Flower)

Artwork: 草場一壽 (Kazuhisa Kusaba)

[satansweetz]

Intro :3

hihi! I’m SatanSweetz but call me Oshokku or Osho (main sonas) here’s some tips to get to know abt me!

Tip 1# I really like video games and I’m a average artist who makes oc’s and some fan art! My main oc (which I said in my bio SatanSweetz) Is Oshokku who is based off art I made of a ram with dragon wings and a tail made of fire

Tip 2# I am autistic and a straight Ally {meaning I’m straight and support the lbtgtq+} and I’m a Aries!

Tip 3# i use character ai (only for funny chaotic roleplays where I make the ai pissed off) so if u want to Follow me my account will be down below! 👇

Fun fact time!: the toon I play the most and have their costume is Toodles! •>• Tip 5# I don’t support zoophiles, racism and other bad stuff that happens in reality and online

Tip 6# My favorite colors are Red mainly cause of pretty red things!

anyway that’s all Bye bye 👋

[lunamagicablu]

Non conoscendo il sé reale, abbiamo creato un sé artificiale. Questo è il nostro io, l'ego. Di fatto non esiste, il suo essere è solo apparente. Questa falsità, nella morte va in frantumi; ciò produce infelicità perché noi ci siamo identificati con essa. Conoscendo la vita la morte scompare. Ciò che E',è immortale. Diventandone consapevoli, si consegue la vita eterna. Ricordarsi di sé è vita. Dimenticarsi di sé è morte. Osho *********************** By not knowing the real self, we have created an artificial self. This is our self, the ego. In fact it does not exist, its being is only apparent. This falsehood is shattered in death; this produces unhappiness because we have identified with it. Knowing life, death disappears. That which IS, is immortal. By becoming aware of this, eternal life is achieved. Remembering yourself is life. Forgetting oneself is death. Osho 

[uraharashouten]

Reishi Circulation and the Soul Balance

Kaien, Bleach chapter 268:

"Our bodies are konpaku. And when we die, our bodies turn to dust... and become the reishi that forms Soul Society."

Yhwach, Bleach chapter 615:

"The Spirit King was created to stabilize Soul Society, which is made unstable by the huge number of souls flowing into and out of it!"

CFYOW III, p196:

"In that age, in all of creation many things were ambiguous. There was no such thing as life or death, and without progress, there was no retreat. While it swayed to and fro, you see, this was a world where one could only wait for all things to chill over the course of ten thousand or even one hundred million years. Even becoming a Hollow was part of the circulation of reishi." Speaking in a matter-of-fact manner, the Osho recalled the world prior to the birth of Hueco Mundo or the world of the living.

CFYOW III, pp298, 307

Hikone, who confirmed that there was nothing strange about their own spiritual pressure, was once again confident that they had cut Hisagi in half, but... Hisagi remained unharmed. To be accurate, Hikone certainly had cut Hisagi, but from the moment they cut him, t h wounds closed up as though they had never happened. No matter how many times Hikone attempted to rend into Hisagi with their blade, the moment the back of the blade passed through the Soul Reaper, the wound was already healed. Or rather, it was as though Hikone had never cut Hisagi in the first place. ... The bankai's power was a chain that sealed away the flow of life and brought the world into stagnation. By connecting everything, it forbade death, forbade life. The black sun even bound the reishi in the atmosphere. Because of that, it was named Kazeshini—death wind. The cycle of the world would stop, ending all retrogression and evolution, imprisoning it in chains. In the circumstance where life was forced into stagnation, there was, ironically, a world with no boundary between life and death. It may have resembled the form of the world before the Soul Society had been born.

It's difficult to imagine a world without boundaries between life and death, such as was Yhwach's stated goal to create when he originally planned to dethrone the Soul King. So it's noteworthy that even before there was a circulation of souls, there was a "to and fro" circulation of reishi. In observing Shuuhei's bankai, we can imagine how reishi flowed back and forth between life and non-life in the original humans. When the body was physically harmed, it could draw from that reishi and will of the attached soul to restore it. Reciprocally, the soul's reii reserves could be restored by the life processes of the body.

But if Ichibee's story is straight, at some point, something started causing Chains of Fate between body and soul to be eaten away by encroachment, resulting in the first Hollows. And the problem... is that the reishi remained locked in that form, unavailable to sustain life. As Hollows consumed living humans and each other, the hoarding of reishi began to impinge on the population, and thus the plan for the current soul cycle with a separation between the realms was hatched.

Now, we know that the balance between purified, unbound souls and those either chained to living bodies or corrupted must be kept at all times or the system collapses... but what about the flow of reishi itself?

Upon death of the physical body, every soul purified by a zanpakutou returns its reishi to Soul Society, where it continues to be bound up in that soul until it discorporates. But as observed here, there must be something special about the process of birth. The beginning of a new human life must somehow return to the Living World enough reishi to comprise a soul. Or it may even be the case that it's the process of conception itself, and the development of a new Living Human, that generates the reishi required to form the soul within it.

We know there's an exchange rate between souls and power. In a living human, that would be life power. What if a living soul starts with only enough reiryoku to sustain one human life for, oh, say, a hundred years? Little by little, energy of the soul is consumed to sustain life, until anything beyond what's needed to maintain the shape of the soul itself is depleted.

Now, we know that as long as body and soul are connected, wounds to the soul affect the body. And wounds to both can likewise be treated via the body.

We also know that the organs that give shinigami their power, the saketsu and the hakusui, also map to the physical body. The saketsu in a living human is the Chain of Fate, the cord that ties the soul to the body, and corresponds, physically and metaphorically, with the heart. The hakusui would be the seat of spiritual power... which in a human would be the power of physical life.

We know there's a potential to exchange soul for power in a shinigami... so it follows that the soul fuels life power in a human.

So, we can't help but wonder: what if you somehow enabled living humans to produce more spiritual power than is needed to sustain the body-soul relationship? What if you gave them... extra?

Well, first of all, you'd have to be selective. We do know it's risky for the average human soul...

But there are those exceptional humans that have innate spiritual abilities and demonstrate dominance over the reishi in their environments. What I am saying is, if you are a shinigami and would like to deputize a human with any reasonable hope of success... choose a Fullbringer.

Now imagine deputizing all the Fullbringers. The celestial accounting seems to place earthbound souls (and by extension, Hollows that have moved to Hueco Mundo) on one side of the balance sheet, and 'pure' souls (shinigami and any soul who has undergone konsō) on the other.

But I wonder what would happen if you began to blur the lines...

[picsofsannyas]

BELOVED OSHO, I AM JUST CURIOUS. HAVE YOU READ THE BOOK ZORBA THE GREEK BY KAZANTZAKIS? I LOVE IT SO MUCH. IS NOT ZORBA EXACTLY THE WAY YOU WANT US TO BE? AT LEAST THAT IS HOW I UNDERSTAND YOUR TEACHING.

I have been Zorba the Greek for many lives. I need not read the book; that is my autobiography. And that's what I would like you to be. Take life joyfully, take life easily, take life relaxedly, don't create unnecessary problems. Ninety-nine percent of your problems are created by you because you take life seriously. Seriousness is the root cause of problems. Be playful, and you will not miss anything -- because life is God. Forget about God; just be alive, be abundantly alive. Live each moment as if this is the last moment. Live it intensely; let your torch burn from both sides together. Even if it is only for one moment, that is enough. One moment of intense totality is enough to give you the taste of God. You can live in a lukewarm way, the bourgeois way, the middle-class way. You can go on living, dragging yourself for millions of years -- you will only collect dust from the roads and nothing else. One moment of clarity, totality, spontaneity, and you burn like a flame. Just one moment is enough! One moment will make you eternal; you will enter from that moment into eternity. That's my whole message for my sannyasins: live it in such way that you need not repent, ever.

A friend has sent me a paper-cutting.

An old woman, eighty-five years old, was asked by a journalist that if she had to live again, how would she live?

The old woman said -- there is a great insight in it, remember it -- "If I had my life to live over, I would dare to make more mistakes next time. I would relax, I would limber up. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I would take fewer things seriously. I would take more chances. I would take more trips. I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers. I would eat more ice cream and less beans. I would perhaps have more actual troubles, but I would have fewer imaginary ones.

"You see, I am one of those people who lived sensibly and sanely hour after hour, day after day. Oh, I have had my moments, and if I had it to do over again I would have more of them. In fact, I would try to have nothing else -- just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day. I have been one of those persons who never go anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a raincoat and a parachute. If I had to do it again I would travel lighter than I have.

"If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring, and stay that way later into the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies."

And that's my vision of a sannyasin too. Live this moment as totally as possible. Don't be too sane, because too much sanity leads to insanity. Let a little craziness exist in you. That gives zest to life, that makes life juicy. Let a little irrationality always be there. That makes you capable of playing, being playful; that helps you to relax. A sane person is utterly hung up in the head, he cannot get down from there. He lives upstairs. Live all over the place, this is your house! Upstairs, good, the ground floor, perfectly good -- and the basement is beautiful too. Live all over the place, this is your house. And don't wait for next time, I would like to tell this old woman, because the next time never comes.

Not that you will not be born again; you will be born again, but then you will forget. Then you will start again from ABC. This old woman has been here before. She must have been here millions of times before. And I can say to you that each time, nearabout the age of eighty-five, she would have decided the same way: "Next time I'm going to do it differently." But next time you don't remember -- that's the problem. You lose all memory of the past life. Then again you start from ABC and the same thing happens.

So I would not say to you to wait for the next time. Take hold of this moment! This is the only time there is, there is no other time. Even if you are eighty-five you can start living. And what is there to lose when you are eighty-five? If you go barefoot on the beach in the spring, if you collect daisies -- even if you die in that, nothing is wrong. To die barefoot on the beach is the right way to die. To die collecting daisies is the right way to die. Whether you are eighty-five or fifteen doesn't matter. Take hold of this moment. Be a Zorba. You ask: "I am just curious. Have you read the book Zorba the Greek? I love it so much."

Only loving it won't help. Be it! Sometimes it happens that you love the opposite of what you are. You enjoy the opposite of what you are -- because it releases fantasies in you. It gives you a vision of how you would like to be: that's the appeal of a Zorba.

But loving the book will not help. That's what people have been doing down the ages. People love the Bible, and don't become Jesus, and they love the Heart Sutra -- they repeat it, they chant it every day. Millions of people in the East repeat the Heart Sutra five times a day -- in China, in Japan, in Korea, in Vietnam -- they go on repeating it. It is a small sutra; it can be repeated within minutes. They love it, but they don't become it!

Be a Zorba. Remember it: loving books is not going to help, only being helps.

"I love it so much. Is not Zorba exactly the way you want us to be?" Not exactly, because I would not like many Zorbas in the world. Not exactly, because that would be ugly and monotonous and boring. You be a Zorba in your own way -- not exactly.

Never try to imitate anybody, never be an imitator; that is suicide. Then you will never be able to enjoy. You will always remain a carbon copy, you will never be the original. And all that happens in life -- truth, beauty, good, liberation, meditation, love -- happens to the original, never to the carbon copy. Beware -- not exactly; that is dangerous. If you simply start following Zorba and start doing things as he is doing them you will get into trouble. That's how people have done it.

Look at the Christians, look at the Hindus: they have been trying to do it exactly. Nobody can be a Buddha again! God does not permit any repetition! God does not allow secondhand people, he loves firsthand people. He loved Buddha. He loved so much that it is finished. Now there is no need for Buddha. It would not be a love affair anymore. It would be like going to the same movie that you have seen before, it would be like reading the same book that you have read many times before. God is not dull and stupid, he never allows anybody to repeat anybody else: Christ only once, Buddha only once -- and so are you only once! And you are alone, there is nobody else like you. Only you are you. This I call reverence for life. This is really self-respect.

Learn from Zorba, learn the secret, but never try to imitate. Learn the climate, appreciate, go into it, sympathize with it, participate with Zorba, and then go on your own. Then be yourself.

Osho.

The Heart Sutra Chapter #6 Chapter title: Don't Be Too Sane