Osho the Most Prolific Author of All Times

by Dhanyam

I am always a bit amused when I see this label attached to Osho. Although there are more than 650 Osho books to his name, Osho, of course, did not “write” any of them, apart from A Cup of Tea, a beautiful collection of early letters. Those familiar with Osho know that he spoke – or gave “discourses” – for about 30 years and that the books are transcripts of recordings made from these spontaneous talks. The earliest recordings, on audio, were made around 1974, and video recording started in 1978.

Although I love Osho’s books and do my best to make available as many as possible by importing them from all over the world, I think that hearing and seeing Osho are powerful ways to experience him. That’s why here at Osho Viha we continue to expand our selection of Osho DVDs and, now that audiotapes and CDs are old technology, Osho MP3s. I am also glad that we have more and more DVDs and MP3s available because more and more books are going out of print.

Just these past few days, we added to our MP3 selection all of Osho’s discourse series on Jesus: The Mustard Seed, Come Follow Me, and I Say Unto You, and a beautiful Zen discourse series: This Very Body the Buddha: Discourses on Haikun’s Song of Meditation. This series starts out with the much-loved “birthday discourse,” given on December 11, 1977: “My beloved ones, I love you all. Love is my message – let it be your message too. Love is my color and climate. To me, love is the only religion.”

With Osho’s birthday just a month away, I wanted to make this treasure available.

Sourced from the Viha Connection, our Osho magazine.

Osho's Copyrights

The recent interview of Ramateertha by Harideva in the Viha Connection and Ramateertha’s open letter to the Inner Circle have stirred up fresh interest in the topic of intellectual property rights: copyrights and trademarks. We’ve received comments from several people about Zurich-based OIF’s claim to own Osho’s interests in His copyrights, along with requests to open this topic for discussion in the community.

We’ve also had questions about the difference between copyrights and trademarks. Copyrights protect the use of the content of creative works that have been “fixed” by digitalizing, printing, writing down, drawing or painting, recording, and so on. A copyright applies to creative works like writing, audio, video, photographs, and artwork. The copyright attaches automatically at the time the work is fixed and belongs to the person who created the work.

Trademarks are what they sound like. They protect the mark used to market goods or services in the marketplace. A mark can be a word, phrase, or symbol. The only connection between trademarks and content is that the person who controls a mark can control what content is marketed under that mark. The same content can be marketed under a different name.

One writer raised the question of using money from copyrights to support operations in Pune. He had heard a person involved with management there complain that audio copies of Osho’s discourses are being distributed for free (apparently the new cost price in this techie age). He wanted to know what people thought about this. Since OIF doesn’t run the center in Pune, it isn’t clear what the financial connection actually is. Other commentators are concerned that Osho’s work can’t be protected without a copyright. Others argue that with all the compilation books published by OIF or with their blessings, OIF does not protect Osho’s work at all. Some of these books, as well as books published by the “official” Pune publishers, are heavily edited.

Osho clearly owned the copyrights to His work during His lifetime, since copyrights automatically attach to creative works at the time they are “fixed” (written down, recorded, and so on). The relevant question today is whether Osho transferred those rights to someone else. Many people are convinced, from the documents on file at the US Copyright Office (available at www.OshoFriendsInternational.com), that Osho did not transfer His rights to OIF. This raises several questions. If Osho did indeed not transfer copyright interests, should anyone try to pretend He did, in the interest of protecting the work or making money? Could pretending that someone owns Osho’s copyrights ever be successful? Will attempts to do so bring on more coercion (banning, shunning, threatening lawsuits), in an effort to bring people in line behind a questionable claim? What effects would this coercion have on the community?

Osho had some interesting things to say about owning, distributing, and protecting His work. One was a request to have His work distributed at cost price. Here are a few others:

I am utterly empty.
If there is any truth in my words, that truth comes out of my emptiness. It does not belong to me, I am just a passage. I allow existence to connect with you – and it is possible only if I am absolutely empty. (Sermons in Stone, Chapter 15)

Just now there is an exhibition going on in the Soviet Union. I have sannyasins in the Soviet Union; of course, they have to remain underground – they cannot declare that they are sannyasins – but there are a large number of sannyasins. Our stall of books is overcrowded; it is the most successful stall even in Russia. But the people don't have money, so they are stealing books. I have informed my people, "Don't pay any attention – let them steal. At least those books will reach to millions of people, and if you catch somebody red-handed, just tell him, ‘I'm not against stealing; what can you do if you don't have any money? Just keep one thing in mind: When you have read it, pass it on. That is the price.” (The Great Pilgrimage: From Here to Here, Chapter 12)

“Beloved Osho,
The commune is no more; or, every sannyasin is the commune. But what about such institutions as the Academy, or Friends, which takes care of the publication and distribution of your words? Do they still have a function, and how can they function?”

They still have a function – and they will continue to function – but their function is not dictatorial. Their function is to serve the whole world of sannyasins and the people who love me. So their function is not to govern you, their function is to serve you.
And they are not organizations, they are simply institutes. And their function has become more important now, because for all the languages that books are being translated into, it has to be seen to it that they are not mistranslated – that the translation is right, that it does not harm the spirit of the message.

So it is a great work to take care of all the languages – we need the publication institute to check all the language publications before they are published.

Now there are many countries... Just yesterday, a Korean woman was here, and she informed us that more than thirty of my books are translated into Korean, and thousands of copies are available in all the bookstalls all over the country. We have to take care of things. There are countries that are not members of the Bern Convention: they do not believe in copyright. Korea is one of those that do not believe in copyright, so they can translate any book, publish any book.

But we can at least keep an eye that the translation is done rightly, that the person who is doing the translation understands me. It is not only a question of copyright; it is a question that I should not be presented in a wrong way – which is possible. Because if they are just earning money, who cares whether the translation is right or wrong?

I informed the woman, "You send..." Because we don't even know: it may be happening in other countries. There are many countries that are not under the copyright convention. But we can help them, we can suggest to them, "We don't want any money from you, any royalty from you, but we would like you to represent every book exactly, without any distortion." And in many countries we will have to take publication into our own hands. (Light on the Path, Chapter 28)

We would like to invite our readers to discuss these issues. We ask everyone to be respectful (no insults, sarcasm, personal attacks, psychological evaluations…) so that we can hold a space for all points of view. Posts that do not follow these guidelines will be removed.

In the meantime, some lawyers from around the world have written in with a few helpful comments. An American attorney points out that even if OIF, Zurich did have a legitimate claim to copyrights, it would still be legal to use Osho quotes:

As I understand the situation, many requests have gone to OIF over the years, asking to use Osho quotes in various kinds of publications: books, memoirs, people’s personal stories about meeting Osho, etc. Almost invariably, OIF wants to see the proposal, assess its worth, and give or withhold permission.

The reality is that your right to Osho’ s words is safeguarded by the legal framework of “fair use” that has been adopted in the United States and in most other countries. […]

One of the key issues in permitting “fair use” is public interest.

For example, Osho is a public and controversial figure. He might well be described as one of the most radical philosophers of the twentieth century. Therefore, it greatly benefits the public to understand him from as many different perspectives as possible.

Let’s say, I’m totally opposed to Osho’s teachings and regard him as a danger to society. I want to write a book showing how immoral and subversive are his teachings.

Now, clearly, OIF is never going to give permission for a book like that. But, equally clearly, it is in the public interest to have access to my views, since it broadens the public’s general understanding about Osho and his work. It encourages debate and discussion. It widens the public’s knowledge about a controversial figure.

So, with full legal protection, I can use long quotations from Osho in my book, refuting each of his statements as I go along, and OIF cannot do anything about it. If they take me to court, they are certain to lose.

Similarly, if you have personal stories about Osho, or if you want to use Osho quotes in your book, you do not need permission to do so. Why? Because your use of Osho, in your particular context, is broadening public understanding about this controversial mystic.

You’re adding to the body of knowledge that is available to the public about Osho. The chat you had with him, over a cup of tea in Woodlands in 1973, or the relevance of his vision to your book on quantum physics, deepens the public’s understanding of this extraordinary man.

If Osho had been a very private man, things would be different. But he was not. On the contrary, he made every effort during his life to become as widely known and as notorious as possible. Parodying Dale Carnegie, Osho once said that his biography should be called “How To Make Enemies And Influence People.”

Osho’s public stature is your protection.

If you want to play safe, then keep each quotation under 300 words, because this has been adopted as a general “fair use” guideline. But longer quotes will also be okay, especially if you break them up into short sections of direct quotations, while paraphrasing in between.

But for those of you who just want to write about their personal memories, or use a quote here and there, or talk about Osho’s views on various subjects, have no fear. Feel free to quote the Great Rebel. He’s public property and your right to comment will be protected under the law.

Another writer points out that if there is a legitimate copyright holder, and if you are relying on the fair-use rule for protection, you need to make sure you attribute material by Osho to Him to avoid claims of plagiarism. You can’t take a quote or close paraphrase of Osho and use it as your own work.

An attorney in Australia suggests that a new approach to handing copyright, called Creative Commons, might be the solution. Here are links to a comic book description of Creative Commons that explains what it is: www.law.duke.edu/cspd/comics/digital.php;
and information on an author who increased sales using this approach:
www.ft.com/cms/s/2/b46f5a58-aa2e-11db-83b0-0000779e2340.html
Let us know what you think.

Sourced from our Osho magazine, the Viha Connection.

Without Freedom Love Is Not Possible: An Interview of Ramateertha by Harideva

This past winter in Goa Harideva of the editorial board of the Viha Connection interviewed Ramateertha of the Osho Uta Institute in Cologne. A sannyasin for 34 years, Ramateerth has been an integral part of Osho Uta for all that time. We are happy to present to you here part of what Ramateertha shared.

HD: How and when did you decide to return to Germany to start a meditation center for Osho?

RT: When I was returning to Germany in ’76 I had a leaving darshan, and Osho asked me, “Where are you going?” I said, “Back to Cologne.” He said, “Go and help my people there.” I told Him there were no people there; I was the only one. [Laughter]

So He said, “Oh, you can open up a center there.” I said “No, no, no, I can’t do that.” He asked, “Why?” and I replied, “Well, I can’t do it, and I have no money.” He explained to me, and actually took some time to explain, why I should go back and open up a center. Even then it took four years before I started the Uta center in 1980. In the beginning I was the center leader, but I had no idea how the center should be. The only idea I had was that I wanted to live in the place where I worked, and out of that grew a center, which was always based simply on meditation and personal growth and on sharing love and energy.

HD: Do you have a position on the attempts to trademark the name Osho, and what are your insights about these controversies?

RT: It was a decisive point for me when I heard that the US Board ruled that the trademark in America had never existed. I was deeply touched and relieved, because I can see in how many places and in how many ways the fiction of a trademark was being used to try and control people. I have opposed the idea that “Osho” might be a trademark for a long time. In the very beginning, when the idea that “Osho” might be a trademark first came up, I think I was a bit naïve about this question. I didn’t know what a trademark was, and I didn’t see the implications of what this idea really meant.

I also think that the way Vatayana got the centers to sign a document called a Letter of Understanding was very, very misleading and manipulative. The paper was not presented as a legal document, but a year after some people had signed it Vatayana began to claim it was one. I was upset about this dishonesty, and I started seeing the strategy involved.

I knew that “Osho” had never been used as a trademark while Osho was in the body or in the years since then, but only to describe content that refers to Osho’s teachings. The reason is simply that it is, by its nature, not a trademark, but just a personal name of Osho that is also a description of the content of His teachings and vision. So when the idea that there was such a thing as an “Osho trademark” slowly, slowly started being put into the field, it was done in a very devious way, as I see it, very misleading. It was as if an outside enemy was being created that we needed a fictional trademark to defend against. Out of fear, people were encouraged to pretend that “Osho” could be, was, and had been used as a trademark. Eventually that kind of defense turns into a means to control those who are within the field. Every fascist regime has created outer enemies to control people inside. And when I started seeing the whole game and the lying and cheating that was connected to it, I saw how harmful to the community this pretense had become.

At a certain point Vatayana tried to take over center meetings in Germany and to become the one who organizes them. She made it clear that she wanted to invite only people who had signed the Letter of Understanding. At some point during a meeting she said, “This is not a democracy.” The person who was in charge of inviting for that meeting said, “Well, and it is not a dictatorship either.” And the whole room was silent. During the argument a young woman said, “I don’t understand what this argument is about. It’s just only about power, isn’t it?” A pin-drop silence occurred, and Vatayana dropped the project of taking control of that meeting.

Osho once said, “This is not a democracy,” but the Master makes certain decisions or confronts people in certain situations with certain ways of working; that’s one thing. When disciples are dealing with each other, you can’t adopt the same attitude that the Master had and then say, “That’s the way the Master works.” He comes from a completely different level of consciousness. As a disciple, to start imitating this way of working and pose as a successor is not only stupid but also harmful. I think in the world of sannyas we sometimes adopt attitudes that are not healthy. They don’t allow communication and respect to arise, and I saw a lot of that in Sheela’s time.

So in the 2009 German center meeting there was a confrontation about the trademark issue, and I made it a point that the reality of this situation is reflected in clear guidance from Osho that nobody disputes. Osho said the centers are all independent – not only by their legal structure but also in their use of Osho’s name as a reference to His teachings and vision. The centers are at the most “spiritually affiliated.” That has always been Osho’s relationship with individuals and centers, and the pretense of a trademark stands in direct opposition to the reality of this relationship. Vatayana argued that Osho wanted trademarks. She even went so far as to say that whenever someone received a center from Osho a license was given at that moment. This is bullshit and an appalling insult to the moments when Osho gave people the name for a center. Osho respected the centers’ complete freedom; there was no signature on a contract on any side. It was never a question of a legal relationship. And then Vatayana tried to say, “Well, maybe there is a way we can reconsider the whole thing, in the sense we will try to maintain the centers’ independence and still have a trademark.”

Of course, that is just deceptive. Independence means both that the centers have always been legally independent and that they’ve been independent in their use of Osho’s name as a reference to His teachings. “Osho” is not, and has never been, a trademark; it simply does not qualify to be a trademark, because, as I already said, it’s just the name of Osho as a person and is also a description of the content of His teachings and vision.

The cunning thing, though, was that while we were in that meeting in 2009 arguing about the trademark issue, Vatayana was sending “updated agreements” about this fictional trademark to all the centers that were not present in the meeting, without telling anyone at the meeting.

I also had a dispute with Yogendra about this in 2009, and he completely agreed that Osho had acknowledged that the centers were independent, but he said, “Well, you know, with certain situations, we asked the lawyers how we should handle them and what we should do, and they suggested to us that we should create a trademark.” How can they claim on the one hand that Osho wanted a trademark and on the other hand say something like this?

In December I wrote a letter to Global Connections that we would not sign any agreement with them and that we would do anything necessary to oppose any attempt to change legally independent centers into some kind of “franchise system.” If OIF insists that there is a trademark “Osho” in Europe, then we will bring a case to establish that there is no trademark in the European Union, just as it has been proven in the US. In this process I follow my heart, and I follow my own understanding. I know that without freedom love is not possible. It’s very simple. And it is not freedom if you force people or if you bind people with legal contracts. It’s just like marriage. It destroys freedom, and it destroys any possibility to really flower. This was Osho’s wisdom when He refused to create any kind of organization.

In my understanding nobody can give you the right to use the name Osho, as nobody can own Osho’s name, and, therefore, nobody needs to ask anybody for a “right” to use the Osho name. It describes content but does not mean that it originates from somebody who is entitled to or in the position to control content. Osho Himself asked everyone involved in His work to use His name, and we have all used it for 21 years. It’s just ridiculous to pretend it’s a trademark for anyone.

But I’m not a crusader; that much is certain. I don’t judge what others should do. For some person it may be right to say, “I don’t want to have anything to do with it.” I don’t know what their lives look like, but from my situation, from my own experience I can’t just stand by and do nothing. I am doing what I am doing because my heart tells me so. I don’t want to point my finger at anybody else and say, “You should do it also.”

For me this is exactly the same situation as we faced with Sheela. And I tell you I don’t know where I would be in all of this without the experience of the Ranch. Some say the Ranch was a failure, but to be honest, I don’t think it was a failure. I think it was the one of the most incredible experiences and teachings about organized religion that Osho has given. Without that experience – which was painful, very painful – I would not have the guts or the spine to say no. Osho was in silence, and Sheela was the only person seeing Him. That gave her an incredible influence over people who loved and respected Osho. I think Osho first kept quiet when the house was on fire, and He even put more fuel on it to make the house burn down completely – the house of organized religion and all that comes with it. But the basic message for me is that I have to trust and to risk everything within myself. I think of what happened on the Ranch as a vaccination against religion. The experience taught me about fascism in the name of religion and in the name of spirituality. He pulled the plug in time then. There is no one there to pull the plug now. It’s now the responsibility of each of us to speak up.

And, of course, it is a completely childish attitude to point the finger at Sheela. We are all Sheela; it is in every one of us. The same way she was or is blaming Osho for everything she has done, we give away responsibility to outer “authorities” and lose our freedom. This is especially strong for Germans who had the experience of Hitler in the last century to teach us that we all have this potential. Maybe it’s not by accident that opposition to the trademark registration in the EU is coming from Germany.
It’s so clear to me that the legal thing that’s happening is just a joke. The name Osho stands for this amazing Master and His teachings and His vision. It cannot be separated: here the person and there the teaching. And it is not possible to monopolize the name Osho. The ® some people would like to add to “Osho” is deceptive. For me, it really stands for “Religion” – a “Trademark Religion,” as that is what these people are trying to achieve. They want to establish a new authority and make a religion out of a vision. To pretend that Osho’s name is a trademark – the name of the man who has always been an advocate for total freedom without religion − is as intelligent as someone who does not want the death penalty saying, “I will shoot everybody who is for the death penalty!”

For me it is important not to get too serious about this. I’m German, you know; I can be very serious. Then I get almost righteous myself, and that is not the point.

People will certainly be confronted by the question, “Where do I stand in this?” as they are confronted with demands that they submit to outer control. And that will be beneficial, because they will have to look for themselves, or play the same game that has been played for millennia.

Sourced from our Osho magazine, the Viha Connection.

The Osho Digital Audio Library

As everyone knows, audio tapes and CDs are old technology and have been replaced by MP3 CDs.

We have been selling many Osho discourses MP3s for $16 to $20 each MP3.

Now we are selling the Osho Digital Audio Library: a small, portable hard drive containing about 170 full Osho books; a total of approximately 4800 hours of Osho talks, from the Vigyan Bhairav Tantra lectures and the entire Yoga: The Alpha & the Omega series to his final discourse on April 10, 1989. The sound quality is very good.

The price is $890 (net) plus shipping.

The hard drive is compatible with both PCs and Macs. The files are in audio book format.

How this hard drive can be used:

1. You can attach this hard drive to a recent Mac or PC computer and listen to any of the Osho discourses on your computer, or through any speakers or stereo system attached to your computer.

2. You can also sync these discourses (not all at once, as many as will fit at a time) to an iPod or iPhone (or any iTunes-compatible MP3 player), which will allow you to take them with you and listen with headphones, earbuds, or connected to a home or car stereo.

3. You can burn CDs and listen to these discourses in any CD player that will play CDs created by a computer.

Please contact us at oshoviha@oshoviha.org if you are interested.

Sourced from the Viha Connection, the Osho magazine.

Special Sale! Osho's "After Middle Age"

This little jewel of a book is a must-read for everyone, not just those approaching middle age (or leaving that period behind).

Osho says: To me, maturity is another name for realization. You have come to the fulfillment of your potential.
It has become actual. The seed has come on the long journey, and it has blossomed. Maturity has a fragrance. It gives a tremendous beauty to the individual. It gives intelligence, the sharpest possible intelligence.

Old age has given the last touches to the painting of its own life. And when one has given the last touches,
one is ready to die joyously, dancingly. One is ready to welcome death.

The discourses collected in this book are compiled from different Osho books. Chapter titles include:

Time for Change • Love & Alchemy • Natural is Beautiful • A New Beginning • Nothing Ends • Gracefully Surrendering the Things of Youth • The Beauty of It! • Becoming Free • The Eternal Life Within You • Laughter Brings Strength • The Sheer Delight • Maturity: The Seed that Has Blossomed

For a limited time, we are offering this book for $6.95 (regularly $9.95). You can buy it online at http://www.oshoviha.org/index.php?show_category=133

Sourced from the Viha Connection, the Osho magazine.

Osho: Sex Guru or Tantra Master?

Again and again Osho has been called “Sex Guru” by the media, both in India and the West. Is this really true? He certainly dared to address the topic of sex more than any spiritual teacher, which – especially in his native India – shocked many people. But a closer look at his talks on sex and Tantra, which are published in many Tantra books, show that the label “Sex Guru” is not much more than cheap journalistic sensationalism.

In this answer to a seeker’s question, Osho himself explains how he wants to take his sannyasins beyond sex so that they can move, as one of his books is titled From Sex to Superconsciousness:

Yes, I teach you how to go deep in love. I teach you how to go deep in sex too, because that is the only way to go beyond. To go through it is the only way to go beyond it – but my goal is to take you beyond. Now this is a problem, and I am going to be misunderstood again and again, all over the world.

People have become accustomed: They think religious people have to be against sex; and those who are not against sex, how can they be religious? […]

I can only be understood by a NEW kind of being who has seen this totality: that man is both body and soul, and that life matures only through experiences.

Sex can become a stepping-stone towards SAMADHI. If you understand it deeply, if you experience it deeply, you will be free of it – but that freedom will have a totally different quality I It will not be a repressed sex. A repressed sex continues underground, goes on in your unconscious, on and on, and goes on affecting your life. […]

If you can make love consciously, you will be surprised: Love has all the keys to SAMADHI. If you go deeply into love with full consciousness, alert and aware, you will see that it is not love that attracts you; but in the highest peak of love, in the orgasmic explosion, your mind disappears, your thoughts stop, and that is from where the nectar flows into you. It is not really sex that gives you that beautiful experience. Sex simply helps you, in a natural way, to come to a point where mind is dissolved – of course, for a moment. The clouds disperse, and you can see the sun. Again those clouds will be there and the sun will be lost, and again you will start fantasizing about sex. If you go unconscious, then you will miss this whole secret again and again.
It is not sex that is keeping you tethered to the world; it is unconsciousness! So the question is not how to drop sex; the question is how to drop unconsciousness. Be conscious and let your natural being have its whole flow.

From: The Secret of Secrets, Vol. 2, Chapter 6

(This and many other of his discourses are available on Osho discourses MP3s.)

For anyone familiar with Osho books it is clear that Osho was probably the greatest Tantra master ever. So it is no surprise that Osho sannyasins, many of whom work as therapists, have published the results of their research in a host of Tantra books.

Sourced from Osho Viha Connection magazine

A Collection of Coming-to-Osho Stories

Over the past years that has been a great crop of books by Osho sannyasins. Bhagawati, who lives in Bali and is a columnist for our Osho magazine, recently published a collection of coming-to-Osho stories.

This wonderful book has been flying off our shelves ever since its arrival here, and we have a hard time keeping it in stock. No wonder, considering that in this book 44 Osho sannyasins share how they found the Master and eventually received their Osho mala from him.

These are amazing stories of people who left behind their past to be in the presence of an enlightened Master. Many of them went on to live in the Ashram in Pune, India, where they were able to listen to Osho discourses, many of which are available on DVDs today. They also did Osho meditations on a regular basis during their stay in India. Their lives were transformed forever.

Thanks to modern technology, we are still able to experience the magic of an enlightened Master today, in the form of Osho books, Osho DVDs, and now Osho MP3s. We are hoping to soon be able to offer a HUGE selection of Osho MP3s – almost all his talks. Stay tuned!

Summertime at Osho Viha

I have to admit I haven’t been into blogging lately. My apologies to whatever readers there may be.

Yesterday I delivered the September/October Viha Connection to Shanti Poona for the design. We are still receiving enthusiastic feedback to our July/August issue with many stories from people who came to Osho after he left his body. Amazing how our Master keeps touching folks 20 years later! Some came to him through Osho books they found somewhere, others just saw some Osho photos, and many of course found Osho through Osho’s sannyasins. In recent years many people took sannyas while attending Osho meditation retreats conducted by Swami Arun from Nepal (www.tapoban.com). After these events there is always an increased demand for Osho malas, which we are happy to supply.

Talking of malas, just in the past few weeks we have shipped malas all over the world: Israel, Brazil, Australia, and pretty much every European country (almost 30 to Italy!). We really enjoy the contact with these Osho lovers all over the globe.

IS AN ENLIGHTENED PERSON SELF-SUFFICIENT IN THE WORLD?

CAN ONE LIVE AND FUNCTION IN THE WORLD IN A STATE OF ENLIGHTENMENT OR NO-MIND? IS AN ENLIGHTENED PERSON SELF-SUFFICIENT IN THE WORLD?

The state of enlightenment is not the state of individuality. There is no person in it. One who is enlightened is enlightened only because he is not; there is nobody to function. Activity continues, but there is nobody to do it. Functioning continues, but there is nobody to function it. Then it continues on its own... just as stars go on moving and the seasons move, and the sun rises, and the moon comes, and the tide, and the seas, and the rivers.

An enlightened person is one with the whole; the whole functions through him. His activity is perfect because he is not there to distort it. He is just like a hollow bamboo -- whatsoever song the whole chooses to sing through him, it is sung. There is nobody to hinder, there is nobody to obstruct.

An enlightened person is an enlightened emptiness... Luminous emptiness. He has disappeared. If you believe in the concept of god, if you use that term, then you can say god functions through him. If you don't like that term, then you can say the whole functions through him. But he is not to function there.

When you function you create anxiety. All your functioning is in some way a sort of conflict with the whole. It is a struggle; there is motive, there is desire, there is ambition. When you are there, all illnesses are there. When you are there, neurosis is there -- the ego is neurotic. It tries to impose its own goals on the whole -- which is impossible. It tries to do that which cannot be done, hence gets more and more frustrated, enters deeper and deeper into hell and misery.

An enlightened person simply allows; whatsoever happens is a happening. It is very difficult to conceive it because it is not of the mind. It is very difficult to understand it because there is no experience. You can understand it only when you have dissolved, when you have become that.

There is no way to understand a Buddha unless you become a Buddha -- because it is such a totally different dimension of existence. We have never tasted of it. It is simply impossible for the mind to conceive, because the mind functions through motive: there has to be a desire, there has to be a goal, there has to be the doer. The mind says if you don't do, how is it going to happen?

But millions of things are happening without anybody doing them. Who is doing the movement of the stars? Is not their functioning absolutely perfect? What is missing? What is lacking? Who is rushing these rivers to the ocean? Who goes on controlling the tide and the ebb? Who goes on maintaining this infinity, this immenseness? There is nobody. Because there is nobody, that's why it is so beautiful. Because there is nobody, that's why it is so absolutely perfect. If somebody is there, there is a possibility of error. If somebody is there, then there is a possibility of mistakes.
There is nobody -- it is out of emptiness.

The seed goes on sprouting. Each moment is a miracle, because each moment existence comes out of nothingness. Each moment the flower happens out of the blue. Nobody is forcing it, nobody is pulling it up. There is nobody to open the bud; it opens on its own accord. This is what Buddha calls the dhamma, the law, the ultimate law of life.
The enlightened person is no more in any conflict with the ultimate law; he has surrendered. He floats, he flows with the river. He has almost become a wave in the river, he does not exist separately.

CAN ONE LIVE AND FUNCTION IN THE WORLD IN A STATE OF ENLIGHTENMENT OR NO-MIND?

Yes, one can function. One has functioned. Buddha lived forty-two years after he became enlightened. Mahavir lived forty years after he became enlightened. They functioned perfectly well. And yet, the beauty is, the grandeur is, that there was nobody doing it.

It is a moment to moment miracle. It is absolutely unbelievable, it is incredible to function out of nothingness, to function out of no-motive, to function out of no-mind. Just to function without having a center, without having a self.

An enlightened person is natural, spontaneous. He has no explanation why he is functioning. He will shrug his shoulders if you ask the question 'Why?' He cannot explain it, he can at the most say, 'It is how it is. It is how it is happening.' He will say, 'I don't know, because there is nobody to know it.' It is a mysterious functioning.

Of course the functioning is going to be totally different than your functioning. Out of your activity, anxiety arises, tension. Out of your activity, fear arises. Fear -- are you going to succeed or not? Tension -- because there is competition, conflict; others are also rushing towards the same goal. Will you be able to become rich? Will you be able to become that which you want? It doesn't seem to be easy. [...]

So there are only two types of people in the world. One, who have private goals -- they feel they are being dragged; they feel man proposes, god disposes. Then there is another type of people in the world -- very few, rare, far, far and few between, very few -- who have dropped all their propositions. They don't drag, they dance. They dance, because whatsoever god proposes they accept. And they have no private propositions, they don't have any desire of their own.

That's what Jesus says on the cross, that is his last message to the world -- 'Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done'. Just a moment before he has hesitated a little, just a moment before he shouted and said, 'Why have you forsaken me? Why? Why are you showing me all this?'
You cannot complain against Jesus -- that too is natural and human. He was only thirty-three, he was not yet old, he was just young, he had not seen the whole life yet, he had not tasted, he had not lived yet -- and suddenly he finds himself on the Cross, ridiculed, insulted, rejected by his own people. And it is natural that he shouts at god, 'Why have you forsaken me? Why are you showing me all this?' -- human, very human.

But immediately he became aware of it. It must have escaped -- this shouting against god -- in a moment of unawareness. The pain may have been too much, the misery was too much. Death was just close by; he was shocked. But he regained balance. He was going to propose something. He simply said, 'Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.' He surrendered. He died as Christ.

In a single moment he was no more Jesus, he was Christ. In a single moment he was no more human, he was superhuman. The gap is very small. That's why Buddha says, 'Miss it by a single inch, or by a single moment and you are thrown millions of miles away.' Just a single inch was the difference between these two sentences -- there was not much gap, maybe a single breath. But he was just ordinary when he shouted against god -- human, weak. Just a moment later on he was reconciled; there was no problem then. If this is the way god wants it to happen, then this is the way it has to happen. He accepted.

A smile must have come to his face, and not only to his face but to his heart also. In that moment he must have expanded. Now there was nothing to shrink, to remain closed. Even death was accepted. When you accept death, you have accepted god. Everybody desires for life. When you accept life you don't accept much. When you accept death you have accepted all.

An enlightened person is one who has not only accepted death, who has really died. He is no more there, the house is absolutely empty. Or he is that emptiness. That emptiness is luminous, full of light. Now he moves hand and hand with god. Now wherever god takes him, to whatsoever land -- uncharted, unmapped -- he runs along, dancing. He is not dragged.

If you are dragged by life, then you must be fighting with it. If you are bored by life, then you must be fighting with it. If you are frustrated by life, you must be fighting with it. These are indications that you are not reconciled to life, that you have not yet become mature enough to surrender; you are childish, you are in a childish tantrum.

A man who is really mature has no will of his own. He says, 'Thy will be done.' It is only immature minds who go on carrying their own will, and of course they suffer. Will brings suffering, will is the way to hell. You bring suffering, you are the way to hell. You create suffering.

Of course, an enlightened person functions totally differently. He himself does not know where he is going, and he is not worried about it either. He does not think about it -- where he is going. He trusts: wherever he is going, it is good. His trust is total and infinite.

He trusts life, you trust yourself. He trusts the whole, you trust a tiny part. He trusts the immense, the infinite, you trust the mediocre human mind. His trust makes him wise, your trust makes you stupid. You doubt the whole and you trust yourself. He has dropped himself and he trusts the whole. He is never to be frustrated, he has no regrets. He never looks back, because whatsoever was, was -- and whatsoever was, was good.

And it is not just only a mind thing. He feels it, his whole existence is radiated with 'yes!' He says 'yes' to life, you go on saying 'no'. No-saying creates ego, yea-saying drops the ego, helps the ego to drop and disappear.

he enlightened person is an absolute, unconditional 'yes'. It is very difficult to understand it unless you have tasted something of it. That is the only way to know about it.

IS AN ENLIGHTENED PERSON SELF-SUFFICIENT IN THE WORLD?

That's why I say you can understand it only if you have known it, if you have become it. Otherwise you will go on asking questions which are irrelevant. For example: IS AN ENLIGHTENED PERSON SELF-SUFFICIENT IN THE WORLD?

He has no self, so how can he be self-sufficient? He has no self, so how can he be in any way self-sufficient? I am not saying that he is discontented. I am not saying that he is unsatisfied, and I am not saying that he is not sufficient. I am simply saying that he cannot be self-sufficient because he has no self.

An enlightened person comes to know that independence is impossible, dependence also impossible. The reality is neither dependent nor independent; the reality is interdependent. We exist together. And when I say 'we', the trees are included, the mountains are included, the skies are included. When I say 'we', everything is included, nothing is excluded. We exist together. We are together. Our very being is togetherness. Nobody is self-sufficient.

That's what ordinarily we are trying to become -- self-sufficient. That is our whole struggle -- so that we are no more dependent on anybody. But just think: is it possible to be self-sufficient? And if it is possible for a man to become self-sufficient, will he be alive? He will be dead. Only when you are in your grave are you self-sufficient. Otherwise you will have to breathe -- and you cannot be self-sufficient about it. You will have to take in the breath, the vitality, the PRANA. You will have to wait for the sun to make you warm. You will have to eat the fruit of the trees so their juice becomes your blood. You will need billions of things. How can you be self-sufficient? The very idea is foolish.

But there are people, the so-called saints -- who go on teaching you 'become self-sufficient'. That is an ego trip. It is not possible in the nature of things to be self-sufficient because self is a falsity. Self is just an idea, it has no reality, so how can you create sufficiency around a false idea? Self in itself is non-existential, so how can you create sufficiency around something which does not exist?

The enlightened person is one who looks into life and comes to know that 'I am not, only god is, truth is. Truth is self-sufficient, the whole is self-sufficient. How can I be self-sufficient?' We are linked with everything else, and this linking is really complex. I am not only linked to you, you are not only linked to these trees, you are not only linked to the sun today -- you are linked to ALL the people who have ever lived on the earth. If your parents were not there you would not have been here. If your grandparents were not there you would not have been here. Just go back, go back -- if Adam and Eve were not there you would not have been here.

So not only are we linked with the contemporary existence, we are linked with the whole past -- not only of humanity, but of the whole universe. This is easy to understand -- that we are linked with the whole past -- otherwise how can we be? We are part of a procession, part of a river, an ongoing river. You are also linked with the future. It is a little more difficult because we think that maybe it is right -- we are linked with the past -- but how are we linked with the future?

A river has two banks. It cannot flow with only one bank, otherwise it will never reach the ocean. The other bank may be hidden in deep mist, you may not be able to see it, it may be very far away. You cannot see it -- it is beyond the horizon -- but still you can think that it has to be there. The past is one bank of the river of time, the future is another bank. Without the future the past cannot exist; and without the past and the future the present cannot exist. The present is the river, the past is one bank, the future is another bank.

We are not only linked with the past, we are linked with the future also. You are not only linked with your parents, you are linked with your children also -- children who are not born yet. You are not only one with the past that has been here, but with the future that is going to be here. You are linked with the yesterday and the tomorrow -- otherwise the today cannot exist. It has to exist between yesterday and the tomorrow -- yesterdays and tomorrows. The today is just a middle turn.

If you look that way, then in space we are linked with everything. If the sun dies today we all will die. It is so far; the light takes ten minutes to reach to us. Ten minutes doesn't look such a big time, but for light to travel that much it is really big, because the light travels so fast -- one hundred and eighty-six thousand miles per second.

The sun is ten minutes away. But if it dies, suddenly you will see these trees dying, suddenly you will see yourself shrinking and dying. Suddenly you will see the whole beauty disappears from the earth, because the whole warmth disappears from the earth. Warmth is life. The very throb of the heart is connected with the sun. But the scientists say the sun itself is connected to some source of light, yet not discovered. Somewhere at the very center of the whole existence there must be a source the sun is connected with.

Everything is connected. Have you watched a spider's web? Just touch it anywhere and the whole web trembles. Exactly that way is life. Touch it anywhere... touch a leaf of grass and you have touched all the stars, because everything is so interconnected. There are no boundaries -- we are not islands, we are a continent. Nothing defines you. All definitions are manmade. All definitions are just like the fence around your house -- it does not divide the earth. All boundaries are like lines on the map -- it does not divide the earth, it does not divide the ocean, it does not divide the sky. It is only on the map.

An enlightened person is one who has dropped all demarcations; who is not a Christian, who is not a Hindu, who is not a Mohammedan, who is not a Buddhist, who is not a communist, who is not a fascist, who is not man, who is not woman, who is not young, who is not old -- who has dropped all lines of demarcation, who lives without definition. To live without definition is to live infinitely, because all definition is a finitude. To define means to make finite.

An enlightened person is indefinable, infinite. He has no lines.

Somebody asked Bokuju, a zen master, 'Master, you say everything is one. Then is a dog also a Buddha?' That is a zen way of asking, 'Is a dog also god?' Bokuju did not answer verbally; he jumped on his fours and started barking. He was a Buddha, an enlightened being. He simply showed that, 'Yes. Look -- here is a dog barking, and here is a Buddha too.' A dog is nothing but god in reverse. Just read it backwards; that is the only difference.

Everything is divine and everything is one.

The enlightened person is not self-sufficient. He is sufficient, certainly -- but not self-sufficient. Sufficient because there is no problem for him -- the whole is there available for him. The whole goes on supplying him even without asking. The whole takes care. He has dissolved into the whole; now the whole is responsible. The whole takes care of him. He is protected by the whole, he is sheltered by the whole. He is at home in the whole. Whatsoever happens is welcome, because it is happening through the whole. How can it be wrong? 'Thy will be done, Thy kingdom come.' He is just a zero.

So I cannot say he is self-sufficient. He is tremendously sufficient, but not self-sufficient. His sufficiency comes not from his self, his sufficiency comes because he has dropped his self. He is sufficient because he is with the whole -- now how can he lack anything? It is impossible to lack anything. The sun is with him, the moon is with him, the trees, the rivers, the oceans -- he is no more poor.
An enlightened person is the richest person possible, but his richness comes from surrender, not from fight. He does not... he has not any conflict with the whole. He has fallen in harmony, he is in a harmonia.

The Discipline of Transcendence, Vol 2, Chapter #10

Sourced from Viha Connection

Extensive Coverage of the Bombing of the German Bakery

This morning Dhanyam found extensive coverage of the bombing on one of his favorite websites: http://www.intelligentpune.org/IntelligentPune/index.htm

The long article has many photos, lists of the dead and injured, and details of the history of the German Bakery. We haven't seen anything that detailed in any other article. Have a look!

Sourced from Viha Connection magazine

Celebration for Nadia

The first picture shows Nadia, the second one Eshana.

Here is an article from the Pune Mirror, February 17:

Rejoice! Nadia is no more!

Oshoites celebrate the death of their Italian associate, killed in the blast, in keeping with their master’s ideals. After all, she is free from this world and starting out in the next

By Chaitraly Deshmukh and Payal Banerjee
Posted On Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 12:13:14 AM

Eshana (Top), a close friend of Italian Oshoite Nadia Mercerini (Above)Living upto Osho’s teaching “Celebrate life! Celebrate death!” and tradition of Osho followers, the friends and associates of Italian Oshoite Nadia Mercerini, who died in the 13/2 German Bakery bombing, came together and ‘celebrated’ her death on Sunday evening.

Strange it may sound to many, but Oshoites have a tradition of ‘celebrating’ death. There had been similar ‘celebrations’ when Osho himself passed away. And the tradition comes from Osho’s teachings. Osho had said, “Death is always close by. It is almost like your shadow.

You may be aware, you may not be aware, but it follows you from the first moment of your life to the very last moment.

Death is a process just as life is a process, and they are almost together, just like two wheels of a bullock cart. Life cannot exist without death; neither can death exist without life.”

He had also said, “And existence gives so abundantly, it is not miserly. You are just not alert enough to use the opportunity to transform yourself into something immortal, eternal, into some experience which will make you beyond the reach of death. Just fearing death is not of any help.

If you see that death is following you, it is time to start searching deeper into yourself for that point which is beyond death. We have been calling that point satchitanand: the truth of your being, the ultimate consciousness of your life and the tremendous blessing of your coming to flower.”

“Nadia was on a spiritual path and a diehard Osho follower. That is why we decided to stick to Osho’s teachings and celebrate her death,” says Eshana (50), a close associate of the deceased.

Sitting quietly on a bench outside the mortuary of the Sassoon Hospital after seeking Nadia’s body and waiting for the formalities to be completed prior to receiving the body and ncessary for sending her mortal remains to her motherland, Eshana vividly recalled how they ‘celebrated’ Nadia’s death.

Eshana remembered,“On Sunday evening, we got together at my house in Koregaon park. We were about 25 people, all close to Nadia.

We played the music she loved and danced. This ‘celebration’ went on till late evening.” Clutching a purse gifted to her by Nadia, Eshana says Nadia was a yoga instructor and frequented Pune for the last seven to eight years.

“She had returned to Pune from a Thailand tour, just three weeks ago and her first words on reaching here were “home is where home is”. I had purchased a new dress for her. I want her to return to her motherland wearing it.”

HUMMING BIRD FLEW AWAY
She remembered Nadia as a lively person. “Nadia was a humming bird. She would always hum old melodies. She loved Bollywood movies and Ai Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahan was her favorite song.”

She said, “Nadia was a pure vegeterian and loved to cook. But she savoured restaurant food also. She liked Pizza from La-Pizzeria. She was an enviornment lover and used bicycle to move about whenever she went to teach yoga or to anywhere else. She could talk in Marathi and Hindi.”

Eshana recalled, “Like me she too always wore a smile. That was what attracted us to each other. Just hours before the blast, we had lunch together on Saturday.

Then we were discussing about quitting smoking. We parted ways after promising each other to meet again at a function.

After the blast, I could not contact her. I came to know about her death only when a friend from Mumbai called up the next day. I then went to the hospital and identified Nadia.”

http://www.punemirror.in/index.aspx?page=article§id=2&contentid=20100217201002170013140782725e34§xslt=

Sourced from Viha Connection magazine

Memories of the German Bakery

Our dear friend and astrologer Deepak sent us this lovely piece. We invite you to share your memories of the German Bakery here with us.

Memories of German Bakery
by Deepak

The German Bakery was my first and second and last home in Pune. It was the first place I stopped when I got there in 1991, and it was the last place I saw when I left Pune for the last time in 2006. It was the first place I went to in the morning to have a cappuccino and a smoke, and it was the last place at night I stayed until those early closing hours to have a cappuccino and a smoke. I usually sat around on the side where the sound of traffic was less than it was in the front.

The place was full of sannyasins in maroon robes in those early days, and that is where I got my introduction into sannyasin ways. I remember one crowded day when I asked a swami to pass me that stool next to him. He looked over at it, looked at me, looked at the stool again, and said, “Sorry man, but I don’t feel like it”.

“Wow, you can do things like that?” I thought.

Another time I walked in and saw a Westerner in street clothes talking on his cell phone. It was the first cell phone I had ever seen. The idea of talking on a cell phone in the midst of India in the middle of meditators was so incongruous to me that I just burst out laughing. He saw me laughing and smiled.

Another time my Italian girlfriend and I were standing out in the middle of the street in front and having argument number one thousand and fifty five. The street was still unpaved in those days, and North Main Road had no traffic after dark. She yells, and I yell, and we yell together in two languages, and she stomps her little feet and storms off to Yogi Park. I turn around and go into German Bakery to have a cappuccino and a smoke.

I sit down, and the guy next to me says, “You are Deepak?”

I know what’s coming and say with resignation, “Yeah.”

“You write that beautiful horoscope in the Osho Times, and you behave like that?”
I throw my hands up and say, “Yeah, paradox.”

I remember the little store next door where I had another expansion in consciousness. In America, customers stand in line, and then when the clerk is finished with one customer, the next customer steps up over the line. One at a time, one at a time. At this little store, all the customers would be talking to the clerk at the same time. With one hand he was giving change, with another hand he was reaching for an item on the shelves, and with the third hand he was taking money from another person. “Wow, polyphasic parallel processing,” I thought as I saw him multitasking simultaneously.

I spent thousands of hours chatting, talking, smoking, drinking cappuccinos, and eating Berliners at German Bakery. I met wise men that were older than me and could teach me things in some ways, Narendra in the morning and Purnananda in the afternoon. I met friends and lovers and strangers and newcomers and old sannyasins and ashram exiles. People were from all over the world, and ten different languages would be going on. It was a mind-expanding and heart-opening space to be. I lived in Popular Heights for a long time, and it was on the way and easy to stop. I stopped there many, many times.

The German Bakery was a home to me, and now it has been blown up and is gone. My own home where I grew up as a little boy is now an empty lot. My grandmother’s house where I would stop after school and have a piece of chocolate cake is now an empty lot. So many people I have loved and have been my guides and teachers are gone. All of this life has been maya, transitory, and shifting dreams. The wise men were right. The only place to go is to go In.

Deepak's website is http://www.astronlp.com

Sourced from Viha Connection magazine

German Bakery in Pune Bombed

We are shocked to hear that the Germany Bakery, a popular hang-out spot near the Osho Resort in Pune, was bombed on Saturday, 7:30 pm local time. Below an article from the online BBC.

Pune, known as the cultural and educational capital of the western Indian state of Maharashtra, is in shock at the bombing of the German Bakery.
The restaurant is popular with students and tourists and was crowded when one of the waiters opened an unattended bag to see who it belonged to.
The following explosion destroyed the restaurant and the outdoor seating area, although the building above was left standing.

Santosh Bhosale: "The bakery is like our home"
"When I heard the blast it was like a earthquake tremor," said Santosh Bhosale, a shopkeeper who was nearby at the time.
"We ran to see what happened and saw bodies lying. I didn't think twice and I started to help people to take the injured to hospital.
"I knew the staff members of the bakery. We all have been here for years together now and are extremely fond of each other. This bakery is like our home," he said.
Initial reports of a second bag containing explosives have been discounted.
The German Bakery is in a plush, upmarket area of Pune, close to the Osho Ashram and the Jewish Chabad House.
There was a heavy police presence at the three Pune hospitals where the injured - most of them between 25-30 years old - were taken.
At Jehangir Hospital students gathered in anxious clusters to ask after their friends.

How did they manage to attack such a busy place in such an important area? Pune is otherwise a laidback and relaxed city but now one does not know
Pune policeman

In pictures: India restaurant blast
Thirteen of the injured were taken here. Two were later discharged after being treated for minor injuries.
"My friend Aditya Mehtra was admitted," said Yogesh, an engineering student.
"Students are always around the German Bakery - especially on a Saturday evening. We never felt anything in Pune but now it will change," he said.
He was told his friend was in the intensive care unit in a stable condition.
The government has offered compensation of about $10,700 (£6,800) for the families of those killed and has said it will pay for the treatment of all those injured.
Security fears
Outside the restaurant, a police constable said until now the citizens of Pune had felt safe and not worried about terror attacks.
"One incident is enough to alter the city. Now people will not have peace of mind. How did they manage to attack such a busy place in such an important area? Now after all these deaths it will get difficult. Pune is otherwise a laidback and relaxed city but now one does not know."
But local resident Salil Nishte said he thought security around the bakery had recently decreased.
"We used to come here for a cappuccino and pastries occasionally. In the last few days I had noticed that security was reduced," he said.
"Normally this area is very well protected because of Osho Centre and Chabad House. However, I feel that over years the population of foreigners and important dignitaries has increased, so security should be beefed up adequately at all times so that such incidents do not occur."
In the absence of anyone claiming responsibility for the attack, speculation has focused on Indian Mujahiddin, Jamat ud Dawa and Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Questions are also being asked about an alert raised for Pune in October.
Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram has said David Headley, an American facing charges in the US for allegedly scouting targets for the Mumbai attack, had also surveyed Chabad House and Osho Ashram.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8514791.stm


Sourced from Viha Connection magazine

Osho: A Contemporary Mystic

Osho (formerly Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh) teaches meditation not as a practice but as a way of life. He is a mystic who brings the timeless wisdom of the East to bear upon the urgent questions facing men and women today. He speaks of the search for harmony, wholeness, and love that lies at the core of all religious and spiritual traditions, illuminating the essence of Christianity, Hassidism, Buddhism, Sufism, Tantra, Tao, Yoga, and Zen. Osho’s vision is of a new man.

Osho speaks on virtually every aspect of the development of human consciousness. His talks cover a staggering range – from the meaning of life and death to the struggle of power and politics, from the challenges of love and creativity to the significance of science and education. He belongs to no tradition.

To know oneself is to know all. And that is the only thing I emphasize; no belief, no dogma, no creed, no church, no religion. By a simple process of inner observation you come to realize yourself... Truth is within – seek not elsewhere.

Osho is a striking modern-day example of the millennia-old Eastern tradition of enlightened Masters. In the East, enlightenment is described as the state of ultimate and total consciousness or awareness, as attained by Gautama Buddha, Socrates, and others.

The function of a Master is to provoke consciousness in others, frequently by unexpected or apparently irrational acts and behavior; and to provide an environment in which a disciple can experience meditation for himself. It is therefore with a very different perception that we must view such a man’s life, as our standard criteria simply do not apply.

History tells of Bodhidharma entering the Emperor’s court with a show on his head or of Japanese Zen Masters planting trees upside down. Such acts can only be understood within the context of the Master’s constant efforts to bring his disciples into the Now, into meditation, and ultimately, to enlightenment. Osho is such a Master.

Osho was born December 11, 1931, in Kuchwada, a small village in the state of Madhya Pradesh, central India. He became enlightened at the age of 21 on March 21, 1953, while majoring in philosophy at D.N. Jain College in Jabalpur.

In 1966 Osho left his post as a professor of philosophy at the University of Jabalpur to devote himself to the raising of human consciousness. A powerful and passionate debater, he traveled widely in India, speaking to large audiences and challenging orthodox religious leaders in public debates and began to address gatherings of 50,000 to 100,000 in the open-air maidans of India’s major cities, using the name of Acharya Rajneesh. Four times a year he conducts intense 10-day meditation camps.

During these camps he introduced his revolutionary meditation technique, Dynamic Meditation, which begins with a period of uninhibited movement and catharsis, followed by a period of silence and stillness.

Most traditional meditation techniques require one to sit still and silent. But Osho understood that for most of us accumulated stress in our body/mind makes that difficult. Before we can enter our inner silent spaces, we need to let go of our tensions. Over the years Osho designed many more such active meditations, lie Kundalini Meditation, Nataraj Meditation, Nadabrahma Meditation, and others. These active meditation techniques have been used by psychotherapists, medical doctors, teachers, and other professionals around the world.

In 1974 Osho moved to Pune (then Poona) where an ashram was established so that Osho would be able to focus his attention on the seekers he had started to initiate. He made it clear that his Neo-Sannyas or discipleship – a path of commitment to self-exploration and meditation – does not involve renouncing the world. Seekers from around the world started arriving and Osho, who was known at this time as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, gave a 90-minute discourse nearly every morning from 1974 to 1981, alternating every month between Hindi and English. His discourses offer insights into all the major spiritual paths, including yoga, Zen, Taoism, Tantra, and Sufism, as well as word teachers such as Gautama Buddha, Jesus, Lao Tzu, and other mystics. These discourses have been collected into over 300 volumes and translated into every major language of the world.

Additionally, the commune offered a wide variety of therapy groups combining Eastern meditation techniques with Western psychotherapy. Therapists from all over the world were attracted, and by 1980 it had become an international community with a reputation as the world’s finest growth and therapy center, with 100,000 people passing through the ashram gates each year.

In 1981, Osho traveled to the US where his American disciples purchased a 64,000-acre ranch in the central Oregonian high desert and invited him to visit. The city of Rajneeshpuram was incorporated and provided services for 5,000 residents. It became the largest and most controversial spiritual community ever pioneered in the US, and a target for many politicians who made inflammatory speeches against it.

In September 1985, Osho’s personal secretary and several members of the commune’s management suddenly left, and a whole pattern of illegal acts they had committed was exposed. Osho invited law enforcement officials to investigate the crimes committed by the group, but the authorities saw this as a golden opportunity to destroy the commune entirely. Federal and local officials arrested Osho at gunpoint without warrants and held him without bail for 12 days.

Fearing for his life, attorneys agreed to an Alford Plea on two out of 35 charges brought against him by a federal grand jury in secret session. (According to the rules of the plea, the defendant maintains innocence while saying that the prosecution could have convicted him.) Osho was fined $400,000 and deported from America. The US Attorney in Portland, Charles Turner, later publicly conceded that the government was intent on destroying Osho’s commune.

Over the next two years, the government of 21 countries denied Osho entry or deported him after arrival. In 1986 Osho returned to India and later to the ashram in Pune where he started giving discourses again. Quickly the ashram fills again with seekers from all over the world.

In early 1989 Osho stopped using the name “Bhagwan” and accepted the address “Osho,” which derived from ancient Japanese. His health declining, he stopped giving talks in August and instead began to make daily appearances for evening darshan, sitting in silence while music was played. “That which cannot be said has to be experienced. This is a geat experience of getting into an inner, meditative space.”

Osho left his body on January 19, 1990. Just before his departure from the body, he said, “Never speak of me in the past tense. My presence here will be much greater without the burden of my tortured body.”

Today, more than 20 years later, his words are proved true. Thousands upon thousands of disciples and visitors come to the Pune ashram (now called Osho International Meditation Resort) and other Osho centers around the world. His talks, spoken over 30 years, recorded on audio and video, and published in hundreds of books are more popular than ever. In 2009, for example, three and a half million of his books were sold worldwide.

Osho Viha Information Center is devoted to spreading Osho’s message through the distribution of Osho books, DVDs, MP3s, and CDs. Osho's words, spoken spontaneously over the years, and his active meditations, are recognized around the world as is his insight into meditation, Tantra, Zen, relationships, and all aspects of life. His work was not a religion but a way of life, a method of revealing and living our full potential, from birth to death.

Osho Viha Information Center is proud to supply books, DVDs, MP3s, tapes, CDs, videos, Tarot cards, and other reflections of Osho’s work, to you through our web site http://www.oshoviha.org. Please contact us at oshoviha@oshoviha.org to find the Osho material you want and contact us. We are always happy to assist you.

Sourced from Osho Viha Connection Magazine

The Sound of Running Water

Many friends of Osho's will remember The Sound of Running Water, the beautiful, big photo biography that was produced in Poona One times. Many gorgeous photos of Osho, his people, and his ashram, plus numerous quotes tell the story of Osho's life and work between 1974 and 1978.

The book was printed in a limited edition and went out of print more than 20 years ago when Avirbhava bought the last (signed) copy for $14,000 in Poona Two. Over the years, many sannyasins would sadly remember the time when they snapped up a copy for $100 in Rajneeshpuram – and gave it away. Sometimes a copy would appear on ebay or Amazon, offered for several thousand dollars.

Now Swami Jagdish in Pune has reprinted the book, with the same photos and text, in almost the exact same format, and we have just received a small shipment. You can contact us at oshoviha@oshoviha.org if you would like a copy.

The “sister” book to The Sound of Running Water has also been reprinted, with a new title, The Song of the Ocean. (The earlier version of the book was titled
This Very Place: The Lotus Paradise.) This new version has some additional chapters and covers Osho’s life and work from 1979 to 1990.

Each book measures 12 1/2 by 11 inches. The Sound of Running Water weighs about 7.5 lbs, and The Song of the Ocean about 5.5 lbs.

We are offering The Sound of Running Water for $895 and The Song of the Ocean for $595.

I think the two books are must-haves for every lover of Osho.

Sourced from Osho Viha Connection Magazine