You may have heard The Starfish Story in which the old men asked the boy why does he bother to throw them back into the ocean, one by one, when there were tens of thousands of starfish on the beach, doomed to die when the sun will rise, because he won't be able to make much of a difference !? ... and the boy, after picking up another starfish and throwing it as far as he could into the ocean, said smilingly : “It made a difference to that one!”
That's what is about here!
The Chinese master Yoka Daishi was said to have been in a state of perfect repose while walking, standing, sitting, and lying down. According to legend he attained complete realization in one night, and was called: “master of the enlightenment attained in one night.”
Osho describes Yoka as a Zen master of great skill; his words being tremendously beautiful, yet uncompromising. His deep respect and compassion for the individual is such that he wants you to wake up now; he shatters all your dreams. Osho walks hand in hand with Yoka’s insistence that the man of Zen is extraordinary in his ordinariness: he walks in Zen, he sits in Zen.
Sufism is the mystical dimension of the Islamic faith. Osho clarifies the Sufi approach to religiosity, which is to become part of the mystery of existence by living meditatively, being total and transcending experience itself. Osho distills the essence of Sufism, not to inform you about the state of mysticism, but to create a situation in which you can discover the mystic within yourself.
These remarkable discourses are original, live recordings made during Osho's
extemporaneous daily talks to audiences of disciples and visitors at his meditation retreat in Poona, India. His talks were, and continue to be, central to his work as a mystic trying to find ways to share his experience. And as you
listen to this great teacher, you too will enter a state of meditative awareness that will bring you to a new understanding of this ancient pathway into the wonders and mysteries of existence.
The tradition of Tantra, of Tantric Buddhism, has existed in India from as early as the 5th Century. The message of Tantra endorses Osho's perspective: that only through total acceptance of ourselves can we grow. In Osho's understanding, Tantra is one of the greatest of man's visions, a religion which respects rather than destroys individuality, and is an extraordinary method of expanding inner consciousness.
In The Secret, Osho introduces the reader to Sufism, a world of love.
“Sufism is not concerned with knowledge. Its whole concern is love, intense, passionate love: how to fall in love with the whole, how to be in tune with the whole, how to bridge the distance between the creation and the creator.”
That world of love becomes an open secret when Osho unlocks the inner wisdom of colorful Sufi stories and parables. He illustrates many points with jokes, as he responds to the Sufi stories as well as to listeners’ questions about everyday experiences – including love, education, knowledge and wisdom, doubt and trust, freedom and responsibility, sex and death.
In this book, Osho uses very simple Zen stories to show that Zen is not a religion, that it cannot be taught, and that it is a transmission beyond words, language, and scripture.
He expands on the stories to illustrate how contemporary man has become more knowledgeable and therefore more complex, but not happier. And how ambitiousness, competitiveness, and comparison have all been barriers to living a more joyful, fulfilled life.
Osho walks shoulder to shoulder with all the Zen masters in his vision that man’s future will be rooted in his uniqueness. This uniqueness is possible through a meditative awareness; then there is no need to follow anyone or anything. And an ordinary life can be lived in an extraordinary way.
The ten paintings that tell the famous Zen story of a farmer in search of his lost bull provide an allegorical expression of the search for enlightenment. Originally Taoist, The Ten Bulls were repainted by the 12th-century Chinese Zen master, Kakuan, and first appeared in the West in American author Paul Reps' book, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.
These discourses are Osho's commentaries on the paintings, and on the poetry and prose which accompany them in Paul Reps' book. In The Search Osho dismantles probably every "why" the mind can contrive, and you may well find that you learn more about yourself in one chapter than in dozens of other books!
A beautiful introduction to Osho's unique vision, and a personal invitation to meditation. In his inimitably poetic style, Osho invites the reader to wake up from the spiritual sleep in which most of humanity is immersed. These talks are from his first meditation camp at Ranakpur in the hills of Rajasthan, and a subsequent camp** in Ajol, Gujarat, India. Here are guided meditation techniques suitable for those new to meditation and seasoned seekers alike, as well as responses to questions.
