One day it happened that one beautiful saint, Narda, who was always carrying his ektara — a simple musical instrument, with only one string, that had become his symbol — singing and playing on his ektara he was passing, and Balmik caught hold of him. But he was still singing and playing on his ektara.

Balmik said, “Are you mad or something? Can’t you see me, can’t you see my sword? Give me everything that you have!”

Narda said, “You have caught a beggar; I have only this ektara. And that too I am not going to give easily, because what will you do with this? But if you want it, I can give it to you. If you want my life I can give that too. But before I give you anything, I want to ask one question to you.”

Balmik said, “Question? What question?”

Narda said, “You go home, ask your wife: you have been killing people, robbing people — is she ready to share the responsibility of it. Ask your father, your mother, your son, your daughter. Are they willing to share the responsibility of what you are doing?”

Balmik had never thought about such a thing; he was an uneducated man. He said, “I have never thought about it. They must share the responsibility. I am doing it for them.”

Narda said, “I will be here. Don’t be worried, you can just tie me to the tree so I cannot escape.” He was tied to the tree and Balmik rushed to his home and asked his wife. His wife said, “I have nothing to do with your responsibilities. It is your responsibility to feed your wife; how you do it I have no concern for.” And the same was the response of everybody.

Even the mother said, “It is your responsibility to take care of your old father and mother. Now how you are doing it — that you have to work out. We have not told you to kill people and rob people; you are doing it on your own. We are simply not responsible for any of your acts.”

Not a single man in his house was ready to share responsibility. He was shocked! He went back, untied Narda, touched his feet and said, “I have been my whole life a wrong person. Is there any possibility for me to get rid of all that I have done?”

Narda said, “There is no problem. You stop doing it, because the people you are doing it for are not even ready to take responsibility for it! And I will teach you my song. My song is very simple; I simply repeat the name of Rama. It is so simple, no education is needed. You sit under the tree and repeat, `Rama, Rama…’ as long as you can, and you will be transformed — because intrinsically your innermost core always remains pure. It is only the layers on it which can be dropped.”

After a few months Narda came back and he was surprised: Balmik was sitting there under the tree. Narda had been his whole life repeating the name of Rama, the Hindu God, but nothing like this had happened to him. Balmik was surrounded by an aura of light. Just going close to him you felt a tremendous silence, a great rejoicing.

Osho – “Beyond Psychology”

The post No One To Take Responsibility – A Hindu Spiritual Story by Osho appeared first on Spiritual Growth Events.

I have told many times a beautiful poem of Rabindranath Tagore. The poet has been searching for God for millions of lives. He has seen him sometimes, far away, near a star, and he started moving that way, but by the time he reached that star, God has moved to some other place.

But he went on searching and searching — he was determined to find God’s home — and the surprise of surprises was, one day he actually reached a house where on the door was written: “God’s Home.”

You can understand his ecstasy, you can understand his joy. He runs up the steps, and just as he is going to knock on the door, suddenly his hand freezes. An idea arises in him: “If by chance this is really the home of God, then I am finished, my seeking is finished. I have become identified with my seeking, with my search. I don’t know anything else. If the door opens and I face God, I am finished — the search is over. Then what? Then there is an eternity of boredom — no excitement, no discovery, no new challenge, because there cannot be any challenge greater than God.”

He starts trembling with fear, takes his shoes off his feet, and descends back down the beautiful marble steps. He took the shoes off so that no noise was made, for his fear was that even a noise on the steps… God may open the door, although he has not knocked. And then he runs as fast as he has never run before. He used to think that he had been running after God as fast as he can, but today, suddenly, he finds energy which was never available to him before. He runs as he has never run, not looking back.

The poem ends, “I am still searching for God. I know his home, so I avoid it and search everywhere else. The excitement is great, the challenge is great, and in my search I continue, I continue to exist. God is a danger — I will be annihilated. But now I am not afraid even of God, because I know His home. So, leaving His home aside, I go on searching for him all around the universe. And deep down I know my search is not for God; my search is to nourish my ego.”

Osho – “Beyond Psychology”

What Is the Spiritual Moral / Meaning of Osho's “At the Doorsteps of God” Story?

This parable beautifully unravels the spiritual lesson of the eternal search for the Divine. It delves into the paradox of seeking God while simultaneously fearing the culmination of that quest. It speaks of the longing to reach the abode of the Divine while fearing that such an attainment would end the journey, leaving one with an existential void. This conveys a profound spiritual truth: the human quest for the Divine is often intertwined with the fear of losing the excitement and purpose found in the pursuit itself.

The story embodies the notion of the ever-continuing spiritual journey. It symbolizes the human quest for the Divine as an endless exploration rather than a destination. The poet, having reached the physical address of God's home, experiences an existential dilemma. The realization that encountering God might terminate the quest creates an inner turmoil. This mirrors the spiritual journey, illustrating that the search for the Divine is not merely a quest for a geographical location but an ever-evolving, infinite journey of self-discovery and spiritual growth.

It portrays the fear of annihilation upon encountering the Divine. The poet grapples with the fear of losing identity, purpose, and the thrill of seeking. This fear of losing oneself in the vastness of the Divine echoes the human struggle with the ego—a fear that one's individuality might dissolve in the vastness of the Divine existence. This fear reflects a common spiritual challenge: the reluctance to surrender the ego and embrace unity with the Divine.

This story touches upon the concept of duality within the spiritual path. The poet's admission of continuing the search to nourish the ego speaks volumes about the dual nature of human motivation. Despite seeking the Divine, there's an undercurrent of seeking to uphold one's identity, significance, and challenges in the pursuit. It reflects the intricate dance between the ego's desires and the longing for spiritual union, encapsulating the inherent duality within the human journey toward the Divine.

The narrative embodies the essence of spiritual growth through humility and self-awareness. The poet, realizing the duality within his quest, chooses to avoid God's home consciously. This decision stems from a newfound self-awareness—acknowledging that the true pursuit is not solely for the Divine but also to sustain the ego's desires. This moment of self-awareness underscores the significance of humility in acknowledging one's motivations and limitations along the spiritual journey.

Lastly, the story serves as a powerful reminder of the significance of the journey itself. It illuminates the inner conflicts and complexities inherent in the pursuit of the Divine. It speaks to the beauty and significance of the seeker's path, the constant evolution, and the profundity of self-discovery along the journey. The poet's decision to continue the search beyond God's apparent abode highlights the value of the ongoing quest, the learning, and growth inherent in the search for spiritual truth.

In essence, this tale encapsulates the intricate dynamics of the spiritual quest—revealing the interplay between seeking the Divine, the fear of losing oneself, the duality within motivations, the significance of self-awareness, and the profound value of the eternal journey toward spiritual enlightenment.

Personal Reflection Questions

Spiritual stories are an opportunity to reflect on your own life. Here are 10 questions you can use to go deeper with the teachings in this story:

1. Reflect on moments in your life when the prospect of a significant change or culmination of a journey filled you with fear. What was the source of this fear, and how did it influence your decisions?
2. Explore the concept of seeking and searching in your spiritual journey. Are there aspects of your quest for meaning or understanding that, when confronted, trigger a sense of apprehension or resistance?
3. Consider the symbolism of God's home as a representation of ultimate understanding or enlightenment. How do you relate to the idea of reaching a point where your seeking may come to an end? Does the fear of losing the excitement and challenge resonate with you?
4. Delve into the poet's realization that the search for God is, at its core, a way to nourish the ego. In what ways has your spiritual journey been intertwined with the desire to enhance or sustain your sense of self?
5. Reflect on the poet's decision to avoid God's home and continue searching elsewhere. Are there aspects of your life where you knowingly avoid a potential source of fulfillment or completion? What motivates this avoidance?
6. Explore your perception of God as a potential danger, leading to the fear of annihilation. How does the idea of surrendering to a higher power or ultimate truth resonate with your own fears and resistance?
7. Contemplate the poet's fast-paced retreat from God's home, symbolizing a newfound energy in avoiding the potential encounter. Have there been moments in your life when the fear of facing a profound truth led to unexpected bursts of energy or action?
8. Consider the relationship between excitement, challenge, and the ego in your spiritual journey. How do these elements interplay, and how have they shaped your ongoing search for meaning and understanding?
9. Reflect on the paradoxical nature of the poet's continuing search despite knowing God's home. How does this paradox resonate with your own experiences of seeking, knowing, and the simultaneous avoidance of potential fulfillment?
10. Explore the deeper layers of the poem, recognizing the complex dance between fear, seeking, and the ego. How does this narrative offer insights into your own spiritual journey, prompting a reevaluation of your motivations, fears, and the ongoing quest for meaning?

The post At The Doorsteps of God – A Hindu Spiritual Story by Osho appeared first on Spiritual Growth Events.

Seeing the old man sitting under the tree, he thought: perhaps this man is old enough; he must know which road leads to truth. And he asked the man. He said, “Yes I know the road. Follow the right and go on until you come to a certain tree” — he described the tree in detail, its leaves, its fruit — “and you will find under it a very old man… just to give you an example, something like me but thirty years older. This is the man who is going to be your guide.”

The man was very happy. He thanked the old man and rushed towards the way he had shown him. For thirty years he was wandering and wandering, and the tree never came and the old man never came. He was getting tired, and he himself was getting old, and he said, “What nonsense!”

Finally he decided, “It is better to go back home… enough is enough! Thirty years I have wasted in searching truth, and I have not even met the old man who is going to be my guide. And God knows, when the guide meets me, what kind of guidance it will be and how long it will take. It seems to be too complicated; it is better to go home. I was running a good business. I destroyed the business and unnecessarily got into trouble hearing this word `truth’ again and again.”

He came back. Again he passed the tree — and he was shocked! This was the tree the old man had described. And he looked under the tree and the old man was there — the same old man, thirty years older and exactly the same as the description in every way. He said, “My God! Then why did you waste my thirty years?”

He said, “I wasted your thirty years — or you wasted my thirty years? At that time you were not ripe enough to be guided, because I gave all the guidance and you didn’t even look at the tree — and I was describing it in minute detail. I was describing your guide in minute detail, and you did not look at me, to see that I am describing myself. You were in such a hurry; you were too young. But nothing is wasted. I was, waiting, knowing that one day you will come back, one day you will recognize this tree, one day you will recognize this old man, that I am your guide!”

The young man said, “This seems to be a strange business.”

The story is immensely significant. You have a little trust. Don’t be worried, go to the right… This time not under a tree, this time on a beautiful chair, you will find an old man — someone looking similar to me.

Osho – “Beyond Psychology”

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He became convinced of the truth of Gautam Buddha’s teachings, but the people who had brought the message of Buddha were scholars. None of them were mystics. And then the news came that Bodhidharma was coming, and there was a great thrill all over the land. Because Emperor Wu had become influenced by Gautam Buddha, that had made his whole empire influenced by the same teaching. And now a real mystic, a buddha, was coming. It was such a great joy!

Emperor Wu had never before come to the boundaries where India and China meet to receive anyone. With great respect he welcomed Bodhidharma, and he asked , “I have been asking all the monks and the scholars who have been coming, but nobody has been of any help — I have tried everything. But how to get rid of this self? And Buddha says, `Unless you become a no-self, your misery cannot end.'”

He was sincere. Bodhidharma looked into his eyes, and he said, “I will be staying by the side of the river near the mountain in the temple. Tomorrow morning, at four o’clock exactly, you come and I will finish this self forever. But remember, you are not to bring any arms with you, any guards with you; you have to come alone.”

Wu was a little worried — the man was strange! “How can he just destroy my self so quickly? It takes — it has been told by the scholars — lives and lives of meditation; then the self disappears. This man is weird! And he is wanting me in the darkness, early in the morning at four o’clock, alone, even without a sword, no guards, no other companion. This man seems to be strange — he could do anything.

And what does he mean that he will kill the self forever? He can kill me, but how will he kill the self?”

The whole night he could not sleep. He changed his mind again and again — to go or not to go? But there was something in the man’s eyes, and there was something in his voice, and there was some aura of authority when he said, “Just come at four o’clock sharp, and I will finish this self forever! You need not be worried about it.”

What he said looked absurd, but the way he said it, and the way he looked were so authoritative: he knows what he is saying. Finally Wu had to decide to go. He decided to risk, “At the most he can kill me — what else? And I have tried everything. I cannot attain this no-self, and without attaining this no-self there is no end to misery.”

He knocked on the temple door, and Bodhidharma said, “I knew you would come; I knew also that the whole night you would be changing your mind. But that does not matter — you have come. Now sit down in the lotus posture, close your eyes, and I am going to sit in front of you.

“The moment you find, inside, your self, catch hold of it so I can kill it. Just catch hold of it tightly and tell me that you have caught it, and I will kill it and it will be finished. It is a question of minutes.”

Wu was a little afraid. Bodhidharma looked like a madman; he is painted like a madman — he was not like that, but the paintings are symbolic. That’s the impression he must have left on people. It was not his real face, but that must be the face that people were remembering.

He was sitting with his big staff in front of Wu, and he said to him, “Don’t miss a second. Just the moment you catch hold of it — search inside every nook and corner — open your eyes and then tell me that you have caught it, and I will finish it.”

Then there was silence. One hour passed, two hours passed and the sun was rising, and Wu was a different man. In those two hours he looked inside himself, in every nook and corner. He had to look — that man was sitting there; he could have hit him on his head with his staff.

You could expect anything; whatever…. He was not a man of etiquette, manner; he was not part of Wu’s court, so he had to look intently, intensively. And as he looked, he became relaxed, because it was nowhere. And in looking for it, all thoughts disappeared. The search was so intense that his whole energy was involved in it; there was nothing left to think and desire, and this and that.

As the sun was rising Bodhidharma saw Wu’s face; he was not the same man — such silence, such depth. He had disappeared. Bodhidharma shook him and told him, “Open your eyes — it is not there. I don’t have to kill it. I am a nonviolent man, I don’t kill anything! But this self does not exist. Because you never look at it, it goes on existing. It is in your not looking for it, in your unawareness, that it exists. Now it is gone.”

Two hours had passed, and Wu was immensely glad. He had never tasted such sweetness, such freshness, such newness, such beauty. And he was not.

Bodhidharma had fulfilled his promise. Emperor Wu bowed down, touched his feet and said, “Please forgive me thinking that you are mad, thinking that you don’t know manners, thinking that you you are weird, thinking that you you can be dangerous. I have never seen a more compassionate man than you… I am totally fulfilled. Now there is no question in me.”

Emperor Wu said that when he died, on his grave, the memorial, Bodhidharma’s statement should be engraved in gold, for the people in centuries to come to know…”There was a man who looked mad, but who was capable of doing miracles. Without doing anything he helped me to be a non-self. And since then everything has changed. Everything is the same but I am not the same, and life has become just a pure song of silence.”

Osho – “Beyond Psychology”

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