The Rebellious Spirit

We have all heard of rebels, those freelancers that don't give a care about anybody else but themselves... But what it we were all to spend a little more time doing exactly that? It might just be that we can begin to respond to what is happening in the world with a heartfelt need to change ourselves.

In The Rebellious Spirit, Osho speaks to the spirit that lies hidden underneath our social conditioning, fanning a flame strong enough to burn through layers of rubbish, so that we can see with the crystal- clear gaze of an enlightened being. This is a book that will entice you, tickle your being with laughter and give you the courage to be yourself in the world that is today.

Osho defies categorization. His thousands of talks cover every- thing from the individual quest for meaning to the most urgent social and political issues facing society today. Osho's books are not written but are transcribed from audio and video recordings of his extemporaneous talks to international audiences. As he puts it, "So remember: whatever I am saying is not just for you ... I am talking also for the future generations."

Osho has been described by The Sunday Times in London as one of the" 1 000 Makers of the 20th Century" and by American author Tom Robbins as "the most dangerous man since Jesus Christ." Sunday Mid-Day (India) has selected Osho as one of ten people - along with Gandhi, Nehru and Buddha - who have changed the destiny of India.

About his own work Osho has said that he is helping to create the conditions for the birth of a new kind of human being. He often characterizes this new human being as "Zorba the Buddha" - capable both of enjoying the earthy pleasures of a Zorba the Greek and the silent serenity of a Gautama the Buddha.

Running like a thread through all aspects of Osho's talks and meditations is a vision that encompasses both the timeless wisdom of all ages past and the highest potential of today's (and tomorrow's) science and technology.

Osho is known for his revolutionary contribution to the science of inner transformation, with an approach to meditation that acknowledges the accelerated pace of contemporary life. His unique OSHO Active Meditations are designed to first release the accumulated stresses of body and mind, so that it is then easier to take an experience of stillness and thought-free relaxation into daily life.

The rebel has no path to follow and those who follow a path are not rebels. The very spirit of rebellion needs no guidance; it is a light unto itself.

The people who cannot rebel ask for guidance, want to be fol- lowers. Their psychology is that to be a follower relieves them of all responsibility; the guide, the master, the leader, the messiah becomes responsible for everything. All that is needed of the follower is just to have faith. And just to have faith is another name of spiritual slavery.

The rebel is in a state of tremendous love with freedom, total freedom, nothing less than that. Hence he has no savior, no God's messenger, no messiah, no guide. He simply moves according to his own nature; he does not follow anybody, he does not imitate any- body. Certainly, he has chosen the most dangerous way of life: full of responsibility, but of tremendous joy and freedom.

He falls many times, he commits mistakes, but he is never repen- tant of anything because he learns a deep secret of life: by committing mistakes you become wise. There is no other way to become wise. By going astray you become more clearly acquainted with what is right and what is wrong because whatever gives you misery, suffering, makes your life a darkness without end, without any dawn. It means you have gone astray. Find out and come again to the state of being where you are peaceful, silent, serene and a fountain of blissfulness, and you are again on the right path. There is no other criterion than that. Being blissful is to be right. Being miserable is to be wrong.

The pilgrimage of the rebel is full of surprises. He has no map, no guide, so every moment he is coming to a new space, to a new experience, to his own experience, to his own truth, to his own bliss, to his own love.

Those who follow never know the beauty of experiencing things firsthand. They have always been using secondhand knowledge and pretending to be wise. People are certainly very strange. They do not like to use secondhand shoes; even on their feet they will not put secondhand shoes! All that they know is borrowed, imitated, learned not by experience, but only by memory. Their knowledge consists of memorizing.

The rebel has no path as such. He walks and makes his path while walking. The rebel is almost like a bird flying in the sky - what path does he follow? There are no highways in the sky, there are no footprints of ancient birds, great bird!'. Gautam Buddhas. No bird leaves any footprints in the sky, hence the sky is always open. You fly and make your path.

Find the direction that gives you joy. Move towards the star that rings bells in your heart. You are to be the decisive factor, nobody else.