The Great Path - Oshorajneesh.com

CHAPTER 10. THE ETERNAL SPRING
You advise and counsel others. You give you wisdom to others, but you never use it for yourself.
When happiness comes your way the next time, observer it as if it is happening to someone else.
Try to stand a little apart from it and observe it. A little distance is enough. Do not remain so very
close to yourself. You are your neighbor; keep a little distance.
Once I told Nasruddin, ”Mulla, the owner of the restaurant at the end of the street says that he is a
close relative of yours.”
”Certainly not!” replied the Mulla. ”That is not correct. He is a distant relation of mine.”
”How distant is the relationship?” I asked.
”Well,” said the Mulla, ”we have the same father, but he is the first child and I am the twelfth. So
there! We are quite far apart!”
What you are you neighbor will be enough of a distance between the two of you. Do not stand so
close to your neighbor. When there is no distance the perspective is lost. Anything you want to
look at should be held at some distance. If you hold a flower right up to your eye can you see it? If
you press your face against a mirror you will not be able to see your reflection. A little distance is
required. A little distance from yourself – that is all that sadhana is about. As this distance increases
you will be surprised at how meaningless all your troubles were! Things happened outside you – not
to you! Because of your closeness they were reflected in you, the vibrations touched you and you
took it as yourself vibrating. You allowed it to affect you.
A house caught fire. The owner beat his breast and wept loud. A man standing next to him said,
”You are tormenting yourself unnecessary. It was only yesterday that your son sold the house for a
good sum.
The man could not believe his ears. He stopped his lamenting. The house was still burning, but he
looked on unconcerned. He stood at a distance; he was no longer the owner of the house.
After a little while his son came running, ”Oh, ’god, how did the house catch fire? I made a deal on
the house but the payment is still to come. Now who will pay for a ruined house?”
The father began to wail again. The house was unaffected. The happiness or sorrow of its owners
had no effect on it. It was burning before and it continue burning after, but the owner’s mood would
have changed again if the buyer had appeared and said he would honor the contract although the
house was burned down.
Everything happens outside you, but you stand too close; that is the trouble. Keep your distance!
When happiness comes stand apart and watch. When sorrow comes stand a little away and watch.
Mind you, start with happiness, not with sorrow. Generally people try to dissociate from themselves
at times of sorrow in order to escape from it. That is a general tendency of the mind, and it gets
you nowhere. Create the distance when you are happy, because everybody wants to escape from
sorrow. If you want to establish a genuine detachment just running away from sorrow will not do.
You have to do just the reverse. Your journey so far has only taken you astray. You will have to turn
back and retrace your steps. This turning back and doing the opposite Mahavira called pratikraman.
The Great Path 184 Osho