The Great Path - Oshorajneesh.com

CHAPTER 4. TO BE DEAD DO NOTHING
cycle of endless repetition; it is born only when you break away from the wheel and stand apart. It
is then that you reach buddhahood; it is then that you attain shivahood.
The mind is mantra. Repetition is the very nature of the mind; therefore, nothing new is ever born
in the realm of the mind. Nothing is ever original in the mind. Everything is old and stale – just
remnants and scraps. And you keep chewing this cud! You are like a cow. With your mind you take
something in, forget about it, and then after a time, you bring it up and chew it over. You read a book
and it keeps on revolving in your mind. You hear me, and my words keep turning over and over in
your mind. Your mind will start a new circle, but nothing original ever happens in the mind, whereas
the soul is an original entity. And God is the supreme originality. It is ever new; there is nothing
fresher than that. It cannot be attained through the mind; you will have to break the mind’s circuit.
Understand the sutra well:
THE MIND IS THE MANTRA.
EFFORT IS THE SEEKER.
Effort, the next sutra, means an attempt to get out of the mind’s circle. He who steps out of this
circle is a siddha, one who has arrived; he who is still trying to get out of the circle is the sadhak,
the seeker. Great must be your effort – in fact, the very best you are capable of. Only then can you
step out of it. You will have to work as hard to step out of the mind as you did to get chained by it
There is a major obstacle in your way: you see everything through your mind and whatever you see
is coloured by your mind. This makes things very difficult.
I speak and you hear, but your mind stands in between. Whatever I say the mind will colour according
to itself and give its own shade of meaning. The whole sense of my words is changed.
Mulla Nasruddin had drunk one too many. He caught a bus to go home He was reeking of alcohol,
and the old woman who sat next to him felt pity for him. She said, ”Son, do you realise what you are
doing? You have embarked on a route that leads straight to hell!”
The Mulla jumped up with a start. He called out to the conductor, ”Stop the bus! I have caught the
wrong bus!”
The Mulla’s alcohol soaked mind gave its own meaning to the old woman’s words. He was convinced
that the bus was heading towards hell. This is what the mind does all the time; therefore, the most
difficult and complicated thing is to put the mind aside and listen. He who can do it is a Shravak the
right listeners. This is right listening: Put the mind aside and listen directly.
EFFORT IS THE SEEKER. You will have to try, and try hard! You will have to make a Herculean
effort. Laziness will not help you get out of the circle. How can you get rid of a circle by just lying in
it? The circle will keep turning and you will have to hold on even harder for fear of falling.
If you have observed the bird catchers in the forest, you, will find that the method they use is very
simple. The mind uses the same method to catch you. A string is tied across two branches. The
parrot comes and sits on it. Because of his weight he turns upside down. Now he won’t move,
The Great Path 73 Osho