From Ignorance to Innocence - Osho - Oshorajneesh.com

CHAPTER 19. RELIGION IS REBELLION
Let it be just religiousness.
Nobody can reduce religiousness to a cult.
That is absolutely impossible.
And what I am doing continually is withdrawing all possibilities, all potentialities, which can reduce it
to a cult. For example, I have removed God. Without God it is very difficult to reduce a religion to a
cult. That’s why Christianity is more of a cult than Buddhism.
This is our blessing, because we can look back upon the whole of history. And only fools say
that history does not repeat itself; it continuously repeats, unless you prevent it from repeating
itself. If you have accepted the idea that history never repeats itself you are not going to prevent it
from repeating itself, there is no need. I say to you that it always repeats itself, unless somebody
intelligently prevents it.
Judaism, Christianity, Mohammedanism, Hinduism, are all God – oriented. Jainism, Buddhism,
Taoism, Confucianism, are not God – oriented. And the difference can be seen immediately. The
God – oriented religions become cults immediately.
God is a very dangerous concept because in the name of God comes the priesthood.
If there is no God it is very difficult to create a priesthood. In Jainism there is no priesthood. They
have to borrow priests from the Hindus for their worldly rituals; for example, marriage. They don’t
have any priests, their religion is against brahminism. But Hindus have the greatest and the longeststanding
priesthood; the most sophisticated, cultured, very solidly based establishment.
When my first uncle was getting married... at that time I became aware of a strange thing, that a
brahmin had been called. I asked my father, ”Jainism is against brahminism, it was a revolt against
the brahmin ritualistic, magical religion. And the marriage is being performed by a brahmin? From
the very beginning the marriage is invalid. Can’t you manage to have a Jaina perform the marriage?”
He said, ”You raise inconvenient questions, but I must accept that your questions are never wrong.
We may not be able to answer them, we may have practical difficulties in answering them, but that
is really our problem – and we get angry at you! Now, the ritual is going to be performed; everybody
is ready – the bride and the bridegroom, all the guests and the brahmin have come – it is just about
to begin and you are starting to ask a troublesome question.”
I said, ”It is my uncle’s marriage. I have every right to be concerned that it is done rightly.”
My father wanted me to be quiet. He said, ”You can have a few rupees but get lost, go away.”
I said, ”This is not the time – no bribery is going to help. I am going to create trouble; I am not going
to allow this brahmin to do the marriage ceremony. Just the very idea.... He is your enemy; the
brahmins are continually condemning Jainism, all their scriptures are full of condemnation. Jainas
are continually condemning brahmins, their whole philosophy is against brahmins. I will not allow it.
Either the marriage has to be performed by a Jaina, or I am going to create trouble.”
From Ignorance to Innocence 262 Osho