From Ignorance to Innocence - Osho - Oshorajneesh.com

CHAPTER 25. JESUS – THE ONLY SAVIOR WHO NEARLY SAVED HIMSELF
past a sudra used to have to do two things.... There were streets which were not open for him, he
could not go on them. But for certain purposes it was impossible not to, so at certain hours he was
allowed.
For example, he was to clean the latrines of the higher classes, so at certain hours, early in the
morning before anybody gets up, he would come and quickly clean the latrines. But even then –
perhaps somebody may have gone for a morning walk – he had to go on doing two things. He had
to shout, ”I am coming – I am a sudra. Please move away if you are somewhere on the way.”
And the second thing – you will be surprised – he had to keep something like a brush made of a
certain kind of grass that is used in India for cleaning the floors. That brush, that grass brush, used
to hang behind him just like a tail; he had to keep it tied to his waist. That was to clean the path
behind him. As he was moving, automatically the brush was cleaning the path after him, his shadow,
any dirt that he is leaving behind – so nobody becomes impure.
This is a caste struggle.
Now, no sudra was allowed to study or be educated. If he was found studying, perhaps secretly,
then it was enough of a crime for him to be killed; that was the only punishment.
And this pope, the polack, says, ”The idea of class struggle, the very idea is a sin.” This is a great
discovery! And why does he say it? The fear of communism – he is not courageous enough to say
that to believe in communism is a sin because the whole philosophy of communism is based on the
idea of class struggle. Cunning.... Why not be clear that to be a communist is a sin? He must be
afraid that when he goes back to Poland, then those communists there will kill him. And what will
happen to communists in Poland? Poland now is a communist country; the whole of Poland will
become sinners.
You see the trickiness of these priests? So he calls it class struggle: the idea of class struggle, to
spread the idea of class struggle, is a great sin.
And another thing even more marvellous: he says that nobody can have a direct contact with God;
that is a sin. You have to go via the Catholic priest; you cannot confess directly, that is not possible.
God is not going to hear you. Your confession is useless.
Can you see the strategy? The strategy is very complicated, but simple to understand. The Catholic
priest lives on your confessions. The whole function of the priest disappears if you can have a direct
contact with God; then what is the need of the priesthood?
The pope is not interested in saving you, he is interested in saving the priesthood. He is the head
of the priesthood class, and he is worried about the thousands of Catholic priests if people start a
direct communication with God. You have to go to the Catholic priest to confess; only then will you
be forgiven. The priest will persuade God to forgive you. You cannot ask directly.
Many are the implications. The Catholic priest knows about every Catholic: with whose wife he is
flirting, who is a homosexual; he also knows with whom his wife is flirting. He knows about every
Catholic – that is his power. No Catholic can go against him. He has all the keys in his hands; he
can expose you at any moment.
From Ignorance to Innocence 363 Osho