Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy - Osho - Oshorajneesh.com

CHAPTER 13. KRISHNA GOES TO THE WEST
seems dreadful, and the West in its heart feels disturbed, uneasy with it. So the cross is being taken
down and the flute ushered in. And what can be a better substitute for the cross than the flute?
For these reasons Krishna’s appeal to the West is growing, and it will continue to grow. Every day it
is going to come nearer and nearer to Krishna.
There are some other reasons for Krishna’s incursion into the West. Only an affluent society can
gather around Krishna; a poor society cannot afford him. A society steeped in poverty and misery
cannot have that leisure and ease so necessary to dance and play a flute. The society in which
Krishna was born was highly prosperous in its own way. There was no lack of food, clothes and
other necessities of life; milk and yogurt and butter were available in abundance – so much that
when Krishna wanted to play pranks with his numerous girlfriends, who were milkmaids, he went on
breaking their containers full of milk and yogurt.
Judging by the standard of living of his time, Krishna’s society was at the peak of affluence. People
were happy, they had plenty of leisure; a whole family lived well on the earnings of one of its
members. It is only in such a society that flute and raas and celebration take center stage. The
West today is at that height of affluence which the world has never known before. It is not surprising
that Krishna has such a great pull on the western mind.
Ironically, Krishna no longer has any appeal for the present day India, ravaged by poverty, squalor
and disease. She will have to wait long to deserve him. At the moment Christ has more attraction
for this country. It is natural that a country hanging on the cross should think of Christ as the right
person to alleviate their pain and suffering. That is why a striking and unexpected event is taking
place: Jesus’ influence in India is growing every day, while it is declining in the West. And it is
not enough just to say that Christian missionaries are proselytizing Indians through devious and
questionable means. What is equally true is that the Christian symbol of the cross comes closest to
the agonized mind of this country. It is because of this affinity between the two that the missionaries
are succeeding here in their efforts.
On the other hand the golden statues of Rama and Krishna, symbolizing royalty and richness are
becoming out of tune with the poverty stricken people of this country. The day is not far off when the
poor of India will not only mount an assault on the rich but also on the statues of Krishna and Rama.
It is just possible, because they can no longer put up with their glittering gold. And they are going to
fall in love with Christ on the cross, symbolizing their pain and misery. The possibility of India turning
to Christ and of the West turning to Krishna is growing every day.
For the western mind the cross has lost its significance, because people there are no longer in
suffering and pain; they have everything they ever longed for. The truth is that now their only pain
is that which stems from affluence. Their affluence is frightening; they don’t know what to do with it.
Now for certain a singing and dancing religion is going to be very close to the western heart. So it
is not surprising that youth in the West are chanting Krishna’s name with great enthusiasm.
Question 5
QUESTIONER: AT THE MOMENT THE LEADERSHIP OF THE KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS
MOVEMENT IN THE WEST HAS PASSED INTO THE HANDS OF THAT IRRATIONALIST
Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy 248 Osho