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

CHAPTER 3. WHERE BUDDHA ENDS KRISHNA BEGINS
But Mahavira and Buddha will not say this. Mahavira will say, ”Okay, begin with shaving your head.
Then we will see.” Everybody can have access to Mahavira and Buddha. They will say, ”Do what
ever you can do; we will take care of the ultimate thing at the end.”
Krishna deals straight away with the ultimate question; he does not like any dilly-dallyings. He says if
someone is prepared for the ultimate matter, then he alone will have entry into his house. It is for this
reason that his house remains nearly empty. Entry into his house is not easy. And so Krishna could
not create any order of disciples and followers. Mahavira has fifty thousand disciples; it is simply
natural. With Krishna it is nearly impossible. Where can you find fifty thousand egoless people right
at the beginning?
If we say it rightly, Buddha and Mahavira stand for gradual enlightenment, for gradual growth towards
enlightenment. And we understand the language of gradualism. We can understand that a rupee
can grow into two rupees and two rupees into three, and so on and so forth. But that a poor person
can become rich at once is something we don’t understand. What Krishna stands for is sudden
enlightenment. He says, ”Why go through a long and needless process? You are poor if you have
one rupee, and you remain poor even if you own ten rupees; now you will be called ten-rupeepoor.
You will remain poor even if you possess a million rupees, because there are people who own
billions. So be rid of this poor man’s arithmetic. I am going to make you a king all at once.”
What Krishna means to say is that it is not a matter of becoming a king, it is just a matter of
remembering that you are a king. You are already a king, but you have forgotten. Therefore, while
sadhana is the way of Mahavira and Buddha, remembering, just remembering is the way of Krishna.
Just remember, recall who you are, and the journey is complete in a single sweep.
Just remembering is enough; it is Krishna’s keyword. I will tell you a story.
I have heard that a king expelled his son from his kingdom. He was angry with his son, a spoiled
son, and so in a moment of rage he threw him out. The son did not have any skills or vocation. What
can a king’s son know? He was not even educated, so he could do nothing to make a decent living.
How ever he had, by way of a hobby, learned a little singing and dancing in his childhood. So he
took to singing and dancing on the streets of a town belonging to a hot and arid neighboring country
where he found refuge.
For ten years the king’s son lived the life of a homeless beggar in tattered and dirty clothes. So
he completely forgot that he was ever a prince. And curiously enough, in these ten years, he was
increasingly maturing towards kingship, since he was the only son of a king who was growing older
and older. But, at present, he was a faceless person moving from door to door with a begging bowl
in his hands.
When the king became very old he grew worried about the future of his throne. Who was going to
succeed him and manage his kingdom after his death? So he asked his prime minister to search for
his only son, whom he had expelled years ago, and bring him back so he could take over the reins
of his kingdom from him. Even if he was stupid he had to be recalled, the king thought. There was
no other alternative.
The prime minister went out in search of his king’s son. After a great deal of inquiry and effort he
reached the town where his future master was living as a nobody. His chariot halted in front of
Krishna: The Man and His Philosophy 52 Osho