Astrall
Auto-translated
“Gautama Buddha emphasized one single word, constantly, for forty-two years, morning and evening; this word is sammasati — it means 'right mindfulness' (right remembering).”
You remember many things — you can become a British Encyclopedia; your mind is capable of remembering all the libraries in the world — but this is wrong remembering. There is only one right remembering — in that moment when you remember yourself.
Gautama Buddha illustrated this with an ancient story about a lioness who jumped from one hill to another, and between the two hills passed a flock of sheep. The lioness was pregnant and gave birth during the jump. Her cub fell into the flock, and the flock raised him, and naturally, he began to consider himself a sheep. It was a bit strange that he was so large, so unlike anyone else — but perhaps he was a freak of nature. He was raised as a vegetarian. He grew up, and one day an old lion in search of food approached the flock of sheep — and could not believe his eyes. Among the sheep, he saw a young lion in all his splendor, and the sheep were not afraid of him. He forgot about food; he chased after the flock of sheep... and it became more and more strange, because the young lion also ran along with the flock. Eventually, he caught the young lion. The latter cried and sobbed, and said to him: —
Please, let me return to my kin!
But the old lion dragged him to the nearest lake — a quiet lake, without any ripples, which was exactly like a clear mirror — and made him see his own reflection in the lake and beside it the reflection of the old lion. It was a sudden transformation. In the moment the young lion saw who he was, he let out a great roar — the entire valley echoed the roar of the young lion. He had never roared before because he had always considered himself a sheep and had never doubted this. The old lion said: — My work is done; now everything depends on you.
Do you wish to return back to the flock?
The young lion laughed. He said: — Forgive me, I completely forgot who I am. And I am infinitely grateful to you for helping me remember…
“Gautama Buddha usually said:
— The function of a master is to help you remember who you are.
You are not part of the mundane world; your home is the home of the divine. You are lost in oblivion; you have forgotten that God is hidden within you. You never look inside — because everyone looks outside, and you too look outside. To be alone is a great opportunity, a blessing, because in your solitude you will inevitably stumble upon yourself and for the first time remember who you are. To know that you are part of divine existence means to be free from death, free from suffering, free from anxiety; free from everything that for many lives was a nightmare for you. Become more centered in your deep solitude. This is exactly what meditation is: to become centered in your solitude. Solitude must be so pure that not even any thought, any feeling disturbs it. In the moment your solitude is complete, your experience of it will be an experience of enlightenment. Enlightenment is not something that comes from outside; it is something that grows within you.
To forget oneself is the only sin. And to remember oneself, in one's full beauty — is the only virtue, the only religion. You do not need to be a Hindu, you do not need to be a Muslim, you do not need to be a Christian — all you need is to be religious within yourself.
And actually we are not separate, even now — no one is separate; all existence is an organic unity. The idea of separateness is caused by our oblivion. It is as if every leaf of a tree began to consider itself separate, separate from the other leaves... but deep inside they are nourished by the same roots. It is one tree; there may be many leaves. It is one existence; there may be many manifestations.
When you know yourself, one thing becomes absolutely clear: no man is an island — we are a continent, a boundless continent, an infinite existence without any borders. The same life flows through everything, the same love fills every heart, the same joy dances in every being. Only due to our lack of understanding do we consider ourselves separate. The idea of separateness is only our illusion. The idea of unity will be our experience of the ultimate truth. It takes just a little more reason, and you can emerge from the darkness, suffering, hell in which all humanity lives. The secret of how to get out of it is to remember yourself. And this remembering will be possible if you understand the idea that you are one.
You may live with your wife — or husband — for forty years; still, there are two of you. Your wife is one, you are one. You tried to create a facade: “We are not alone,” “We are a family,” “We are a society,” “We are a civilization,” “We are a culture,” “We are an organized religion,” “We are an organized political party.” But all these illusions will not help.
You must admit, however painful it may seem at first: “I am alone in an unfamiliar country.” This admission — for the first time — is painful. It takes away all our illusions — which were our great consolation. But as soon as you dare to accept reality, the pain disappears. And behind this pain is hidden the greatest blessing in the world: you know yourself. You are the intelligence of existence; you are the consciousness of existence; you are the soul of existence. You are part of this infinite divinity that manifests in thousands of forms: in trees, in birds, in animals, in human beings... but it is the same consciousness in different stages of evolution. And the person who recognizes himself, feels that the god he sought throughout the whole world dwells in his own heart, reaches the highest point of evolution. There is nothing higher than this. This for the first time makes your life meaningful, significant, religious. But you will not be a Hindu, you will not be a Christian, you will not be a Jew; you will simply be religious. By remaining a Hindu, a Muslim or a Christian, a Jain or a Buddhist, you destroy the very beauty of religiosity — it has no need for adjectives.
Osho
You remember many things — you can become a British Encyclopedia; your mind is capable of remembering all the libraries in the world — but this is wrong remembering. There is only one right remembering — in that moment when you remember yourself.
Gautama Buddha illustrated this with an ancient story about a lioness who jumped from one hill to another, and between the two hills passed a flock of sheep. The lioness was pregnant and gave birth during the jump. Her cub fell into the flock, and the flock raised him, and naturally, he began to consider himself a sheep. It was a bit strange that he was so large, so unlike anyone else — but perhaps he was a freak of nature. He was raised as a vegetarian. He grew up, and one day an old lion in search of food approached the flock of sheep — and could not believe his eyes. Among the sheep, he saw a young lion in all his splendor, and the sheep were not afraid of him. He forgot about food; he chased after the flock of sheep... and it became more and more strange, because the young lion also ran along with the flock. Eventually, he caught the young lion. The latter cried and sobbed, and said to him: —
Please, let me return to my kin!
But the old lion dragged him to the nearest lake — a quiet lake, without any ripples, which was exactly like a clear mirror — and made him see his own reflection in the lake and beside it the reflection of the old lion. It was a sudden transformation. In the moment the young lion saw who he was, he let out a great roar — the entire valley echoed the roar of the young lion. He had never roared before because he had always considered himself a sheep and had never doubted this. The old lion said: — My work is done; now everything depends on you.
Do you wish to return back to the flock?
The young lion laughed. He said: — Forgive me, I completely forgot who I am. And I am infinitely grateful to you for helping me remember…
“Gautama Buddha usually said:
— The function of a master is to help you remember who you are.
You are not part of the mundane world; your home is the home of the divine. You are lost in oblivion; you have forgotten that God is hidden within you. You never look inside — because everyone looks outside, and you too look outside. To be alone is a great opportunity, a blessing, because in your solitude you will inevitably stumble upon yourself and for the first time remember who you are. To know that you are part of divine existence means to be free from death, free from suffering, free from anxiety; free from everything that for many lives was a nightmare for you. Become more centered in your deep solitude. This is exactly what meditation is: to become centered in your solitude. Solitude must be so pure that not even any thought, any feeling disturbs it. In the moment your solitude is complete, your experience of it will be an experience of enlightenment. Enlightenment is not something that comes from outside; it is something that grows within you.
To forget oneself is the only sin. And to remember oneself, in one's full beauty — is the only virtue, the only religion. You do not need to be a Hindu, you do not need to be a Muslim, you do not need to be a Christian — all you need is to be religious within yourself.
And actually we are not separate, even now — no one is separate; all existence is an organic unity. The idea of separateness is caused by our oblivion. It is as if every leaf of a tree began to consider itself separate, separate from the other leaves... but deep inside they are nourished by the same roots. It is one tree; there may be many leaves. It is one existence; there may be many manifestations.
When you know yourself, one thing becomes absolutely clear: no man is an island — we are a continent, a boundless continent, an infinite existence without any borders. The same life flows through everything, the same love fills every heart, the same joy dances in every being. Only due to our lack of understanding do we consider ourselves separate. The idea of separateness is only our illusion. The idea of unity will be our experience of the ultimate truth. It takes just a little more reason, and you can emerge from the darkness, suffering, hell in which all humanity lives. The secret of how to get out of it is to remember yourself. And this remembering will be possible if you understand the idea that you are one.
You may live with your wife — or husband — for forty years; still, there are two of you. Your wife is one, you are one. You tried to create a facade: “We are not alone,” “We are a family,” “We are a society,” “We are a civilization,” “We are a culture,” “We are an organized religion,” “We are an organized political party.” But all these illusions will not help.
You must admit, however painful it may seem at first: “I am alone in an unfamiliar country.” This admission — for the first time — is painful. It takes away all our illusions — which were our great consolation. But as soon as you dare to accept reality, the pain disappears. And behind this pain is hidden the greatest blessing in the world: you know yourself. You are the intelligence of existence; you are the consciousness of existence; you are the soul of existence. You are part of this infinite divinity that manifests in thousands of forms: in trees, in birds, in animals, in human beings... but it is the same consciousness in different stages of evolution. And the person who recognizes himself, feels that the god he sought throughout the whole world dwells in his own heart, reaches the highest point of evolution. There is nothing higher than this. This for the first time makes your life meaningful, significant, religious. But you will not be a Hindu, you will not be a Christian, you will not be a Jew; you will simply be religious. By remaining a Hindu, a Muslim or a Christian, a Jain or a Buddhist, you destroy the very beauty of religiosity — it has no need for adjectives.
Osho