Osho’s rebel is a totally new kind of man who is not a christian or a Hindu, a Mohammedan or a Buddhist but is simply religious. He lives his life in total freedom letting nobody to interfere in it and without interfering in anybody else’s life. He is unafraid of public opinion, of the crowd, of masks or of attitudes. He renounces the so-called morality, the so-called values imposed upon him by the society. He also renounces the knowledge given by the society. “My rebel is nobody other than Zorba the Buddha,” Osho proclaims. Zorba is a fictitious character, who believed in the pleasures of the body and of the senses. Osho believes that the meeting of Zorba and Buddha can save the humanity.
The new rebel, according to Osho is an enlightened being. He will speak his truth whether it goes against the society, heritage, traditions or scriptures. “Truth is his religion, freedom is his path; to be himself, utterly himself, is his goal,” says Osho. The idea of rebellion is not new, but the idea of rebellion combined with enlightenment is absolutely new and it is the contribution of Osho.
Osho also reminds us that no Hindu sage has ever denied or condemned the ugly institution of the caste system. He goes to the extend of saying that “the old sage was an agent of the establishment, of the churches, of the priests, of the kings.”
Osho asks, what could be the reason why no rich man has ever objected or raised the question down through history that “We make all the temples and churches; we pay all the priests, millions of them around the world; we publish all the holy books and distribute them free; we donate to all kinds of charitable things - and we shall not inherit the kingdom of God?” The reason, Osho says, is that “the priests and the rich people both know perfectly well that this is only a deception. There is no God and no kingdom of God; this is a fiction to keep the poor people consoled.”
‘The Rebel’ which consists of 35 chapters spread over in 549 pages, is the transcript of Osho’s responses to diverse questions, mostly relating to rebellion and revolution, from seekers and disciples. Following are some of his observations:
It is human to err, and it is also human to forgive. To say that it is divine to forgive is a dangerous statement. It prevents people from forgiving each other because they think they are only human beings.
A life which is not sincere is not worth living at all. A life which is not sincere is fake, it is pseudo.
All crime is illness, sickness. It does not need any punishment; it needs understanding, and it needs treatment.
It is a strange thing about the human mind that you become aware of things only when you have lost them.
Osho tells a number of jokes, parables and anecdotes during the course of his talks. Jokes like the following are interesting as well as thought provoking:
A Catholic priest, a Protestant minister, and a Jewish rabbi met on a golf course and decided to bet on who would win their game. But first, they had to decide what portion of their winnings should be given back to God.
“Let us draw a small circle on the ground, throw our winnings up in the air, and what lands in the circle goes to God,” the Catholic priest suggested.
“No, let us draw a large circle,” said the Protestant minister, “throw the money up, and what lands outside the circle will go to God.”
“Wait,” cried the rabbi. “Forget all about circles. Let us throw the money up, and what stays up God can keep.”
***
“These are extra strong pills, Mr. Cohen,” the doctor advised him. “Take one on Monday, skip Tuesday, one Wednesday, skip Thursday, and so on. I will come round next week to see you.”
When the doctor calls, a weeping Mrs. Cohen meets him. “He’s dead,” she tells him.
“What!” said the doctor in surprise. “There was very little wrong with him. The pills should have cleared it up.”
“It was not the pills,” wailed Mrs. Cohen. “It was the skipping.”
***
