OSHO, ALSO KNOWN as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, was a twentieth-century Indian guru with an enormous following in the West. For a while he and Maharishi Mahesh Yogi were the two most famous gurus in the United States. They were frequently discussed in the mass media.
Osho was a man of exceptional intelligence, erudition, charisma, and powers of communication.
Some people thought of him as a guru of hedonism, an impressario of spiritual Mardi Gras. Tens of thousands of seekers jetted across oceans to his ashrams and communes to participate in giddy, high-energy experiments in living and consciousness.
But he was also a professor of philosophy, a lover of literature, and the author of a large library of books that explain the Hindu and Buddhist scriptures in matter-of-fact, crystal-clear English.
He was extremely intelligent, probably the most intelligent famous spiritual teacher of the twentieth century, and well educated.
He spoke very slowly and carefully, like an exceptionally articulate alcoholic trying not to slur his words.
Nisargadatta said he was a “great sage” (see below for the full quotation).
He dressed in pretentious, hand-tailored costumes, owned dozens of Rolls-Royces, and wore a diamond-crusted Rolex rumored to cost one million 1980 dollars.
In the 1980s, Osho and his followers built a 65,000-acre city from scratch in the Oregon wilderness. Some people called it an experiment to provoke God, and others called it a fascist concentration camp.
Controversy surrounded him; he was accused of crimes and eventually deported from the United States for violations of immigration law.
He has left us hundreds of books and videos (legally speaking, he left them to the Osho International Foundation). We think they are among the most interesting documents about enlightenment that anybody made during the twentieth century.
Maybe he was both.
Nisargadatta said:
“Rajneesh [Osho] is not a small personality or small principal. He is tremendous ‒ he is very big. He is a great sage.
“When you already have a guru [Osho], why do you visit other sages? Since You already have a great sage as your guru, you should not sit here or come here. I do not like those shiftings from gurus to gurus. I do not like wanderers. What is the difference between Maharaj and Rajneesh [Osho]? Once you remove the letters (that is, the names) what is the difference?”
From Consciousness and the Absolute, June 9, 1981.Osho was born in Kuchwada, Madhya Pradesh, India on December 11, 1931. His parents gave him the name Rajneesh Chandra Mohan and raised him as a Jain. When he was seven, his grandfather died with his head in Osho’s lap while they rode to the doctor in a bullock cart. Osho became enlightened at 21 and graduated at about the same time from the University of Saugar with first-class honors in philosophy. While a student, he won the All-India Debating Championship. He was a professor of philosophy at the University of Jabalpur for nine years. In 1966, he left his teaching post and established an ashram in Bombay (Mumbai). In 1974, he left Bombay and established an ashram in Poona. In 1981, he moved to the United States and established an ashram in Oregon. In 1986 he was deported from the United States for violations of immigration law (he pleaded no contest) and returned to Poona. He died on January 19, 1990.
Osho’s description of his awakening is one of the best accounts of enlightenment that we have read. It’s on this website here.
Osho interpreted and discussed almost every method that anybody ever used to gain enlightenment, but the technique he stressed above all was the habit of watching the mind. This leads to mindlessness which in turn leads to enlightenment. He explains this technique here and here.
The Book of Secrets:
112 Meditations to Discover the Mystery Within
By Osho
This mammoth 1152-page book is Osho’s commentary on the Vijnana-Bhairava, an ancient Sanskrit how-to manual that describes 112 methods of attaining enlightenment. Please note that some of the material in this book is also contained in Meditation: The First and Last Freedom, recommended below. See it on Amazon.
Meditation: The First and Last Freedom (A Practical Guide to Meditation)
By Osho
This book is one of the best all-around manuals for meditators. Osho believes meditation is watchfulness. He explains how to do it and how to let it carry you to enlightenment. Please note that some of the material in this book is also contained in The Book of Secrets, recommended above. See it on Amazon.
In Search of the Miraculous: Chakras, Kundalini and the Seven Bodies
By Osho
Using simple analogies and anecdotes, Osho talks about kundalini, sex, shaktipat, chakras, tantra, and related subjects. See it on Amazon.
This talk by Osho is one of the best descriptions of enlightenment and awakening we’ve ever read. The linked page includes both the transcription and recording.
In plain, easy-to-understand language (like everything Osho wrote), this article explains that meditation means watching your mind. Watching your mind leads to mindlessness. In mindlessness your mind is quiet, but it's a different quiet than the one that results from forcible suppression. Make this a habit, and everything else follows automatically.
Unenlightened people misunderstand what enlightened people say about effort.
Owner of the copyrights in Osho’s works.
This page was published on January 11, 2000 and last revised on May 18, 2019.