Gourishankar Meditation is an evening method from Osho that moves from heightened breath and vision into spontaneous movement and deep stillness. Osho said that when the first stage is done correctly, the buildup of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream can make one feel as high as standing on Gourishankar (Mt. Everest)—a clear, shimmering altitude within.
The practice unfolds in four 15‑minute stages: breath retention to elevate inner aliveness; soft, unwavering gazing into light; surrender to the body’s subtle, self‑arising movements (Latihan); and finally, a silent lying‑down, where the energy settles of its own accord. It is both poetic and precise: you follow simple directions, then allow the inner intelligence to take over.
Phase Instructions
First Stage: Deep Breathing and Retention
15 minutes with music. Sit with eyes closed. Inhale deeply through the nose, filling the lungs completely. Hold the breath for as long as possible. Exhale gently through the mouth and keep the lungs empty for as long as possible. Repeat this cycle throughout the stage. Osho has said that, done correctly, the resulting carbon dioxide in the bloodstream creates a natural, mountain‑high clarity—"as if on Gourishankar (Mt. Everest)."
Second Stage: Soft Gazing at Light
15 minutes with music. Return to normal breathing. Soften the gaze and look steadily at a candle flame or a flashing light. Keep the body completely still. The rhythmic beat of the music in this stage is seven times the normal heartbeat; if possible, use a synchronized strobe for the flashing light so that sight and sound are in unison.
Third Stage: Latihan – Allowing Movement
15 minutes with music. With eyes closed, stand up. Let the body be loose, relaxed, and receptive. Feel the subtle energies within begin to move the body outside your usual control. Allow this Latihan to happen: do not do the moving—let the moving happen by itself.
Fourth Stage: Silence and Stillness
15 minutes in silence. Lie down. Remain silent and completely still, simply witnessing whatever is present.
Core Benefits
- Heightened breath awareness
- Increased inner aliveness
- Spontaneous movement facilitation
- Deep stillness experience
- Elevation to a clear, shimmering mental state
What Osho Said About This Technique
SECOND STAGE Now we have to enter the second stage. Continue deep breathing, and let go of the body. Leave the body to do what it wishes to do. Let go of it. Let it take whatever asanas or postures it wants to take; let it form whatever mudras or gestures it likes. Leave it free to move and shake and whirl as it likes. If it wants to weep let it. Let go of the body completely. Continue deep breathing and let go of the body. Let the body fall down if it wants to fall down. And let it rise again if it wants to rise. And if it wants to dance allow it wholly. Let go of the body absolutely. Let it do whatever it wants to do. Leave it free. Don't impede it even in the least. Cooperate with the body. If it spins, let it.Read the full discourse →
Then satsang with the true happens by itself. Now understand two things about the night’s meditation. The night meditation is a practice of tratak — but very unique and very powerful. In the first stage, for fifteen minutes you will gaze at me without blinking. (Sit first — understand first...) Gaze at me fixedly. Do not blink. Do not let the lids fall, even if tears begin to flow. Keep the eyes wholly on me. Both hands are to be raised high during meditation, and you will stand to meditate. I will signal you with my hand. When I signal, you must jump with your total energy — so that the hidden energy within you becomes active. Keep your eyes affixed to me so a link is made with me, so a relationship, a bridge, is created.Read the full discourse →
But it is difficult to conceive of a cool welcome. We say a 'warm welcome'. Somehow, all that is hot is thought to be alive; that's not true. There is a love which is cool, absolutely cool. The love of a buddha... you will feel the coolness of it. It is like a great tree, and you are sitting under the shade of it, and a cool breeze is blowing. Or you are under a cool shower... or in a small pool of cool water in the hilly... everything silent. And the coolness is not only outside. It has entered you... you have become one with it. When this happens for the first time, one feels very much afraid, as if life is going out of one's hands, as if one will never be able to love again, never be able to be excited again.Read the full discourse →
Osho, the actions a person performs—are they not, in fact, done by God alone? Has it been rightly asked: are not the actions a person performs actually done by the Divine?
Second stage: Now we enter the second step. Keep the breathing deep, and let the body do whatever it wants—leave it to itself. Let the body make mudras, make postures; if the body starts trembling, whirling, crying—let it. Let the body go completely—breathing will remain deep, and you will let the body go. If the body falls, let it fall. If it rises, let it rise. If it begins to dance, don’t worry—let the body go. Let the body go completely. Breathing will remain deep, and the body will be left completely free. Let the body do whatever it wants. Do not stop it even a little; cooperate with it. Whatever the body wants to do, cooperate—if it whirls, let it whirl; if it sways, let it sway; if it falls, let it fall; if it cries, let it cry; if it laughs, let it laugh—let go—whatever happens, let it…Read the full discourse →
(Osho sits in silence for a few minutes, then begins to offer suggestions.)
The mind has become quiet and empty... everything has been erased... the mind is utterly empty... the mind has become empty... keep watching, keep knowing—the mind has become empty... the mind is utterly empty... the mind is utterly empty... Remain a witness; keep watching, keep knowing, keep experiencing—the river has carried it away, the funeral pyre has burned it—now, silently, there is knowing... knowing. In this very emptiness, at some moment, that enters which is called bliss. That enters which is called truth. That enters which is called the Divine (Paramatma). Everything has become empty... everything has become empty... the doors stand open, in waiting—everything has become empty. Now slowly take a few deep breaths... slowly take deep breaths... with each breath you will feel great freshness, great peace, great joy. Slowly take a few deep breaths... slowly take a few deep breaths... with each breath you will feel great…Read the full discourse →
Common Questions
The primary goal is to move from heightened breath and vision into spontaneous movement and deep stillness, accessing a clear and shimmering mental state.
Each stage lasts 15 minutes.
The buildup of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream can make one feel as high as standing on Mount Everest, leading to a heightened mental state.
During the surrender stage, one should allow the body’s subtle, self-arising movements to occur naturally.
In the final stage, one lies down in silence, allowing the energy to settle on its own accord.