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Osho on Is there any place for prayer in religion if there is no God?

Is there any place for prayer in religion if there is no God?

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True religion turns inward; replace prayer with meditation and transform a beggar into an emperor.

— Osho
Synthesized from Source definition
Core Insight:
According to Osho, if there is no God, prayer has no place in religion: it is God-oriented, thus baseless, humiliating begging addressed to nobody. All prayer is extroversion that keeps you away from yourself. True religion turns inward; replace prayer with meditation. Stop pleading to a fiction; become inwardly alert, self-reliant, and sovereign—meditation transforms a beggar into an emperor.
If no one’s there to hear, praying is like asking the sky for candy—better sit quietly, look inside, and grow strong yourself.
Why this matters practically
- Shifts you from dependence on an imagined listener to personal responsibility and awareness.
- Replaces begging with meditation, restoring dignity and inner sovereignty.
- Focuses energy inward, fostering clarity, peace, and real transformation.
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