According to Osho, he attained Buddhahood solely through meditation; devotion (kirtan) was not the path but the flowering of what meditation discovered. Meditation is silent like a desert; devotion is its fragrant garden, a way to share the inner abundance. His songs arose from deepening silence—the roots in meditation, the blossoms in devotion—realization within, celebration without.
He woke up through meditating; the singing and devotion came after, to share his joy with others.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
Other friends have asked: by which path did he attain Buddhahood—through meditation or through devotion? For he practiced meditation, but his heart’s delight was in kirtan. So, through meditation or through kirtan?
For him, kirtan was not a path—only an expression. What he received in meditation, he would lavish in kirtan. He did not attain Buddhahood through kirtan. He attained Buddhahood through meditation alone. But how to share what is found in meditation? Meditation is mute; it cannot speak. Devotion can speak, can sway. Therefore, even for the knower, even for the meditator, when the time comes to express, there remains no other means than devotion. Such is the dignity of bhakti. Meditation is like a desert. Bhakti is a garden. There, flowers bloom profusely, the cuckoo coos, and the pied cuckoo calls, “Pi-kahan, pi-kahan.” His path was meditation; he attained only through meditation. But as the depth of meditation grew, so did his dilemma: all that was gathering within—what to do with it, what not to do? He asked me, “What should I do? So much is accumulating inside; how do…
Osho, you have said that meditation is an inner journey. Is devotion also an inner journey? What is the fundamental difference between the inner journey of meditation and that of devotion? Please explain with compassion.
This is the path of love; here the Other is essential. From the union of two arises variety; the stream of rasa flows. A man alone cannot give birth to a child; a woman alone cannot give birth either. For a child to be born, the meeting of these opposites is necessary. Yes, a man can paint alone, a woman can sculpt alone—but they cannot give birth. For devotion, two are needed. Devotion is the unity that happens between two. Knowledge is the experience of the One. In the end, only One remains; thus both, ultimately, lead to the same place. But knowledge assumes the One from the very beginning; knowledge is nondual. Bhakti fundamentally accepts duality. The heart of bhakti is large: it says, let us accept the two; then we will unite them. Bhakti has trust in union. The faith that a bridge can be built between two—that…
Osho, to cross the ocean of becoming and dissolve into the Supreme Self, which should one rely on—insensate devotion, foolish devotion, or blind devotion?
So drop this worry—whether insensate devotion, foolish devotion, blind devotion, or deranged devotion. Drop it; devotion is enough. And in devotion all these labels will take care of themselves. Become a devotee once, and “blind” you will automatically be—meaning: the whole world will call you blind. You will not become blind; rather, you will gain eyes. You will begin to see what ordinary eyes cannot see. The invisible will become visible; the imperceptible will come within perception. That which no one has ever touched will be felt as touch. But the world will call you blind. The world will not be able to accept it—because the world is blind, and the blind call you blind. H. G. Wells has a story: somewhere in Mexico there is a valley where children go blind within three months of birth. The story is based on fact. The climate, the food—something there ruins the…
Osho, you say there are only two paths—devotion and knowledge. But you teach neither devotion nor knowledge; you teach meditation. So is meditation beyond both devotion and knowledge?
Meditation is the essence of knowledge and devotion. Meditation is the distillation of both. What the devotee calls love, what the knower calls awareness—meditation is the distilled essence of awareness and love. Think of it this way: some flowers are of devotion and some of knowledge; pressing both, you make a perfume—that perfume is meditation. Meditation is the devotee’s devotion, the knower’s awakening. One wing of meditation is devotion, the other wing is knowledge. Meditation is the quintessence. Come through devotion and you will arrive at meditation; come through knowledge and you will arrive at meditation. In the ultimate sense, the treasure that falls into your hands is called meditation. Understand. Devotion means: the devotee disappears, God remains. Knowledge means: God disappears, the knower remains, the self remains. That is why Mahavira and Buddha, the highest peaks of knowledge, did not accept a God; they declared there is no God.…
Osho, you appear to be an ocean of knowledge. Yet in your doctrine or teaching there seems to be a complete absence of devotion. In spirituality, knowledge without devotion only displays a man’s ego. An egotist cannot be a great guru.
Prem Narayan! Me, an ocean of knowledge! You’ve made a mistake. You are the ocean of knowledge! You haven’t asked a question; you’ve delivered a verdict. I am ignorant, supremely ignorant—one who knows nothing. How did a knower like you land up here? It’s our great fortune you came, bestowed enlightenment, and woke up a sleeper; otherwise I would have slept on! You’ve written a whopper. You wrote: “You look like an ocean of knowledge.” I may look like it; I am not. Not even a drop—yet you’re talking oceans! Here, not even a drop remains, and you’re talking oceans! You know everything! Why ask this at all? Wise ones like you don’t go around asking questions. You must have come out of sheer compassion. You say, “In your doctrine or teaching…” Who ever said I have a doctrine? Have I ever said so? I don’t talk metaphysics. How would…