According to Osho, yes—severing ties with all ‘isms’ includes the label ‘Rajneeshism’; yet he insists it isn’t an ism at all but an existential, belief-free inquiry. It offers no theology or ideology, only a heart-to-heart communion and childlike openness. You don’t become a Rajneeshee by believing, but by directly experiencing life’s fragrance, silence, and wonder.
Yes: drop every ideology, even the label “Rajneeshism”; Osho points you to your own direct experience instead of beliefs.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
Beloved Osho, I have heard you say that you would like to sever our relationships with all "isms." does this include rajneeshism as well?
It would be easier to call it something totally new, but then nobody would understand what it is. So until we have enough people to understand, we will have to carry a wrong label on it. Once they have understood, the label will be removed. Once we have our own world around this earth, "ism" is not going to be part of our way of life. So if you think Rajneeshism is also an "ism," throw it away. You have not understood anything. Your approach is still intellectual; otherwise, such a question would not have arisen. You can see -- no dogma is preached, no belief system is given. You are not required to accept anything. The atheist can become part of my communes, the theist can become part, the communist can become part, the capitalist can become part. We don't discriminate against anybody. Our basic approach is such, that…
Rajneeshism allows everyone into its fold, states Osho
Our religion should not be categorized with any other religion of the world because it has not tradition or dogma and it allows everybody without any discrimination into its religious fold. Rajneeshism does not ask anyone to renounce their religion and does not have any conflict with Buddha, Christ, Krishna, Lao Tzu, etc. Basically Rajneeshism has the essential core of all religiousness. The other religions are against each other's traditions and attitudes. In fact, these other religions are fanatic and each believes and fights that theirs is the true religion and others are false. This is not the case with me or Rajneeshism. A Christian can become a Rajneeshee and he is not asked to drop his love for Jesus, in fact he finds Jesus in me. The same is true for a Buddhist or a Mohammedan. Our commune consists of people from all religions who have found their religion's…
A:* I will enjoy! My wife has some ascetic sensibility. And I would tell her that, "If that man is willing, you are free to go with him, because it is your life, and you are not responsible towards me. And I love you, hence I cannot prevent you. I love you so much that if you are happy with that man, I will be immensely happy." That will be my response. I cannot call it a reaction; it is not reaction. Reaction is a ugly word. Q:* WHAT WOULD YOU SAY? A:* It is my response... and this is my responsibility: I love the woman, but she suddenly feels great love arising in her towards somebody -- what she can do? Love is not something within her hands. It happens. And if it is happening and she has to repress it, she will take revenge with me.
A friend has asked: Osho, are you a samyavadi—are you a communist?
If I were opposed to the great ones, it would be hard to find anyone who loves the great ones more than I do. I am not even an opponent of Godse—so how could I be an opponent of Gandhi? But when I criticize some great person, I am not opposing the person; I am trying to shake the peg to which you are tied, so that you may be free. You praise the peg so much that your praise becomes the reason for your bondage. Therefore I try to break even your praises. Do not mistakenly think I have any enmity. But our understanding is so small—so very small. And the understanding of the prejudiced is always small. One who has a doctrine has no understanding, because he is already bound and looks at the world only through that fixed lens. Difficulties arise. He cannot grasp what is being…
Osho, you say christ was the last christian. Are you the last rajneeshee? Please explain.
That is the other way of declaring superiority -- perhaps far better a way, because it is so arduous. To become a messiah all that you need is a retarded mind, stupid, stubborn -- and you can declare yourself And to declare yourself the only begotten son of God, what do you need? Just no sense of shame, that's all; otherwise such stupid things.... Any intelligent person, even if he is the only begotten son of God, will try to hide the fact: if somebody hears, what are people going to think about it? Even if he knows that he is a messenger from God he will not tell anybody. He will deliver the message and escape because it looks so foolish that you are the son of a poor carpenter, uneducated, and you have been chosen to be the messenger of God. God could not find an educated, sophisticated…