How can I be strong enough to cope with the consequences of rebellion?

Beloved Osho, I remember that I did go for rebellious things, but when I was turned down or shut off or dismissed, it hurt so deeply that I gave up. Can you tell us the secret of how to be strong enough to cope with the consequences?

It is very simple. You have been too serious about your rebellion. That's why you got hurt, because you were thinking you were doing something great, and they told you to shut up! You were expecting a Nobel prize. The secret is very simple. About your rebellion, don't be serious. On the contrary, when they say, "Shut up!" have a good laugh, be hilarious; then they will be hurt. They will not be able to figure out what is the matter: "I shouted at the boy and rather than getting sad, hurt, he laughed." That's what I was doing in my childhood. I turned whatever they gave to me, or were trying to give to me, I turned it back with great force. If somebody told me, "Shut up!" I laughed loudly, and I inquired, "Does your `shut up' apply to laughter too? I will not say a thing, but…

Beloved master, what is the secret of a true rebel that allows him to destroy the old structures, stand up against the whole world, and still remain non-serious?

Samvedo, the secret is not much of a secret. It is an open secret... the true rebel has an understanding of the momentariness of life, of the certainty of death; hence nothing can make him afraid, nothing can make him compromise. In such a momentary life one is absolutely able to live without any compromise, and when death is certain, there is no need for compromise at all. Because life is so short, the rebel can do whatever he is capable of with his total being, whatever he enjoys to create and whatever needs to be destroyed for that creation to happen. He is not destructive; even if he has to destroy it is always in the service of creation. And still he remains... because he is not a reactionary, he has no complaint against anybody; he remains playful, because all creativity is playfulness. He is non-serious, because seriousness is…

But if people become rebellious, how can society control them?

It is the very concept of control that has made the whole world a mess. The moment you think in terms of control, you begin to suppress and you begin to destroy individuals and create types. And, paradoxically, when you destroy individuals and create patterns and types, much disorder follows. But this disorder is not because of rebellious minds, it is just a reaction against the dead order. If the rebellious mind wins even for a single day, there will be no disorder because there will be no order; order and disorder are two sides of the same coin. A person who tries to create order creates disorder: the attitude, the mind that tries to ordain discipline creates indiscipline, too. Your ego reacts against a person who is trying to discipline you, but this is reaction not rebellion. Rebellion only emerges after satori, so there are not many rebellious persons…

I frequently hear you speak about rebellion. The priests and nuns and relatives that shaped my training are now old and dried up. Most are dead. It seems worthless to rebel against those helpless old people.

I AM NOW THE PRIEST AND THE DOCTRINES. I FEEL THAT TO REBEL AGAINST ANYTHING OUTSIDE MYSELF IS A WASTE OF TIME AND JUST SIMPLY NOT TO THE POINT. THIS MAKES THE SITUATION MUCH MORE FRUSTRATING AND ENTANGLED. IT SEEMS THE SELF MUST REBEL AGAINST THE SELF. I ACCEPT THAT IT IS NOT THE ESSENTIAL SELF -- THE ORIGINAL FACE -- THAT HAS TO DO THE REBELLING. IT IS THE TRAINED SELF -- THE SUBTERFUGE. BUT THAT IS THE ONLY "SELF" I HAVE OR KNOW WITH WHICH TO DO THE REBELLING. HOW DOES THE SUBTERFUGE REBEL AGAINST THE SUBTERFUGE? For example, just sitting with your friends, by the way, you say, "That movie I went to yesterday was not worth seeing." You may have mentioned it just by the way, but then somebody says, "You are wrong. I have also seen the movie. It is one of the most beautiful…

Beloved Osho, hearing you talk about your rebellious attitude in your childhood, I feel connected to that, because I did the same. I struggled hard not to be repressed, but somehow they got me in the end. Half-heartedly I compromised. Why was your rebellion not disturbed by anything?

Neither I compromise with anybody, nor do I allow anybody else to compromise with me. I have never compromised and I have never allowed anybody to compromise with me. Compromise is not my game. This is possible only if you are not trying to strengthen your ego. For ego, it makes no difference: struggle is okay if it is nourishment for the ego, compromise is okay if it is nourishment for the ego. The ego wants to remain -- it can use any means. There is no question of deciding what is right, what is wrong. For the ego, anything that keeps it strong is right -- might is right. So if you can get something through compromise, why should you bother to fight? Yes, if you cannot get it through compromise, you are ready to struggle, to fight, to do anything that you are capable of. This must have…