According to Osho, organization is, unfortunately, necessary for a religion’s survival, yet it almost inevitably becomes political and anti-religious. Religion is delicate like a flower; organization is the strong root—useful for support but prone to dominate. Separate powers create conflict; united powers breed corruption. The only remedy is vigilant, minimal structure that serves the living spirit, not suppresses it, and welcomes rebellious authenticity.
Yes, a religion needs some structure to last, but too much of it turns into politics, so keep it small and serving the heart.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
Question: OSHO, ISN'T ORGANIZATION A NECESSITY FOR A RELIGION TO SURVIVE? UNFORTUNATELY, it is. Religion needs some kind of organization, but the problem arises. Organization in itself is a political entity; organization does not need religion at all. To survive, religion needs organization. To survive, organization needs no religion at all. There is the crux of the whole problem. There have been in the past efforts to create religion without any organization, seeing that all the organizations somehow end up in being anti-religious. For example, the Catholic church -- it is a very solid organization but only an organization; there is no religion left. Religion is a disturbance as far as the hierarchy of the organization is concerned. Religion is a continuous trouble; religious people will be trouble.
Osho, if organization and sectarianism bring about the decline of religion and Tao, please explain why people like Buddha or Mahavira lay the foundations of organizations. And you too, being fully aware of this, why are you laying the foundation of an organization like Neo-Sannyas International?
As I said, birth comes with death; whenever truth is born, organization is born. This cannot be avoided. The moment truth is told to another, organization begins. Either the one to whom truth has happened keeps silent, drinks it alone, and tells no one. Buddha thought so. When he became enlightened he remained silent for seven days. He thought, There is no point in saying it. Those who can arrive will arrive without words; those who cannot, telling will not help—it will only create confusion. Better to remain quiet. But there is a sweet story: the gods, Brahma himself, came and pleaded at his feet, “Do not do this! Who knows after how many thousands of years someone attains buddhahood; what he has known should be spoken, communicated, shared.” Buddha said, “Those who can attain will attain without me, and those who cannot—why should I waste my time and energy…
Question: BELOVED OSHO, WHY SHOULD RELIGION AND STATE REMAIN SEPARATE? In India, my dentist used to tell me, "At least when I am working on your teeth you should stop talking." Just five minutes work takes two hours! -- because the poor fellow had to stop. Of course he is my disciple so he could not tell me to stop, to shut up. I say that many times to him while he is doing dentistry -- it is, of course, difficult to do dentistry on me -- I tell him many times, "Shut up!" If his gas is not running well I tell him, "Hit the cylinder!" And he has to hit it, because I insist, "You hit the cylinder." And he was surprised that by hitting it, it works. My dental nurse was also there.
Beloved Osho, fritjof capra, in an interview with swami deva ojas about the nature of spiritual organizations, said, "the cosmos does not know any hierarchy," that "the best way to organize them is as a network, in a loose interaction," and that "such a network structure seems the best soil for the spiritual growth of the individual, because it ensures the possibility of the individual continuing and guarantees enough to develop human relations."
But growth is a little harder. To accept that you are alone, that nobody is above you who can decide for you, that you have to take decisions every moment of your life, that every inch you move is your decision.... If you commit a mistake, you have to correct it; nobody can forgive you, because there is nobody at all. If you do something good, nobody is going to reward you. So basically and deeply the acceptance that "my act is my reward, and my act is my punishment, and I am totally responsible for whatever I am doing" -- this is maturity. You are not in need of a father figure. You are not in need of being part of a crowd. You can be yourself. I wanted the communes not to be hierarchical -- but it seems difficult, because every man wants a hierarchy. So the only…
Beloved Osho, you are against the pope so much -- is that because the roman catholic religion is the most organized religion?
Religion is something so high, and politics is so low that one thing has to be remembered: whenever there is a mixture of something lower with something higher, it is always the higher which becomes polluted -- not the lower. It is always the higher which loses its quality of being higher. The lower has nothing to lose; it cannot fall any more -- it has already fallen to its uttermost. Religion and politics should be separate. And the moment religion becomes organized, it becomes politics. Hence religion should not be organized at all; it should be everybody's private, personal, intimate search. At least some area of life should be left to the individual where he is totally free, without anybody else deciding for him, where he can open his wings like an eagle and fly across the sun -- no chains, no bondages, no hindrances. Religion blossoms only in…