What should I do when I feel guilt about disagreeing with spiritual teachings on politics or society?

Swami Shantiswarup Bharti has asked: “Your talks on spirituality and religion are very dear to me. But when you say something about politics or society, I can’t agree. This creates a sense of guilt. What should I do now?”

A sense of guilt can be erased in only two ways. Either drop sannyas. If you are so insistent on clutching political and social opinions—so eager to hold on to your own ideas—then drop those sweet words you like to hear. You will be free of guilt. Free yourself from sannyas. Or, if truly the talks on spirituality and religion are so dear to you, can you not pay even this small price—that you drop your two-bit political opinions and social notions! And what are your political opinions and social notions worth, anyway! You have no awareness of yourself—what on earth will you understand of society? You don’t even know who you are, and you think you can have a perspective on politics! Except for the Buddhas, whatever people say about society and politics springs only from their foolishness. And the irony is, we don’t want enlightened ones to say…

Often I have the feeling that I am not doing something I ought to be doing, or doing something I should not be doing; that something has to change and fast -- a schooldays' worry that I am not going to make the grade, that I might be expelled.

The master said, "I warned you, but you didn't listen. Now look, tomorrow you stand at the same place again. When he comes ask him, 'Where are you going?' and he will say, 'Wherever the winds take me.' Then you also be a little more philosophical. Say, 'If you don't have any legs, then? Because the soul is bodiless and the wind cannot take the soul anywhere!' What about that?" Absolutely ready, the whole night he repeated it again and again and again. And next morning very early he went there, stood on the right spot, and at the exact time the boy came. He was very happy, now he was going to show him what real philosophy is. So he asked, "Where are you going?" And he was waiting.... But the boy said, "I am going to fetch vegetables from the market." Now, what to do with the philosophy…

[A group member said that he was aware of much guilt connected with his leaving his wife and young son. The groupleader commented that the man used the guilt to avoid situations. Osho said that to feel guilty had nothing to do with being religious, and that guilt was nothing but an ego trip He said that priests have exploited guilt, and that they are cunning people. He said that the guilt presupposes that you are in control of what happens, but that you are not the doer if you do not have a crystallized self... ] You are like driftwood. The wind blows that way, you drift that way. The wind blows this way, you go this way. The driftwood cannot say that it wanted to go south but it is going north, and it feels guilty. This is exactly the case.

Osho, Bertrand Russell has said somewhere that the greatest problem of modern man is the sense of guilt. Is that true? And if it is true, what should one do to be free of it?

This is true in a very deep sense. And not only today; the sense of guilt has always been man’s problem. When I say “always,” I mean: ever since man became “civilized.” The uncivilized man knows no guilt. He lives as simply as children, as animals and birds, as trees. Civilization is born out of guilt. Guilt means: we tell every child, “You should be like this, and you should not be like that.” Then, whenever the child finds himself leaning in the direction of the “should not,” a tendency toward guilt arises—guilt, self-reproach, shame. And whenever he finds himself leaning in the direction we say he “should,” then ego arises. Civilization breeds two diseases: on one side ego, on the other guilt. You tell a child, “Don’t smoke; it’s a great sin, you’ll rot in hell.” You frighten him. If he then smokes, guilt arises: “I’ve done something sinful.”…

One should start loving oneself, accepting oneself, because there is no other way for you than to be yourself. Just accept, otherwise you will create misery. All 'shoulds' are dangerous, and all ideals and perfectionist ideas are very very dangerous. There is no need for them! Whatsoever you can do, do, and enjoy it. When you feel that you want to get out of it, simply get out -- with no grudge, no grumble or guilt, so you remain clean and pure. [The leader answers: I've got so much guilt!] So accept it! That is what the problem is! If you have guilt, accept that too. Now you will create another should -- that one should not have guilt -- and then you feel guilty about that! I am saying that whatsoever you are, relax and accept it.