According to Osho, people began to honor poverty when a long collusion between priests and politicians took hold: their power depends on ongoing sin, fear, and guilt. Prosperity would dissolve sin—and with it the priest’s trade and the politician’s control—so they sanctified destitution. By romanticizing poverty, they ensured dependence, crime, and obedience, as Lao Tzu’s parable exposes systemic roots.
They praised being poor so people stayed needy, sinned from lack, felt guilty, and kept obeying priests and politicians.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
Osho, “Ashanaya vai patmamatiḥ.” That is, hunger is the root of all sin; it corrupts the intellect. Osho, when and why did people who understood this aphorism from the Aitareya Brahmana begin to honor poverty?
Without materialism there can be no prosperity. Without materialism, the Aitareya Brahmana’s aphorism cannot be fulfilled—poverty will remain. What Gulzarilal Nanda is saying—give him a new name: Gulzari Lal Andha, Mr. Blind. These blind people can’t even see that for centuries the same nonsense has been repeated: “We must cultivate spiritual qualities.” People are dying of hunger; there is no bread in their stomachs; and these men want to develop their spiritual qualities! These full-bellied men keep chanting Rama’s name. They think that since their bellies are full, everyone else’s must be too. In this country ninety percent are hungry; fifty percent are utterly hungry. And you want to cultivate spiritual qualities in them! The possibility that they might turn toward materialism gives Gulzari Lal Andha great pain. And why is he in pain? Because the trade is in danger. You have been cultivating spiritual qualities for ten thousand years—how…
A few have ridden that golden bird for a long time. But real India has always been hungry, destitute, and meek. Real India has never been wealthy. After thousands of years of poverty, slowly we became reconciled to it. We dropped even the idea that we could be prosperous. Not only dropped the idea—we developed a philosophy that poverty is sublime, and wealth is something to be kicked away. This is cunning in the extreme. It is the poor man’s last consolation—to deem wealth not worth having. He says, “What is there in riches? Gold is dust!” The country can’t even get dust, and we call gold dust! We have died hungry, for millennia. We have forgotten that we could also live with a full belly. Long hunger becomes habit. Not only habit—it breeds a sense that even poverty can be honorable.
Beloved Osho, goethe once wrote in his 'goetz von berlichingen', "poverty, chastity and obedience -- unbearable are they all." what do you think about his statement?
They gathered, but the bishop must have thought it will look foolish to have a protest with a dozen old women; it will be a protest against Christianity, not against me. So hiding somewhere in a small room... We tried to find out where they were meeting, but we could not. Then he gave a declaration to the newspapers that "the concerned people had a secret meeting." And who are these concerned people? -- the old women. I loved the words "concerned people." All these religions are living on poverty. The poor go there because they are suffering; it is unbearable, they need some kind of consolation. The rich don't go there; they are not suffering. And if they are in a certain anguish, these priests are not capable of helping them. The rich people, feeling frustrated, have to search for somebody who can help them out of their anguish.…
Beloved Osho, what are the causes of poverty in india, and the downfall of the economic condition? How can india come out of this mess and create richness?
Don't harm anybody, but don't let anybody harm you. Then only can a nonviolent person survive in the world, and not become a coward. Jesus says, "If somebody hits one of your cheeks, give him the other cheek too." Christians are hypocrites, they have never followed it. They have been killing, they have been murdering, they have been burning living people. They have been doing everything which goes against Jesus -- and still they go on preaching Jesus in the churches. And no Christian raises the question: "Our lifestyle for two thousand years is absolutely against the teachings of Jesus." The West has made an arrangement: a teaching is a teaching; it is good, pay respect to it. The Bible is holy -- but your religion is Sunday religion, only on a holiday. You go to the church and that's all. Six days do everything wrong that you can do;…
Osho. Are you also the poor man's guru?
Certainly! Whenever you give me an opportunity to contradict myself I never lose it. I contain contradictions. I am vast. I never feel uneasy about contradictions; I love them. Yes, I am a poor man's guru. But if you understand me there is no contradiction. My definition of a rich man and my definition of a poor man have to be understood well. Jesus says, "Blessed are the poor because theirs is the kingdom of God." And mind you, he does not say theirs will BE the kingdom of God; he says theirs IS the kingdom of God. Let me repeat it: he says, "Blessed are the poor, because theirs is the kingdom of God." But who are the poor in Jesus' definition? -- the same people I call rich. I call a man rich who has become absolutely frustrated with the world, who has known all that it can…