According to Osho, belief arises only when there is no knowing; it is a substitute born of ignorance and insecurity. Its engine is fear - fear of hell, death, aloneness, chaos - and its twin, greed, which is fear in disguise (for heaven, rewards). Belief projects fears into gods for protection. Freedom from fear dissolves belief, opening direct experience of truth.
We believe because we’re scared and don’t really know, so we make comforting ideas instead of seeing truth for ourselves.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
I believe in god, and it is not out of fear. Why do you say that all belief is out of fear?
Then why do you believe? You don't know. If you know, there is no need to believe. All belief is out of ignorance Belief MEANS ignorance. Buddha knows, he does not believe. I know, I don't believe at all. But why do you believe? From where comes your belief? It is not coming from your experience -- then from where is it coming? It can come only from two sources, which are basically the same source -- either fear or greed. Either you are afraid or you are greedy. And these are the two aspects of the same coin, fear and greed. Greed is out of fear, and out of greed more fear arises. They go together. So either you are afraid of hell or you are greedy for heaven. Otherwise why do you believe in God? How can you believe in God? Your very belief simply says that alone…
Osho, there is a saying, “If you believe, it is a god; otherwise, it’s a stone.” Is it all just a matter of believing?
I tell you: do not believe in God. There is no need to believe. If you believe in God, then what will you know? To believe in God means you have declared defeat in knowing—you are tired, you have thrown down your arms. You have said, “The search is over; there is nothing to know, so let us believe.” You don’t believe in the sun or the moon; you know them. You don’t believe in this world; you know it. And you believe in God? If your believed God is repeatedly defeated before your known world, it is no surprise. God should also be known. The day God is known, this world becomes insipid—maya, a dream. Experience is wealth; empty beliefs are not. So I make a small change in the saying: “Know, and it is God; otherwise, it’s a stone.” But to know, a great journey is required. To…
Osho, why is it that the moment we cling to some belief—whether theism or atheism—the mind feels so reassured? Why does it seem almost impossible for it to stand in the middle, dropping both?
There is no greater courage than to stand in existence without conclusions. By “without conclusions” I mean: no belief, no superstition. It means: we will see existence as it is, without bringing our notions in between. We will neither say “God is” nor “God is not.” We will neither say “the soul is” nor “the soul is not.” We will inquire. But inquiry is hard. Inquiry means you must pay a price. Who wants that bother? So we borrow beliefs on credit. We say, Mahavira knew, Buddha knew, Krishna knew—why should we get into the mess? We’ll cling to them, hold their feet, and pass through. That is not faith; it is only weakness. And the weak do not move. It is not trust to think we can walk to freedom by holding Buddha’s feet. If you have no trust in yourself, how will you trust Buddha? No real trust…
Osho, yesterday you told the story of Saint Peter and the three women. Please tell us what happened after that?
Saint Maharaj! Do use a little of your own intelligence. No story is ever told in full, because some trust must also be placed in your imagination—that you, too, can think a bit. You could have figured out for yourself what would happen next. The matter was so clear. My friend, what else could happen! What had to happen is exactly what happened. Saint Peter had barely dealt with those three women when three goddesses arrived. One had a white mouth-cloth tied over her face—she was a Jain nun. The second was a beautiful French model, and the third a Rajneesh sannyasin. Saint Peter first pointed toward the part below the French girl’s waist and asked, “What did you use this for?” Preening, the beauty replied, “I used it to revel with my eight wedded husbands and about a hundred and fifty lovers. I also used it to earn money…
I do not believe in anything, but I do believe in god. Why are you so much against beliefs?
Because a belief is a belief, and is not an experience. Belief is a barrier. If you believe in God you will never know God -- that's why I am against belief, because I am for God. Your very belief will never allow you to know that which is, because the belief means that before knowing it you have decided already what it is. Your decisive mind will not relax. Your mind with a conclusion is a prejudiced mind, and to know God an empty mind is needed -- unprejudiced, pure, uncontaminated by any belief, by any ideology. Because I am for God, that's why I am against all beliefs. And you say: I DO NOT BELIEVE IN ANYTHING ELSE... But if you believe in God, then what more is needed? That is enough. You have made the greatest mistake! Now every other mistake is very small. And if the…