According to Osho, there is no real boredom in repeating stories because boredom belongs to the ego. When the 'I' relaxes, each telling is fresh: the context, the listeners, and your inner climate have shifted, so new nuances appear. Living in the present (not clinging to memory), you meet the 'same' joke newly every time, finding laughter and discovery.
When you stop clinging to your ego and just stay present, the same joke feels new each time.
From the Discourses
Passages where Osho speaks to this question — each links to the complete discourse.
Osho, why are you not getting bored while you are telling the same stories and the same jokes?
THE FIRST thing to be understood is that Divakar Bharti is an Indian, and Indians are absolutely unable to understand jokes! They don't have any jokes in India. I have not come across a single Indian joke. Indians are serious people -- spiritual people, religious people! They talk only of great things: God, heaven, hell, the theory of karma and rebirth. When you tell a joke to an Indian he feels offended... you see? He feels offended, insulted! You look at his face -- he feels embarrassed. Talk about something esoteric -- bullshit him! -- and then he is perfectly happy. He never laughs, he cannot; laughter is beyond him. He has forgotten laughter. That's why, Divakar, the question has arisen in you. Otherwise each joke, in a different context, is different. The joke in itself may be an old one -- and in fact, there are no new jokes…
Question: OSHO, WHAT IS BOREDOM? ARE YOU NEVER BORED WITH LIFE? This story was given to the students of a class to prepare for the next day; and that was the day, by accident, that my friend happened to visit the school. When he entered this class, the teacher was just asking the students, "Tell me, who broke Shiva's bow?" A boy, very afraid and nervous, raised his hand. The teacher was surprised -- this was the last boy he would have imagined would answer. He had never answered anything, but now he was raising his hand. The principal was there, and the inspector of schools was there, so he said, "Okay," but he was afraid that the boy would mess up the whole thing. The boy stood up and said, "Sir, I have not broken it. And moreover, yesterday I did not even come to school.
Question: BELOVED OSHO, DOES A BUDDHA EVER GET BORED? Their question is relevant -- but you can get bored only if you are there. So I sometimes tell them, "The room may be getting bored with me -- the same person. I am not bored. There is no one who can get bored." And life is so rich, even in an empty room. And every moment the room is changing, it is not the same. Nothing can be the same -- even the emptiness goes on changing, it has its own moods. A buddha has no ego, you cannot bore him. He exists like an emptiness, as if he is not. If you penetrate him you will not find anyone there. The house is vacant, no one lives there really. You can move in a buddha but you will never meet him.
Osho, I get bored reading your books. I don’t even feel like meditating. And the desire to listen to taped discourses is next to nothing. Even in your discourses I can tell in advance what you are going to say. Still there is no transformation—why? And if there has been no transformation, then why do I feel bored with reading, listening and meditating? And, Master, don’t you get bored repeating the same thing day after day?
So a difference has come. Of those who came to me in those days, ninety-nine percent have left. I knew they would. I had not really spoken for them. It was only because of the one percent who remained that I had to speak even to the ninety-nine percent. I have chosen those few. Now, even here, I am not speaking to a crowd. I no longer speak by paying much attention to you. I don’t worry whether it will interest you or not, whether it will appeal to you or not. I do not speak keeping you in mind. Now my attention is on what I have to say. And gradually I would prefer that those who do not find it interesting, who feel bored—step aside, take their leave. Because I will go deeper and deeper. Soon a moment will come when only a very few birds will remain…
I get bored in the discourse. Then I fear and feel guilty.
It happened: A great Hassidic Master had a big book always by his side, and he would never allow anybody to look into it. When there would be nobody around, he would close the windows and doors. And people thought 'now he is reading.' Whenever there was somebody, he would put the book aside. And it was prohibited -- nobody should touch it. Of course, it became a great curiosity. When he died, the first thing the disciples did.... They forgot about the old Master. He was Lying dead; now nobody was to prohibit them. They jumped on the book. It must carry something tremendously meaningful. But they were very much disappointed. Only one page was written -- and the rest of the book was empty. And on that page also, there was not much, only one sentence. And the sentence was: 'When you can make a distinction between the…