Choice

First of all, you have asked, “Then what should that person do—choose the marketplace or the forest?”

Choose, and you are lost. In choice is the world; even if he chooses the forest, it is the world—because in choice is the world. And if he stays in the marketplace without choosing, that is sannyas. Choicelessness is sannyas; choice is the world. Therefore there is no way to choose sannyas—sannyas happens. So many people come to me. I see two kinds of sannyasins—those who make it happen, and those to whom it happens. Those who try to make it happen say, “We’re thinking about it; what you say appeals; we’re considering.” “We’ll take sannyas someday—just not now. Right now there’s so much to do; yes, what you say does make sense.” I have heard: Mulla Nasruddin was sitting in the mosque and the preacher gave a sermon. In the middle, in a very dramatic way, he asked, “Those who want to go to heaven, please stand up.” Everyone…

I feel as if I had no choice in coming to you. Do we really ever choose things that happen in our lives?

I have heard: The owner of a large company bought a sign which said "Do it now", and hung it up in the office hoping it would inspire his staff with promptness. A few days later a friend asked him if the notice had had any effect. "Well, not in the way I had hoped," admitted the boss. "The cashier absconded with $10,000 -- Do it now -- the head bookkeeper eloped with my private secretary -- Do it now -- three clerks asked for a raise, a typist threw her typewriter out of the window -- Do it now -- and the office boy has... just... aah... poisoned my coffee... aaah!" You listen through your sleepiness; you will interpret it in your own way. So if you really want to listen to me, don't interpret. Just the other night, a new young man became a sannyasin. I told him,…

Osho, the so-called sannyasins do shopkeeping in the name of religion. And you have told your sannyasins to keep running their own shops. This seems like a contradiction. Please clarify.

There is not the slightest contradiction. The so-called sannyasins do shopkeeping in the name of religion because they were torn away from their shops. And they were not ripe yet; the mind still wanted to do business, yet they were made to sit in the temple. They turn the temple into a shop. Therefore I do not tear my sannyasins away from their shops; I say, if a temple is going to be turned into a shop, it is far better to turn the shop into a temple. I don’t wrench them from the shop, because I see that those sannyasins who were wrenched away have turned the temple into a marketplace. Until the very relish for the shop dries up within you, breaking you away from the shop is futile. And if the relish has really disappeared, what need is there to break away at all? Sitting in the…

Each center opening brings a different jewel: kundalini, balance, love, expression, a diamond mind. This is the dilemma: which to choose? You say choicelessness is bliss, but society rewards specialists. Also, on the cellular level, the evolution of complex organisms arises out of the increasing specialization of its cells.

Then there are a few who think that they have to use only the sahasrar against all the six -- then again you are confining your being. Then you have an aeroplane, but you never get down on the earth. You are going to have a big accident sooner or later because sooner or later the gas will be finished, the petrol will not be there. Flying continuously is dangerous. Sometimes come back to the earth, down to earth; refill the petrol, rest, relax; get ready to fly again. That's the way. And the earth is beautiful -- as much as the sky. The stars are beautiful, but have you watched, sitting in an aeroplane? -- you cannot look very long in the sky, it is boring. It is beautiful, but it is monotonous. People start falling asleep sooner or later. They look outside the window for a little while…