Dharma

It is asked again: “Is dharma the truth?”

Dharma is truth. Dharma means: a state of non-relationship. Dharma means: to be steady in one’s own nature; to be immersed in oneself. Nothing remains outside. No kind of connection with the outside remains. Not even the relationship with the master remains. The true master is the one who brings you to the place where you are freed even from the master. Such a master is called a satguru. The one who entangles you in himself is called a false guru—who says, “Don’t go beyond me. This is your halt; the destination has arrived. No further.” The one who holds you stuck in himself is a false guru. The one who lets you go beyond himself, who becomes a ladder, a doorway—so you climb and pass through—he alone is the satguru. And remember: a feeling of gratitude arises only toward the satguru. Toward a false guru, anger will arise—if not…

Osho, you often say that religion is rebellion, revolt. But by definition dharma is that which upholds all; dharma is the supreme law; dharma is eternal. How can that supreme, that eternal, be rebellious?

The danger is this: because of worshipping that corpse, whenever an intelligent person is born in your house and says, “Be free of this dead body,” the whole house turns against him. “You tell us to burn our mother? To burn our scripture? Our tradition that has always been—our fathers worshipped this corpse, and their fathers, and their fathers. From this has come our very birth. This is our culture, our civilization!” Whenever discernment is born in such a house, there is turmoil; rebellion becomes necessary. Some son has to rebel. And the irony is: the son who rebels is the one who stands for life. The traditionalist is an enemy of life, a mere follower of a line. He is a worshipper of the past—he has respect for the dead, and contempt for the living. Who were those who crucified Jesus? Not bad people—remember this. You often fall into…

Osho, in this series of talks you have often said, “Esa dhammo sanantano—this is the eternal dharma.” And the wonder is that each time it has appeared through you in a new form. Is the eternal dharma one or many?

Dharma is one, but its reflections can be many. On the full-moon night, the moon appears in the oceans, in lakes, and in tiny roadside puddles—the reflections are many. Pointing to the ocean I have said to you, “Esa dhammo sanantano.” Pointing to a small lake I have said, “Esa dhammo sanantano.” Pointing to a rain-filled puddle by the road I have said, “Esa dhammo sanantano.” I have said it many times, in many forms. But all these are reflections; the moon itself cannot be said. If you cling to the reflections you will only get more entangled. Whenever I have said, “Esa dhammo sanantano—this is the eternal dharma,” I have spoken of the reflection. Do not get caught in the reflection. I have only indicated. Do not grasp the finger that points. And as for the real moon above, no finger can point to it. Fingers fall short there;…

Question: Maneesha has asked: OUR BELOVED MASTER, ARE WE ALL, THE TEN THOUSAND BUDDHAS, POTENTIAL VESSELS OF THE DHARMA? Maneesha, as far as being potential vessels of dharma, nobody is an exception. You all have the potential -- the same potential, the same highest peaks of consciousness, as any buddha. But you have to go inwards and find your treasures. Outside you are a beggar, everybody is a beggar. Alexander the Great came to India just three hundred years after Buddha had died. He wanted to meet some master. The name and the fame of Buddha had reached faraway shores -- even to Greece and Athens. Alexander's master was the father of Western logic, Aristotle. Aristotle had told him, "You are going to conquer the world, you must reach India. I don't want you to bring anything as a present for me, just meet an enlightened master.