Osho's perspective on Knowledge
When Osho Spoke About Knowledge
Passages from the discourses where this theme comes alive.
Question: OSHO, IS KNOWLEDGE ABSOLUTELY USELESS? KNOWLEDGE HAS ITS USES, it is not absolutely useless. But if you are going inwards it becomes more and more useless; the deeper you go the more useless it is. If you are going outwards, the farther you go into the world the more useful it becomes. The world respects the knowledgeable person. It needs experts; it needs all kinds of people carrying information, knowledge, expertise. But in the inner world the question does not arise: in the inner world the same knowledge becomes a hindrance. That which is useful in the outside world becomes a barrier to the inner. It is a bridge to the world; it is a barrier to the inner exploration. Whenever I say anything against knowledge I simply mean that for those who are pilgrims, explorers of their subjectivity, it is utterly useless.
Osho, as you said just now that a newborn baby acquires knowledge by learning from the environment. Then should we ignore heredity?
No, it is not a matter of ignoring it. Much—ninety percent—is learned from the environment. Ten percent also comes through heredity. What comes through heredity—perhaps today or tomorrow—ways may be found to change that too. Not today, but maybe later. Yet what comes through heredity is very fluid; it can be molded into any shape. Ultimately, what a person becomes is created by the environment. And the mind we are speaking about is created by the environment. The body comes through heredity. Many of the body’s capacities come from heredity. Many capacities of the brain also come from heredity, but the mind is created by society. Mind comes entirely from the environment. Certainly, if brains differ, society also faces difficulties in producing the same mind through the environment. But the mind is a social product. What I am saying is: one must go behind the mind. Brains differ. One child…
Osho, why are you so much against philosophy?
And I can understand your question: this is how every child is being brought up, for centuries. Your question is relevant. You say, "I LOVE YOU. BUT IF YOU ARE NOT A PERSON, THEN HOW CAN I LOVE YOU?" We have been told that we can love only persons. The truth is just the opposite: you cannot love the person. Persons can only fight, persons can only be in conflict, because wherever two egos are, there is conflict, a CONSTANT war -- sometimes hot, sometimes cold, but the war continues. Sometimes the warriors are tired so they maintain a certain peace. Whenever they are back again and their energy is there again, they start fighting. You can see it happening with all kinds of lovers -- a continuous fight, a kind of intimate enmity, together and yet not together. Why is this fight there? -- because of two egos. Two…
Osho, I have heard you say that knowledge is useless. Then what is needed to guide us to the ultimate goal?
Geetam, there is one good thing about your question that I appreciate: you say "I have heard you say." All the Buddhist scriptures begin in that way; that is a very sincere thing. The Christian, the Judaic, the Hindu, the Mohammedan scriptures don't begin that way, but all Buddhist scriptures begin "I have heard the Master say" because it is not a question whether the Master has said it or not, "I have heard it"; these are two different things. The Master may have said one thing, you may have heard something totally different, because between you and the Master there is a great barrier -- the barrier of the mind, prejudices, concepts, preconceived ideas. So what YOU hear is not necessarily the thing that is said. Geetam, this is good that you say "I have heard you say." You are not saying that "YOU have said it," you are…
"Supreme knowledge transcends all disciplines, revealing that the essence of understanding lies not in the known, but in the formless knower who witnesses all."
"Intellect is a ladder to the divine; it only obstructs when you cling to it, for true knowing begins where intellect falls silent."
Do priests know nothing?
definition"Priests are not ignorant; they are masters of manipulation, using fear and guilt to control, while true wisdom lies in direct experience and awareness, not in the hands of authority."
"In the presence of the Master, all masks fall away, revealing the beauty of effortless openness and the purity of love that transcends fear and formality."
"True knowledge emerges only in the stillness of thought-free silence; once realized, it remains unshaken, even amidst the chaos of thinking."
"In the state of keval-gyan, both the known and the knower dissolve, leaving only pure awareness—an emptiness that is the fullness of knowing without a knower."
"When knowledge becomes merely a tool for utility, we abandon the deeper wisdom of being, and in that loss, progress becomes a path to destruction rather than enlightenment."
How is the knowledge of it reported?
definition"The ultimate cannot be reported; it exists beyond knowledge, where silence speaks louder than words."
"Knowledge from the outside is merely a shadow; true understanding blooms only from the depths of your own being."
"True knowledge arises from direct experience; the knowledgeable may be more dangerous than the ignorant, for they cloak their ignorance in borrowed certainties."
"True knowledge is born from the silence of not knowing; it is the direct experience that opens the door to the divine, while accumulated words only create an illusion of understanding."
"Knowledge is a modification of nature, a secondary reflection of being; when the qualities of knowing dissolve, only pure existence remains."
Is knowledge absolutely useless?
definition"Knowledge is a useful bridge to navigate the outer world, but for the inner journey, it becomes a barrier; true wisdom arises from lived experience, not accumulated facts."
Is knowledge always dangerous?
definition"Knowledge is not dangerous; it is the arrogance of knowing that blinds us to the living mystery of existence. Embrace facts with humility, curiosity, and an open heart."
"Truth is not found in the accumulation of knowledge, but in the recognition of existence's beginningless nature through awareness."
Is there a hierarchy within knowledge?
definition"There is no hierarchy in knowledge; the supreme path is the one that liberates you, uniquely tailored to your nature."
"Your essential self transcends both heredity and conditioning; through meditation, you can step beyond body, brain, and mind to discover your pure being."
"True wisdom arises not from the accumulation of knowledge, but from the courageous unlearning of what we think we know, leading us back to the innocence of our own being."
"True wisdom arises when the ego dissolves, revealing that to know is to embrace the vastness of not knowing."
"When you drop acquired knowledge, you free yourself from the chains of secondhand beliefs, allowing the truth to reveal itself in the clarity of your own inner knowing."
"When you truly come to know, the recognition is an inner connection that requires no outside confirmation; trust your journey and experiment wisely to discover the unmistakable truth."
"When you realize that borrowed knowledge is not yours, the storm within subsides, and you awaken to the prince that you truly are, shedding the bowl of dependence for the dignity of direct knowing."
What is a question that cannot be answered?
definition"The questions that arise from the conditioned mind are unanswerable; true understanding comes not from answers, but from the dissolution of the question itself."
"Knowing transforms you; it is the breath of understanding that effortlessly guides your actions, freeing you from the chains of judgment and the need for forced renunciation."
"The ultimate journey is not guided by knowledge, but by the flowering of love, awareness, and joy; let go of the mind's concepts to reveal the inner truth."
Profound Quotes on Knowledge
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