Religion’s Expiration Date


move from blind belief to the science of your inner experience

“The world today is pulled apart by religious strife: people massacre one another, societies fight bitterly over dissenting belief systems and nations are at war. Yet in direct contrast to this, people have for centuries believed that religious faith is the moral guiding light by which they can strive to live their lives. How can man reconcile these two? Or is it simply that religion – and its purpose in our lives – has reached its expiration date? 

In this collection of talks, Osho outlines a crucially different approach: 

“Religion is fundamentally something that happens in aloneness. It is what a man does in his aloneness with himself.” Osho

De Wereld heeft een Grote Revolutie Nodig.

Religion's Expiration Date
“Religion is fundamentally something that happens in aloneness.
Religion’s Expiration Date

move from blind belief to the science of your inner experience
De Wereld heeft een Grote Revolutie Nodig. ‘De huidige wereld wordt uiteen gereten door religieuze strijd: mensen vermoorden elkaar, maatschappijen vechten over verschillen van mening tussen de geloofssystemen en naties zijn in oorlog. Echter in contrast hiermee is het zo dat mensen eeuwenlang gedacht hebben dat het godsdienstige geloof de morele gids is en het licht waardoor men zich in zijn leven kan laten leiden. Hoe zijn deze twee met elkaar te verzoenen? Of is het gewoon zo dat religie, en het doel ervan in ons leven, langzamerhand gewoon ‘over de datum’ is?
In deze verzameling toespraken schetst Osho een totaal andere benadering: ‘Religie is fundamenteel iets dat in alleen zijn plaatst vindt. Het is wat een mens in zijn alleen zijn doet.’
Osho geeft in dit boek aan dat de wereld een grote revolutie nodig heeft.

Individu vindt Zelf zijn Religie

Hierin gaat ieder individu zijn religie zelf uitvinden. Op het moment dat de religie een georganiseerd karakter krijgt, vervolgt hij,wordt zij gevaarlijk, zij wordt dan in werkelijkheid politiek met een vals gezicht, als is het religie. Daarom proberen alle religies ter wereld steeds maar om telkens meer mensen tot hun religie te bekeren. Het is de politiek van de aantallen; wie een groter aantal heeft, zal meer macht hebben. Maar niemand lijkt erin geïnteresseerd te zijn om miljoenen individuen tot zichzelf te brengen. 

Mijn werk bestaat eruit…

Mijn werk hier bestaat eruit om je uit elk type van georganiseerde poging te halen – want de waarheid kan niet georganiseerd worden.Dit boek bevat Osho’s toespraken uit 1967 en je kunt zien hoe actueel ze zijn.

The World Needs Great Revolution

The world needs a great revolution where each individual finds his religion within himself. The moment religions become organized, they become dangerous; they become really politics with a false face of religion. That’s why all the religions of the world go on trying to convert more and more people to their religion. It is the politics of numbers; whoever has the greater number will be more powerful.

But nobody seems to be interested in bringing millions of individuals to their own selves. My work here consists of taking you out of any kind of organized effort – because truth can never be organized. You have to go alone on the pilgrimage, because the pilgrimage is going to be inside. You cannot take anybody with you. You have to drop everything that you have learned from others because all those prejudices will distort your vision – you will not be able to see the naked reality of your being. The naked reality of your being is the only hope of finding God. God is your naked reality, undecorated, without any adjective.

Religion's Expiration Date
Religion’s Expiration Date

TIt is not confined by your body, not confined by your birth, not confined by your color, not confined by your sex, not confined by your country. It is simply not confined by anything. And it is available, so close: just one step inside and you have arrived. You have been told for thousands of years that the journey to God is very long. The journey is not long, God is not far away. God is in your breath, God is in your heartbeat; God is in your blood, in your bones, in your marrow – just a single step of closing your eyes and entering within yourself.

Problems of Mankind today are Spiritual

Some people think the problems are political: they think searching for a political solution will end the problems. But they are wrong. The problems of mankind are basically not political. Some people think the problems are economic. They think if those problems can be resolved, the world will be filled with peace and prosperity. These people are also under an illusion. No amount of riches, no amount of wealth and prosperity, can dissolve the misery, suffering, and anguish in people’s minds.

Religion's Expiration Date
People’s fundamental problem today is spiritual

People’s fundamental problem today is spiritual: it is somewhere in the depths, connected with their innermost being. We are lacking the deeper vision that is needed to see the problem. We see very superficially and on the surface, and don’t enter deeply. Perhaps we don’t want to see deeply because for that, courage is needed. And not only is courage needed, but you need to accept the possibility there may be no solution. Only by accepting this very possibility can a person see deeply inside himself.” Osho, The Hidden Splendour