: : FEATURE : :

LIFE IS A WONDERFUL THING

Someone once said: life is a wonderful thing, without it you would be dead!

For Osho, life is all. What else is there, he asks? If one loses life and gains the whole world instead, what has one gained really? And if you gain your life and lose the whole world, nothing is lost.

But Osho reminds: one will have to change one’s habits, one will have to de-condition oneself; in fact you will almost have to reverse your nature. Right now your energy is moving outward; you will have to turn it inward. Right now you may be seeking “God;” actually, you will have to allow the Divine to seek you. Right now one is attached to material things which have no intrinsic value; you will have to attach yourself to something which has a sustainable quality, which upholds the very life itself -- the spiritual values which are really eternally valuable. Right now one thinks life is a big problem and hence you go on fighting with life, struggling, taking life more as a burden than a benediction.

Almost everyone believes in the survival of the fittest, so one goes on fighting, attacking, being aggressive. Osho’s message is: Love, don't fight. "God" is never known through fighting. Nothing is achieved through fighting; only love opens the door which brings one closer to the mystery and the magic of life.

People think someday, in the future we are going to be happy, joyful, celebrating. Osho’s vision is that, if you want to be happy, joyful, celebrating, then nothing is lacking. Right now, this very moment, dance; laugh, this very moment. This moment is all there is; celebrate it. Osho says: " People come to me and if I say to them, ‘Celebrate your life,’ they say, ‘Yes, that's why we have come here: to learn how to create situations in which we can celebrate.’ The situation is already there: trees go on celebrating, birds go on singing. What do they have? No bank balance, no prestige, no power. They are not presidents or prime ministers. But have you ever seen trees or birds brooding, worried, thinking of the future? No, they simply live. What has happened to man?" (The Beloved, Vol.2, Ch.9).

Osho declares: Celebrate this moment. Life is not just for pleasure. Life is meant to find meaning. Doing something meaningful, doing something significant and creative, and that brings pleasure as a reward. Life should not be lived for a purpose; life should be lived as a celebration. Life should not be a business; it should not be just mundane. When one lives for no other reason except for the sheer joy of living it becomes a fulfilling experience. Then it becomes a gift from the Divine. It gains a religious quality.