I’ve gone back and forth in mind as to whether or not I should write a review of the book The Buddha Said . . . by OSHO. This is one of my favorite Buddhist books and I learned a lot from it. It’s entertaining, full of wisdom and fun anecdotes. The reason I’ve hesitated is that while OSHO seems to have had a great grasp on Buddha’s teachings (as well as the teaching of most other religions), he does bring into it the Indian belief of reincarnation. He also tends to be repetitive and wordy, and the book runs long. That said, his grasp of religions, philosophers, and even science is to be appreciated.

Most of all, there are some stellar explanations of Buddha’s teachings, and Osho’s wording has made this one of my favorite Buddhist books. So, instead of writing a review, I’m going to share some of my favorite snippets from the book. If you share any of these please attribute them to Osho:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buddha is a rationalist. He’s not like Jesus and he is not like Krishna — he’s absolutely a rationalist. Einstein, Newton or Edison would not find any flaw in his reasoning. Any scientist will be immediately convinced of his truth. His approach is purely logical, he convinces the mind. You cannot find a loophole in him. Continue reading “The Buddha Said . . .” »

Meditation by waterfalls

I’ve noticed a common thread in talking to many new meditators and Buddhist practitioners. People want to know how meditation is going to make them happy. How long do you have to meditate to transcend to the next plane? How long do you have to meditate before getting high.  How does all this meditation get rid of my suffering?!!!! Continue reading “Meditation Magic” »

I’ve read in many Buddhist books that we are not our thoughts. This was a difficult concept for me to grasp or accept. But the Buddha did not expect us to simply accept, but instead to see for ourselves, to investigate by watching our own minds. The tool to do this is through meditation. Continue reading “Thinking, Thinking, and Thinking” »

In the years I’ve been pursuing Buddhism, I find the topic of not-self coming up frequently. This topic can be baffling and disturbing at first. We are advised to investigate inwardly for evidence of a solid, intrinsic self, and we smash into this voice that says, “This is me, myself, and I!” Yet, as I dig more deeply, pick apart the many parts and essentials that make up the human being, I am discovering a subtle understanding of the not-self concept. Continue reading “Just Who Am I Anyway?” »

This morning I listened to Lama Yeshe in a Intro to Tantra video, and he was talking about renunciation of Samsara. The problem, he pointed out, is simply our state of mind, a mind that wants to grasp the drama, the pleasures, and even the pain. Giving up that grasping means being easy going. Continue reading “Going with the Surge of Life” »