Suffering and Joy : Osho

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In a message dated 3/31/2006 11:11:44 PM Pacific Standard Time,

Nisargadatta writes:

 

Sat, 01 Apr 2006 02:20:34 -0000

" Arvind " <cptc

Suffering and Joy : Osho.

 

>>Beloved Osho,

 

>>One line from Dostoevsky's work has

impressed me much in my childhood. He

says, " In suffering look for

happiness. " I used to think that

nothing of value could be attained

without sacrifice and hard work. After

meeting you and drinking your message

of love, life, enjoyment and

celebration, I realize that my previous

idea was quite masochistic and

suicidal. Could you please shed some

light on this?

 

 

 

ivan Mada, Fyodor Dostoevsky is a very

special case - he was a genius. If one

has to decide on ten great novels in

all the languages of the world, he will

have to choose at least three novels of

Dostoevsky in the ten.

 

His insight into human beings and

their problems is greater than your so-

called psychoanalysts, and there are

moments when he reaches the heights of

great mystics. But he is a sick soul;

he himself is a psychological case.

 

You are saying, " One line from

Dostoevsky has impressed me much in my

childhood. He says, 'In suffering look

for happiness.' "

 

That statement will appeal to many

people because many are suffering and

one can tolerate suffering only if one

goes on looking for happiness; if not

today then tomorrow, or the day after

tomorrow. Suffering can be tolerated

only through hope. Then one can suffer

his whole life, just looking for

happiness.

 

Your being impressed by the statement

is dangerous. One should not look for

happiness; one should look for the

causes of suffering, because that is

the way to come out of suffering. And

the moment you are out of suffering

there is happiness. Happiness is not

something that you have to wait for.

You can wait for infinity and happiness

will not come to you, unless you

destroy the causes of suffering.

 

I will not agree with the statement. I

will say, " In suffering, look for the

causes of suffering. " Don't waste your

time about happiness; it is none of

your business. You are suffering;

suffering is your state. Look what is

causing it - jealousy, anger,

inferiority complex - what is causing it?

 

And the miracle is: if you can go into

your suffering as a meditation,

watching, to the deepest roots of it,

just through watching it disappears.

You don't have to do anything more than

watching. If you have found the

authentic cause by your watching, the

suffering will disappear; and if it is

not disappearing, that means you are

not watching deep enough.

 

So it is a very simple process and

with a criterion: if your watching is

deep enough... just the way you pull

out a plant to look at its roots, it

dies, because the roots outside the

earth cannot survive. In the light is

their death.

 

Suffering can exist only if its roots

remain in the unconscious of your

being. If you go deep down searching

and looking for the roots , the moment

you become conscious of the roots of

suffering, suffering disappears. The

disappearance of suffering is what you

call happiness.

 

Happiness has not to be found

somewhere else; it was always with you

but the cloud of suffering was covering

it. Happiness is our nature.

 

To say it in other words: for

suffering you have to make much effort,

for happiness you don't have to make

any effort. Just stop making the effort

to create suffering.

 

" I used to think that nothing of value

could be attained without sacrifice and

hard work. " That is the disease

Christianity has been spreading all

over the world. In fact, everything of

authentic value is achieved by

relaxation, by silence, by joy.

 

 

~Osho, from The Golden Future

 

 

 

 

Perhaps Osho was feeling argumentative that day?

 

" In suffering look for

happiness. "

Dostoevsky

 

You don't have to do anything more than

watching.

Osho

 

 

These two statements mean the same thing. He describes the same process that

is not a process. Ultimately, suffering is released; surrendered. The

likelihood of this occurring grows in proportion to suffering, because we don't

like to suffer.

 

There is no " cause " to suffering that needs to be discovered. If it is

" anger " , where has this come from? Is there an anger germ that accidentally got

inhaled and can be discovered and removed? Anger is of our own making. If we

make it, it is not truly hidden from us, is it? If we do not see it, it is we

who pretend to not see it, and so what is it that is being discovered but that

which we ourselves have hidden from ourselves? What sort of childish game is

this?

 

One is unhappy because one chooses to be unhappy. The anger is enjoyed. The

anger is known to be the 'cause' of the unhappiness, and yet it is not

released, but rather justified on grounds of moral superiority and waved as a

flag

of victimhood in order to garner attention and create drama and justify one's

perceived errors and imperfections.

 

Nobody sees any of this until they wish to see it. They hide it from

themselves until they are ready. The biggest myth about human nature is that

there

is anything at all to understand beyond the realization that we are devious,

conniving liars who will do anything to get what we want. The only question to

be asked is, are you ready to be happy, or do you want to suffer a little

more first? That's all. Nothing was ever hidden.

You....cannot....lie...to...yourself. The absurdity of that is obvious, is it

not?

 

Why are you not enlightened? Same reason; because you are not ready; you

have not chosen it. The moment you choose it, it is done. It really is that

simple.

 

Phil