THE DHAMMAPADA: THE WAY OF THE BUDDHA, VOL. 9-12 The ...
THE DHAMMAPADA: THE WAY OF THE BUDDHA, VOL. 9-12 The ...
THE DHAMMAPADA: THE WAY OF THE BUDDHA, VOL. 9-12 The ...
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136 <strong>THE</strong> <strong>DHAMMAPADA</strong>: <strong>THE</strong> <strong>WAY</strong> <strong>OF</strong> <strong>THE</strong> <strong>BUDDHA</strong>, <strong>VOL</strong>. 9-<strong>12</strong><br />
I cannot give you any lie; hence I am, many times, offensive to you, outrageous. I hurt you not that I want to<br />
hurt you, but to take any lie away from you is like taking a teddy bear from a child who can’t sleep without the<br />
teddy bear. He goes on carrying the teddy bear dirty, but he will carry it everywhere. That is his life; you can’t<br />
take it away from him. And you are carrying many teddy bears, Patipada; that’s why it hurts.<br />
Now Somendra is very angry because I said that he can be a good candidate for Judas. Soon there is going to<br />
be a notice: ”Wanted: a Judas.” And there are many people eligible. Somendra can do the work. He is so angry<br />
because I had said that he sits behind keeping his back towards me, so the next day he came to his old place.<br />
Today he has disappeared, because today he has asked a very ugly question out of sheer anger. That’s why he<br />
has disappeared from here. Even though he has been sitting here for two or three days he does not look at me; he<br />
keeps his eyes down. He has not been coming to his group therapy darshan many times. Last night he appeared,<br />
but he did not look at me... boiling within. Today he has disappeared because of the question. He must have<br />
been afraid. He has put the question in somebody else’s name but you can’t deceive me! And the moment I saw<br />
that he is not there my suspicion became absolutely certain that it is his question.<br />
In his question he says, ”Are you not a lazy person? And still, what chutzpah you have to tell other people<br />
to work and be creative.” I am not a lazy person I am the laziest! And naturally, the laziest person can live<br />
only if others work; otherwise how am I going to live? So I go on teaching, ”Work, be creative! Clean the floor<br />
meditatively! Clean the toilets!” That is simple. It is not a question of chutzpah, it is simple logic! A man like<br />
me needs at least ten thousand people to work for him!<br />
And he asks, ”How can you tell others to work?” For a man who has never done anything, everything seems<br />
to be possible. Even the impossible seems to be possible. I have never worked, not for a single day. That’s why I<br />
can say to you to do anything, because I don’t know the trouble. I have no experience about it.<br />
Truth hurts. And then it comes in many ways, it expresses itself in many ways.<br />
Patipada, remember, if anything hurts then meditate over it. <strong>The</strong>re must be something of truth in it, something<br />
true. If anything hurts, respect it, go deep into it. Find out why it hurts, and you will be rewarded. You will<br />
grow through that.<br />
Lies are sweet; they don’t hurt. So beware of sweet lies. When something does not hurt you it cannot become<br />
an impetus for growth; it is useless, not to be bothered about at all. But pay your total attention to anything<br />
that hurts, and don’t get angry. You are to understand here, to be aware, not to be angry.<br />
Just a few months ago I told Somendra that he had attained his first satori. He was just joy. You should have<br />
seen his face that time all laughter, all smiles, bubbling with ecstasy! That was easy for him to accept because<br />
although it was true, the ego jumped upon it, grabbed it, felt very good and that is how he missed it.<br />
When truth any truth becomes an ego trip, you miss it, you lose track of it. And remember: before samadhi<br />
happens, before enlightenment happens, you may attain thousands of satoris and you may miss them. If one<br />
remains very alert when a satori happens, only then he will not miss it. If you become very gratified about it and<br />
you start bragging about it in subtle ways, you are bound to miss it. And many people are doing the same.<br />
Sometimes it is very difficult for me; even if I see that something beautiful is happening to you I have to control<br />
myself not to say it, because there is every danger that just by saying it your ego may feel puffed up. And that<br />
will be the point when you will lose it.<br />
<strong>The</strong>re are many people who are coming closer and closer to the ultimate, but it is better for me not to say it<br />
to them. I go on blessing them as much as I can, I go on loving them as much as I can, but I don’t say it. Saying<br />
can be a distraction; it can take them on a different route, it can distract them.<br />
So lies are dangerous; sometimes even truth can be dangerous. If it does not hurt, then it can be dangerous; if<br />
it hurts, there is no danger. If it hurts, it will wake you up; if it becomes a lullaby, then it is dangerous; it may<br />
take you in a deeper dream. You may start dreaming about satoris and enlightenment and becoming a buddha.<br />
And all that is possible it is within your capacity, it is within your reach but you can lose the thread many times.<br />
Hence, don’t ask for recognition. If I feel that the time is ripe and by recognizing something you will not slip<br />
back, I will give the recognition. But why hanker for the recognition? <strong>The</strong> real thing is happening to you. <strong>The</strong><br />
recognition does not matter at all, it is irrelevant. If you are becoming a buddha, you are becoming a buddha<br />
whether I say so or not. Sometimes it may be needed that I will go on saying, ”No, you are not becoming,” just<br />
to help you go on in the right direction.<br />
Patipada, anything that hurts, meditate over it and you will be immensely enriched.<br />
<strong>The</strong> fifth question:<br />
Question 5<br />
BELOVED MASTER, WHY DO YOU HAVE SO MANY ENEMIES?