It all started in 1979, when, as a lawyer, I went to lunch and bumped into an old high school classmate of mine. He asked how I was doing, and I told him that I was taking two steps forward and ten steps backward. He pointed me toward his brother’s bookstore, The Aquarian Age Bookstore, and said it would be good to talk to him. I met his brother and then heard myself say (it really came from another dimension!) “Is there one book you would recommend over all the others?” He said yes, and took me to a table with about ten books by the Indian mystic, Osho. I actually heard my mind say. “Oh no! Not another Indian guru bulshitter….”
Still, something deeper inside was saying yes, so I bought three books. That night, I began reading “Tantra: The Supreme Understanding.” I laughed…I cried…I was held in utter wonder by everything that Osho had said. Many times I felt that he spoke about things that I always knew but was unable to articulate. Soon, I was at a meditation center in Washington, D.C., where they did Osho’s active meditations.
I did his Dynamic meditation, and it felt like layers of concrete were falling off. And within nine months, I was in India, at his Ashram. It was the most eye- and heart-opening experience of my life. I began learning how to celebrate everything, including emotions and moods. I learned to sing and dance like a child again, to open myself to the starry nights and sunshiny days…to other people…and to all the wonder that surrounded me that I had forgotten about!
I went on to live in Osho’s community for five years, invibing his wisdom and grace…and humor! And soon, I began counseling others from this new-found space. Out in the marketplace for three years, I played with my entrepreneurial energy, opening up a collectibles and antique store, which had been one of my dreams as a young boy. And then I returned to India and learned the art of meditation, counseling and facilitating workshops and classes. Over five more years there, with an intervening five years in Japan, helped me understand deeper, locked away parts of myself. I found life to be richer and my understanding grew, as did my meditation.
While Osho is one of many amazing teachers that this planet has produced, he is the one that I feel most deeply attuned with. And perhaps the most important teaching he has ever shared with me is to learn to love myself and to be responsible for my life. From these two understandings grow experiences that support my ability to love and respect others in ways I thought unimaginable before.
So my gratitude for what he has shared is beyond words. And my experiences have given me roots in the ground that can center me in the storm, and wings that help me at times to fly to the distant stars! And now, my life’s work, through the inspiration I gained from Osho, is to create a center space where understandings and experiences of who we really are can grow. In order to do that, because of the many challenges we face in this world, there is an urgent need to create support to meet these challenges.
My understanding is that there are three essential supports. First, it is essential that we find, connect with, and learn from the mystics who have returned to their inner source and have arrived in their being. They can be an immense resource on this inner journey. Second, it is essential that we learn meditation techniques that assist us in returning to our inner silence and source of being. Third, it is essential that we grow a community of individuals who have these understandings, who are on the path of self-discovery, and who support one another on this path.
And finally, to complete the circle, it is essential that we put ourselves in the way of challenges where we can see, understand and penetrate our unconscious beliefs and conditioning, so that we can “re-member” who we really are.
Thank you, Osho, for your guidance and clarity, and for giving your life energy to me, and to so many thirsty people! I am forever indebted for all the extraordinary gifts you have showered on me!