An Interview With Carol Neiman, Editor-in-Chief of Osho International

Q: What is an Osho?

A: Osho is a 20th-century Zen master, in a sense... though not one who fits into the traditional Zen lineage. During his lifetime he created a whole new approach to meditation that takes into account the changes that have happened in the past 2000 years. Back in Buddha's time, people did physical work for the most part and life was pretty simple. Nowadays, most people will find it very difficult just to sit silently in meditation. We are bombarded daily with so much information, so much sensory input and most of us use our minds rather than our physical bodies in the work that we do. So if we try to just sit in silence, we're overwhelmed with such a cacophony of accumulated mental noise and physical restlessness that we just give up in despair. Osho created a series of "active meditations" that include steps to throw off accumulated physical and mental tensions first, so that by the time you get to the sitting part, you've cleared enough space in yourself to be able to have a little taste of real silence.

The other thing that sets Osho apart from the old spiritual traditions is the emphasis on what he likes to call "Zorba the Buddha" -- the proposal that real fulfillment comes only when we find the underlying harmony of the earthly and sensual aspects of life together with the spiritual aspects. From the Osho perspective, the old religions have done tremendous harm both to the psychological health of individuals and to the health of the planet by condemning sex outside its procreative function, for example, or by equating spirituality with a life of poverty and renunciation.

Q: The deck has a Master card. What is the role of the Master in Zen? How does the Master fit in a Tarot deck?

A: The Master in Zen as I understand it is someone who has traveled the path and found something, and wants to share his experience. It's a little like somebody is standing on a mountaintop, having traveled the whole path up the mountain -- he fell into ditches, scratched himself on the brambles, nearly drowned in the river, all those things that can happen to a person on the way up a treacherous mountainside. Now he's there, and he can see the whole valley in all directions. If he's really a friend, he won't insist you travel exactly his path. He'll be able to see where you are, what's ahead of you and what might be the best route for you to take. You won't always understand what he's trying to say, because he's way over there on the mountaintop and it's difficult to even hear him, never mind grasping the nuances. But he does his best, you do your best, and just by the way it's a tremendous encouragement that at least this guy made it to the peak, so it's not as impossible as it seems.

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