Enlightenment is Your Nature
When I received Enlightenment is Your Nature I knew nothing about Osho. A quick web search found that he was born Chandra Mohan Jain in India in 1931 and was a controversial figure, banned from visiting certain countries for his beliefs. He died in 1990 but his views have lived on. There is an Osho retreat in India where people can learn the Osho techniques and methods of meditation.
Enlightenment is Your Nature, like Osho’s other books, is a collection of talks given by Osho to his followers, so it is an easy, accessible read. Most chapters end with his answer to a question from an audience member. The talks describe what Osho thinks is wrong with both Western and Eastern societies. He believes that the West focuses too much on the mind and body and offers a different perspective – a third way, achieved through meditation. This is the way that nature intended: how we are when we were born or when we die, free from Western inhibitions like competitiveness, egos etc.
I found it interesting to find out about Osho and his philosophies and think I agree with him to some extent. For Osho, the Eastern way is by no means perfect but he seems drawn to Buddhist and Hindu methods of meditation and mindfulness. This book taught me a lot about Osho’s views, particularly on Western psychology, psychotherapy/analysis and religion. It also made me laugh where, at the end, he responds to an audience member who asks whether it is possible to become enlightened in an easy and relaxed way. Osho answers: “Mostly I am asleep. I just get up to talk to you in the morning then I go back to sleep. My total hours of sleep must be 18.”
Book Details: Osho. Enlightenment is Your Nature. Watkins Publishing Ltd. (19 Sept. 2017). ISBN: 978-1786780492.
Review Details: Enlightenment is Your Nature was reviewed by Karon Lyne for Indie Shaman magazine and published in Issue 36.
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