Mahavir Vani Lecture 37 Vikas Ki Aur Gati Hai Dharm

Here's a comprehensive summary of Osho Rajneesh's lecture series "Mahavir Vani Lecture 37: Vikas ki aur Gati Hai Dharm," based on the provided Jain text:

Book Title: Mahavir Vani Lecture 37: Vikas ki aur Gati Hai Dharm (Religion is Movement Towards Evolution) Author: Osho Rajneesh

Core Theme: This lecture series, drawing inspiration from Mahavir's teachings, emphasizes that true religion is a dynamic process of evolution and movement, contrasting it with static, dogmatic adherence to rituals or beliefs. Osho expounds on Mahavir's philosophy, highlighting the importance of personal experience, conscious inquiry, and the inherent potential for divinity within every individual.

Key Concepts and Summary Points:

• The Six Dravyas (Substances) of the Universe:

  • The lecture begins by introducing the fundamental Jain ontological principle of the six Dravyas, as expounded by the Jinns (enlightened ones):
    • Dharma (Religion/Substance of Motion): Its characteristic is motion. Osho emphasizes that this refers to any principle that facilitates movement and progress, including spiritual evolution.
    • Adharma (Irreligion/Substance of Stillness): Its characteristic is stillness or rest. It's the principle that allows for rest without hindering motion. Osho reinterprets this as anything that causes stagnation or prevents progress.
    • Akasha (Space/Ether): Its characteristic is providing space or accommodation for all substances. It is neutral and doesn't impose anything.
    • Kala (Time): Its characteristic is change or continuity (vartana). Time is an enabler of processes.
    • Pudgala (Matter/Substance of Form): Matter is described as that which undergoes change in form but whose fundamental nature remains constant.
    • Jiva (Soul/Living Being): Its characteristic is consciousness and experience (upayoga). The soul is known through its knowledge, perception, happiness, and suffering.

• The Nature of Questions and Inquiry:

  • Osho contrasts humans with animals, stating that a defining human trait is the inherent questioning and curiosity about existence ("Who am I? Why am I? For what purpose?").
  • He criticizes those who accept others' answers without internalizing them, calling it the "abortion of a question." True inquiry requires deep personal exploration until one finds one's own answer.
  • Philosophical vs. Religious Inquiry: Philosophy is an intellectual pursuit of questions, involving the mind. Religion, in Mahavir's sense, is a living, holistic pursuit where the entire being – mind, heart, body, and soul – is engaged in the quest.

• Mahavir's Teachings: Experience over Intellect:

  • Mahavir's words are not those of a philosopher who thinks, but of someone who has seen or experienced the truth directly through deep meditative insight.
  • Osho stresses the difference between knowing about something (intellectual understanding) and experiencing it directly. One can read poetry about love, but without personal experience, one cannot truly speak of love.
  • Mahavir's silence for twelve years before speaking signifies his abandonment of intellectualization and his immersion in deep meditation to attain direct experience.

• The Nature of Seeking Truth:

  • Osho advises against "thinking" about Mahavir's words. Instead, one should open the heart and receive them like a seed into fertile ground, allowing them to germinate and unfold from within.
  • Two Approaches to Words:
    • The Critic: Analyzes, dissects, and argues, often missing the deeper meaning.
    • The Receptive Lover/Devotee: Openly accepts, digests, and waits for the inner blossoming of understanding. This is the path to truly knowing.

• Dharma as Movement and Evolution:

  • Osho reinterprets the Jain concept of Dharma not as a rigid set of rules, but as the very principle of motion, dynamism, and evolution. Anything that facilitates growth, movement towards one's highest potential (Paramaatma), is Dharma.
  • Conversely, Adharma is anything that causes stagnation, resistance to change, or a cessation of movement towards evolution.
  • Analogy of the Boat: The soul is like a boat with the capacity to swim. Water is necessary for swimming (Dharma as the enabling medium), but being tied to the shore (Adharma, or stagnation) prevents this.

• The Individual as the Source of Truth:

  • Mahavir's radical stance is that the individual experience is the ultimate truth, not scriptures, traditions, or dogma. Scriptures are dead; the individual is alive.
  • He rejects the authority of scriptures like the Vedas if they contradict individual realization. This is a revolutionary idea, placing the highest value on human consciousness.
  • Osho laments that even followers of Mahavir often revert to treating his words as scripture, thus undermining his core message.

• Reinterpreting "God" and "Enlightenment":

  • Mahavir's concept of "God" is not a singular, dictatorial creator but an infinite potential within each soul. Every soul is a "God" waiting to be realized.
  • He rejects the idea of a creator, arguing that if souls were created, they would be mere objects, devoid of true value and dignity. Souls are uncreated, eternal substances.
  • Three States of the Soul:
    • Bahir-atma (External Soul): Consciousness flowing outward, driven by desires and thoughts.
    • Antar-atma (Internal Soul): Consciousness flowing inward, towards meditation and silence.
    • Paramaatma (Supreme Soul): The state where consciousness ceases to flow in any direction, existing in pure being – samadhi, ultimate stillness, and realization.

• Freedom from Attachment and the Illusion of "Dhan" (Wealth):

  • Mahavir left his kingdom not because wealth itself is evil, but because any attachment, any "khunti" (peg or tie), becomes an obstacle to movement (Dharma).
  • True Letting Go: It's not about abandoning wealth but freeing oneself from the attachment to it. The desire for security, which drives the accumulation of wealth, needs to be understood. Even "punya" (merit) can become a form of wealth if pursued for future security.
  • The real question is not abandoning things, but releasing the grip of attachment itself.

• Habit as Adharma:

  • Osho strongly identifies habit as Adharma. Whether it's a "good" habit (like daily meditation) or a "bad" habit (like smoking), if it creates a mechanical, rigid state, it impedes spiritual progress.
  • The goal is to be non-mechanical, to be in a state of fluid consciousness that is not bound by any pattern or addiction.

• Dharma as Revolution, Not Orthodoxy:

  • True Dharma is revolutionary, dynamic, and always evolving. Orthodoxy, rigidity, and adherence to old ways are the antithesis of Dharma.
  • Jain monks, despite reciting the principle of "Dharma is motion," are often seen as stagnant, stuck in traditions from 2500 years ago.
  • Osho criticizes the static nature of many established religions, which appeal to the elderly because they are already in a state of stillness, whereas true religion should attract the youth who are inherently dynamic.

• The Danger of Seeking External Support:

  • Mahavir's path is one of radical individualism and self-reliance. He teaches against seeking refuge or support from anyone, including himself.
  • He contrasts this with paths like Krishna's, which emphasize surrender. Mahavir's path requires the individual to stand on their own feet, to become "asharan" (without refuge), which is the highest state.
  • This self-reliance brings immense responsibility and, consequently, a deep existential anxiety and search for meaning, which is the very engine of spiritual growth.

• Time and Space as Neutral Enablers:

  • Time and Space (Akasha) are presented not as controlling forces but as neutral enablers. Space provides the possibility for anything to exist and evolve; Time allows for processes to unfold.
  • Blaming "time" (like the "Pancham Kal" or Iron Age) for one's inability to achieve spiritual heights is a way of avoiding personal responsibility. Time, like space, is merely an arena for change.

• The Nature of the Soul's Experience:

  • The soul is defined by its capacity for experience. The deeper and purer the experience, the closer one is to realizing their true nature as an "atma" or "Paramaatma."
  • The difference between a stone and a human lies in their capacity to experience. True religiousness lies in responding to life's experiences with openness, rather than remaining inert.

In essence, Osho's interpretation of Mahavir's "Mahavir Vani" is a call to a living, dynamic, and deeply personal spirituality. It emphasizes that true religion is not about adhering to a set of beliefs or practices but about embracing the journey of evolution, constantly questioning, experiencing, and moving towards one's inherent potential for divinity.