I have heard Osho through many of his audio cassettes. But he never talked about his personal life in those speeches. (except few incidents, here and there)
So, I was really eager to dig deep into the personal life of the most controversial person of this century. But aha! I didn’t have to work hard, as he had already written his own biography.
Before knowing about this book, I used to compare Osho with Buddha and Mahavir. But after reading his book, I feel, he is far greater than those two. Buddha and Mahavir kept quite at most of the times, when people asked them personal questions. Buddha maintained more silence than Mahavir. He even didn’t bother to answer questions, if it was outburst of a confused mind. But this silence of these two great people lead to many controversies in the future.
But Osho was way ahead! He simply wrote his biography. Wow!!
Now about the book (before someone comments, ’write about the book buddy! ’)
Lets start from the cover. The cover is not really attractive and I guess, it was not paid enough attention as it deserved.
Price of the book is quite ok. I bought it for 15$ from Barns and Noble in LA. Paper and print quality is also poor. It can repel few avid readers, who pay attention to these delicacies too.
Now lets talk about the gist, the material. It’s not like any normal auto biography, like M. K. Gandhi’s. It is different in many ways. The incidents are not given importance. The book does not follow the order of life cycle. The facts are considered trivia. What was happening in his consciousness, has been considered more important. More is written about the developments caused in the inner world, due to the outer world.
But it has a good flow. Even those who are not interested in philosophy and spirituality might as well appreciate it. Osho unfolds his life in a very lively manner, as if it’s happening right here.
More has been talked about his rebellious nature. I guess Osho could have avoided this. Amateur reader might misunderstand Osho as a rude,
Egoistic and unethical.
The book is not for those who have high BP, weak heart, or heart problems :)
It takes more thinking to understand why he wrote, what he wrote.
The book has to be read in the order Osho has written. If one starts it in between, it might change the entire meaning of the chapter, his life and philosophy.
The last part of the book is unbelievable and quite controversial. I can’t write all those details here, but one should go thru book, to find this out. LOL!
There are very rare pictures of Osho in the book. That could be a good collection, if you are an Osho fan.
Overall, a must read book, if you like to utilize your gray cells sometimes.
Wish you happy reading.
Thanks.
MB