A man of Zen treats all forms of life including inanimate objects with reverence, as Zen is the purest form of meditation. For a Zen practitioner it does not matter what is outside; what matters is how he responds to it \u2014 sensitively or insensitively. He feels the heartbeat of life in everything that surrounds him. Life exists in an organic unity in all its forms. The inner eye of meditation looks at it with sensitivity and grace. I have heard a Zen story told by Osho in one of his talks: A disciple came to the Master to learn meditation. Earlier the disciple had gone to see a polo game. The Zen masters are unique and they enjoy all kinds of games, even those which we normally think are mundane.<\/p>\n
So this Master was curious about the polo game. He asked his disciple, \u201cTell me a few things. Were the riders on the horses tired?\u201d The disciple said, \u201cYes, at the end of the game they looked tired.\u201d Then the Master said, \u201cWere the horses tired ?\u201d The disciple said, \u201cYes, a little bit, not as much as the riders, but even the horses were tired.\u201d Then the Master said, \u201cThe last and the final question \u2014 were the posts, the wooden posts which are needed in the game, were they tired too?\u201d
\nNow, this was too much! The disciple hesitated a little. The Master said, \u201cGo into your room and meditate over it. Tomorrow morning you can answer.\u201d
\nThe disciple was really puzzled about how wooden posts could be tired, and so could not sleep the whole night, he kept tossing and turning in his bed. Finally at dawn, some insight dawned on him and he rushed to the Master, fell at his feet, and he said, \u201cYes Master, they were tired.\u201d The Master said, \u201cI am happy. Your going to the polo game has not been useless.\u201d A disciple who was present there and listening to this conversation, asked the Master, \u201cWhat nonsense is this? How can wooden posts be tired?\u201d<\/p>\n
And the Master responded, \u201cIf wooden posts cannot be tired then nobody can be tired because this whole existence is one. If a man gets tired, if horses get tired, then wooden posts also get tired. The whole existence is a manifestation of one energy.\u201d Osho concludes in his talk on the Thread of Meditation: It has been one of the most dangerous ideas down the centuries that life can be divided into separate parts. Life is indivisible, it is an organic \u2014 whole. The moment one divides it one kills it. This is one of the most fundamental things in my approach towards life. I take it as a whole.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A man of Zen treats all forms of life including inanimate objects with reverence, as Zen is the purest form of meditation. For a Zen practitioner it does not matter what is outside; what matters is how he responds to it \u2014 sensitively or insensitively. He feels the heartbeat of life in everything that surrounds … Continue reading Mystic Mantra: Zen is the purest form of meditation<\/span>