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The White Lotus
Book by Rajneesh, Osho
387 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1981
21 people are currently reading
295 people want to read
About the author
Osho
4,285 books6,791 followersRajneesh (born Chandra Mohan Jain, 11 December 1931 – 19 January 1990) and latter rebranded as Osho was leader of the Rajneesh movement. During his lifetime he was viewed as a controversial new religious movement leader and mystic.
In the 1960s he traveled throughout India as a public speaker and was a vocal critic of socialism, Mahatma Gandhi, and Hindu religious orthodoxy.
Rajneesh emphasized the importance of meditation, mindfulness, love, celebration, courage, creativity and humor—qualities that he viewed as being suppressed by adherence to static belief systems, religious tradition and socialization.
In advocating a more open attitude to human sexuality he caused controversy in India during the late 1960s and became known as "the sex guru".
In 1970, Rajneesh spent time in Mumbai initiating followers known as "neo-sannyasins". During this period he expanded his spiritual teachings and commented extensively in discourses on the writings of religious traditions, mystics, and philosophers from around the world. In 1974 Rajneesh relocated to Pune, where an ashram was established and a variety of therapies, incorporating methods first developed by the Human Potential Movement, were offered to a growing Western following. By the late 1970s, the tension between the ruling Janata Party government of Morarji Desai and the movement led to a curbing of the ashram's development and a back taxes claim estimated at $5 million.
In 1981, the Rajneesh movement's efforts refocused on activities in the United States and Rajneesh relocated to a facility known as Rajneeshpuram in Wasco County, Oregon. Almost immediately the movement ran into conflict with county residents and the state government, and a succession of legal battles concerning the ashram's construction and continued development curtailed its success.
In 1985, in the wake of a series of serious crimes by his followers, including a mass food poisoning attack with Salmonella bacteria and an aborted assassination plot to murder U.S. Attorney Charles H. Turner, Rajneesh alleged that his personal secretary Ma Anand Sheela and her close supporters had been responsible. He was later deported from the United States in accordance with an Alford plea bargain.[
After his deportation, 21 countries denied him entry. He ultimately returned to India and a revived Pune ashram, where he died in 1990. Rajneesh's ashram, now known as OSHO International Meditation Resort and all associated intellectual property, is managed by the Zurich registered Osho International Foundation (formerly Rajneesh International Foundation). Rajneesh's teachings have had a notable impact on Western New Age thought, and their popularity has increased markedly since his death.
In the 1960s he traveled throughout India as a public speaker and was a vocal critic of socialism, Mahatma Gandhi, and Hindu religious orthodoxy.
Rajneesh emphasized the importance of meditation, mindfulness, love, celebration, courage, creativity and humor—qualities that he viewed as being suppressed by adherence to static belief systems, religious tradition and socialization.
In advocating a more open attitude to human sexuality he caused controversy in India during the late 1960s and became known as "the sex guru".
In 1970, Rajneesh spent time in Mumbai initiating followers known as "neo-sannyasins". During this period he expanded his spiritual teachings and commented extensively in discourses on the writings of religious traditions, mystics, and philosophers from around the world. In 1974 Rajneesh relocated to Pune, where an ashram was established and a variety of therapies, incorporating methods first developed by the Human Potential Movement, were offered to a growing Western following. By the late 1970s, the tension between the ruling Janata Party government of Morarji Desai and the movement led to a curbing of the ashram's development and a back taxes claim estimated at $5 million.
In 1981, the Rajneesh movement's efforts refocused on activities in the United States and Rajneesh relocated to a facility known as Rajneeshpuram in Wasco County, Oregon. Almost immediately the movement ran into conflict with county residents and the state government, and a succession of legal battles concerning the ashram's construction and continued development curtailed its success.
In 1985, in the wake of a series of serious crimes by his followers, including a mass food poisoning attack with Salmonella bacteria and an aborted assassination plot to murder U.S. Attorney Charles H. Turner, Rajneesh alleged that his personal secretary Ma Anand Sheela and her close supporters had been responsible. He was later deported from the United States in accordance with an Alford plea bargain.[
After his deportation, 21 countries denied him entry. He ultimately returned to India and a revived Pune ashram, where he died in 1990. Rajneesh's ashram, now known as OSHO International Meditation Resort and all associated intellectual property, is managed by the Zurich registered Osho International Foundation (formerly Rajneesh International Foundation). Rajneesh's teachings have had a notable impact on Western New Age thought, and their popularity has increased markedly since his death.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
May 2, 2013
This is not something that one would understand because one knows the meanings of the words. It is far too spiritual and requires a deep contemplation to absorb every single line from the book. The more one experiences, the more meaningful the book turns out to be. A good read.
May 18, 2020
Silence is truly the greatest form of communication
August 7, 2015
In this book Osho has analyzed in detail some of the questions asked by Bodhidharma's disciples and his answers as put down by the same people. In his book, Osho shows you how to live spontaneously with no past and no future, since by living in the present you'll experience living in the infinity.
From Page 342:
Or from page 344:
From the same page:
From Page 342:
Drop mind and you'll drop time. Drop choices (duality). Don't choose, to not to be imprisoned. Choice makes you dull.
Or from page 344:
A man who has no desire has come home.
From the same page:
The answers of the Bodhidharma can be reduced to: choiceless awareness
February 2, 2016
I took 3 months to read this one. It's about feeling and living the book. You breath, sleep and live this book.
August 4, 2012
Boddhidrama!
July 8, 2023
My fav quotes (not a review):
-Page 9 | "Buddha again and again says, ”I am not a philosopher, I am a physician. I don’t want to intellectualize, I want to make you intelligent. I don’t want to ""give you answers to cling to, I want to give you insights in which questions melt, evaporate.”"
-Page 10 |"To safeguard his pint while he left the bar for a moment a man left a note, ”I have spat in this beer.” When he returned he found another note, ”So have I.”"
-Page 16 |"This time the elephant was really pissed off and said, ”Listen, if you don’t tell me why you are laughing I am gonna throw you off my back!” So the mouse ""finally said, ”Ha, ha, ha! I raped you two times and you didn’t even notice it!”"
-Page 171 "The well-known professor begins his first course with this declaration: ”To be a good practitioner, two qualities are required. The first is: you should not ""be disgusted with anything. The second is: you should be able to observe accurately. As an illustration of this, watch. You see this age-old corpse lying on ""the table? I dip one finger in the anus of the corpse, and then you see, I take it out, put it in my mouth and suck it.” The whole class is horrified. The ""professor goes on, ”Now, which of you will be able to do this?” A very zealous student comes up and, without hesitation, dips his finger into the corpse’s ""anus and sucks it. A great silence follows this performance. The professor congratulates the student, ”Very good, young man, you certainly have the first ""quality required to be a good doctor, that is: not to be disgusted with anything. However, the second quality is missing. You have no sense of observation ""at all. You see, it was this finger, the index, that I dipped. And it was this finger, the medius, that I put into my mouth!” Enough for today."
-Page 9 | "Buddha again and again says, ”I am not a philosopher, I am a physician. I don’t want to intellectualize, I want to make you intelligent. I don’t want to ""give you answers to cling to, I want to give you insights in which questions melt, evaporate.”"
-Page 10 |"To safeguard his pint while he left the bar for a moment a man left a note, ”I have spat in this beer.” When he returned he found another note, ”So have I.”"
-Page 16 |"This time the elephant was really pissed off and said, ”Listen, if you don’t tell me why you are laughing I am gonna throw you off my back!” So the mouse ""finally said, ”Ha, ha, ha! I raped you two times and you didn’t even notice it!”"
-Page 171 "The well-known professor begins his first course with this declaration: ”To be a good practitioner, two qualities are required. The first is: you should not ""be disgusted with anything. The second is: you should be able to observe accurately. As an illustration of this, watch. You see this age-old corpse lying on ""the table? I dip one finger in the anus of the corpse, and then you see, I take it out, put it in my mouth and suck it.” The whole class is horrified. The ""professor goes on, ”Now, which of you will be able to do this?” A very zealous student comes up and, without hesitation, dips his finger into the corpse’s ""anus and sucks it. A great silence follows this performance. The professor congratulates the student, ”Very good, young man, you certainly have the first ""quality required to be a good doctor, that is: not to be disgusted with anything. However, the second quality is missing. You have no sense of observation ""at all. You see, it was this finger, the index, that I dipped. And it was this finger, the medius, that I put into my mouth!” Enough for today."
April 23, 2025
Osho’s The White Lotus isn’t a book you just read—it’s one you absorb. It dives into the radical teachings of Bodhidharma through Osho’s unique lens, stripping away the intellectual clutter to reach something raw and direct. Osho’s commentary isn’t about neat answers or spiritual dogma; it’s about shaking your foundation, forcing you to question, unlearn, and just be. He takes ancient Zen dialogues and turns them into deeply personal insights. The book is equal parts poetic, disarming, and unsettling—especially when it dismantles comfort zones around choice, desire, and identity. It doesn’t feel like reading a philosophy book—it feels like being confronted by it.
What makes The White Lotus unforgettable is Osho’s ability to simplify profound truths without diluting them. He uses humor, stories, and paradoxes to crack open the conditioned mind. But it’s not an easy ride—this book demands time, silence, and a willingness to meet your mind’s resistance. For anyone genuinely seeking—not just reading—this book is a spiritual companion. It’s not about “getting it” but about letting go of the need to get anything at all. Not for beginners, but for those ready to step beyond intellectual spirituality.
5 Key Takeaways
Choiceless Awareness – True freedom comes not from choosing but from dropping choice altogether.
Live Now – The only reality is the present moment; the past and future are illusions created by the mind.
Desireless State – A man without desires is truly at peace, having “come home” to himself.
Drop the Mind, Drop Time – Letting go of mental noise dissolves the concept of time and opens the door to the infinite.
Spirituality is Not Serious – Enlightenment can come wrapped in laughter; Osho’s humor is a tool to unlock truth.
What makes The White Lotus unforgettable is Osho’s ability to simplify profound truths without diluting them. He uses humor, stories, and paradoxes to crack open the conditioned mind. But it’s not an easy ride—this book demands time, silence, and a willingness to meet your mind’s resistance. For anyone genuinely seeking—not just reading—this book is a spiritual companion. It’s not about “getting it” but about letting go of the need to get anything at all. Not for beginners, but for those ready to step beyond intellectual spirituality.
5 Key Takeaways
Choiceless Awareness – True freedom comes not from choosing but from dropping choice altogether.
Live Now – The only reality is the present moment; the past and future are illusions created by the mind.
Desireless State – A man without desires is truly at peace, having “come home” to himself.
Drop the Mind, Drop Time – Letting go of mental noise dissolves the concept of time and opens the door to the infinite.
Spirituality is Not Serious – Enlightenment can come wrapped in laughter; Osho’s humor is a tool to unlock truth.
April 11, 2018
A good book is a book which when you turn its pages it should turn you upside down.
It is an amazing book which explains the true nature of spirituality. The reader will definitely will get a wonderful experience.
It is an amazing book which explains the true nature of spirituality. The reader will definitely will get a wonderful experience.
Read
December 29, 2020Inspiring. Full of anecdotes with profound lessons.
October 7, 2023
Leaves you mesmerized!
It's a beautiful book just like all the books by Osho. His words pierce through the conventional mind and take one to a journey of self discovery!
It's a beautiful book just like all the books by Osho. His words pierce through the conventional mind and take one to a journey of self discovery!
November 2, 2024
I’m glad I embarked on this one after reading so many Osho books beforehand. This one’s not for beginners. It’s for Osho enthusiasts like myself who loved and hated it. I knew what to do with my uncomfortability with his methods and madness. I could see someone starting out on the path here, and giving up on the journey all together.
April 14, 2014
This Book took me almost 1 year to finish as its real Hardcore.
during which I did read other books Of OSHO.
Mahatama Osho like always has done what he is best at, which all the lovers of OSHO know.
during which I did read other books Of OSHO.
Mahatama Osho like always has done what he is best at, which all the lovers of OSHO know.
March 26, 2014
Nice book.Easy read.
Here Osho comments on Bodhidharma's answers to some students.
Here Osho comments on Bodhidharma's answers to some students.
June 22, 2014
A book about Bodhidharma's discourses.A good book
September 16, 2014
The stories by Boddhidharma, beautiful explanation of it by Osho. Ah This... is so beautiful
March 31, 2017
Osho is a fascinating story teller. His explains life's paradoxes in simpler and humorous way. It is probably his sense of humor that attracts wide audience. White Lotus can be a complicated subject, because people choose to be it so, but Osho has shared a different perspective and the realization towards the end brings a smile. A must read for those finding answers.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews