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The Search: Finding Your Inner Power, Your Potential
Human beings have an inbuilt drive or urge to search for the inner power that is needed to reach our true potential. This search is the search for the origins and meaning of life itself.
We are here, we have life – but we don’t know what life really is. We can feel our energy, but don’t know where this energy comes from and to what goal this energy is going. We are that energy, we have glimpses of its true source and our connection to it, and those glimpses keep us going even when it seems we will never find what we are seeking – but still we do not know what that energy is.
An ancient Zen story symbolizes the search for the source of this life. Zen master Kakuan’s story of The Ten Bulls of Zen is a teaching that uses ten images, each representing a particular step on the journey of experiencing and understanding it means to be a conscious and aware human being.
Osho takes us through this story and its lessons for the traveler on a journey into the inner world – that’s what meditation is all about according to him. But reaching the pure, uncluttered freedom of meditation is not the end. The circle is only complete when the seeker comes back into the marketplace of the world, but as a transformed person.
This is a book that belongs in the hands of everyone who is on the search, beginning the search, or just thinking about the search.
The book is illustrated with ten original images of Gomizen’s Ten Bulls of Zen from the Fuzoku Tenri Library, Tenri University, Japan.
We are here, we have life – but we don’t know what life really is. We can feel our energy, but don’t know where this energy comes from and to what goal this energy is going. We are that energy, we have glimpses of its true source and our connection to it, and those glimpses keep us going even when it seems we will never find what we are seeking – but still we do not know what that energy is.
An ancient Zen story symbolizes the search for the source of this life. Zen master Kakuan’s story of The Ten Bulls of Zen is a teaching that uses ten images, each representing a particular step on the journey of experiencing and understanding it means to be a conscious and aware human being.
Osho takes us through this story and its lessons for the traveler on a journey into the inner world – that’s what meditation is all about according to him. But reaching the pure, uncluttered freedom of meditation is not the end. The circle is only complete when the seeker comes back into the marketplace of the world, but as a transformed person.
This is a book that belongs in the hands of everyone who is on the search, beginning the search, or just thinking about the search.
The book is illustrated with ten original images of Gomizen’s Ten Bulls of Zen from the Fuzoku Tenri Library, Tenri University, Japan.
236 pages, Paperback
First published November 12, 2013
103 people are currently reading
363 people want to read
About the author
Osho
4,290 books6,727 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 - 27 of 27 reviews
August 30, 2016
This book, Osho's work, and that of the writers became beautiful companions to me, my being, and the seeker in me. I had many conversations with The Search. I doodled in the margins and asked myself my own questions as I walked, floated, dug and flew about into this read. It's definitely one to revisit to be reminded of. So much more to say, worth sharing with a fellow seeker, beginning, midway or seemingly nearing the end of their path. Big love.
February 28, 2017
البحث،، بداية لم يشدني العنوان كثيراً وقد جالت في بالي تساؤلات لماذا يتناول أوشو موضوع البحث؟؟ وكيف يستطيع أن يكتب كتابا معنونا بالبحث؟؟
ولكن ما إن استغرقت في القراءة حتى وجدت نفسي أطوي الصفحات سريعا، فالكتاب خفيف وجميل و فكرته رغم غرابتها إلا أنها واقعية بعض الشيء.
تناول البحث من زوايا مختلفة تماما عن أي إنسان بتفكير عادي، فقد وضح إن البحث صعب فالحقيقة مجهولة، كما بين إنها ليست مجهولة فحسب بل هي فوق مستوى الإدراك البشري
إذا فلماذا نبحث؟ إذا ما استطعنا الفهم والوصول لشيء ما..؟
جواب أوشو هو إن البحث ليس لغاية المعرفة فحسب بل لغايات أسمى وأكبر فعندما تبحث عن الحقائق المرسومة قبل خلقك فأنت تبحث عن نفسك وتغلق عينيك لمعرفة ذاتك، للإبتعاد عن الجشع والخوف والعديد من المشاعر التي تساعدك على الوصول لأهدافك ومواجهة الصعاب و مجابهة الحياة من خلال تحقيق الغاية الحقيقية لوجودك.
ولكن ما إن استغرقت في القراءة حتى وجدت نفسي أطوي الصفحات سريعا، فالكتاب خفيف وجميل و فكرته رغم غرابتها إلا أنها واقعية بعض الشيء.
تناول البحث من زوايا مختلفة تماما عن أي إنسان بتفكير عادي، فقد وضح إن البحث صعب فالحقيقة مجهولة، كما بين إنها ليست مجهولة فحسب بل هي فوق مستوى الإدراك البشري
إذا فلماذا نبحث؟ إذا ما استطعنا الفهم والوصول لشيء ما..؟
جواب أوشو هو إن البحث ليس لغاية المعرفة فحسب بل لغايات أسمى وأكبر فعندما تبحث عن الحقائق المرسومة قبل خلقك فأنت تبحث عن نفسك وتغلق عينيك لمعرفة ذاتك، للإبتعاد عن الجشع والخوف والعديد من المشاعر التي تساعدك على الوصول لأهدافك ومواجهة الصعاب و مجابهة الحياة من خلال تحقيق الغاية الحقيقية لوجودك.
January 25, 2018
هذا الكتاب جعلني أكتشف حبي لكتب الفلسفة ، أوشو انسان عظيم .
August 5, 2019
es vienkārši smejos
smejos no prieka
es tik smejos
ai, smejos...
beigās neizlasīju visu, jo manī tieši pirms divi simti mirkļiem un divi simtām atdzimšanām - pacēlās prieks prieks prieks prieks - laime ?
ai
sākumā bija plāns konspektēt visas atziņas, bet tad - nu, kāda jēga? tā jau būs tikai uzņemta informācija, atmiņa, neīstums prāta mirušajai bibliotēkai, tāpēc vienkārši padevos - - - -
pa straumīti ļāvos apziņā un vienkārši smaidīt...
tagad tikai jāsaplēš visi spoguļi, jāiekļaujas savā būtībā, jāattopas mirkļumos - īsi, dievišķajos mirkļumos... ai, cik skaļi smaidīt
la la la la la
la l a la al la lal lal lal la
smejos no prieka
es tik smejos
ai, smejos...
beigās neizlasīju visu, jo manī tieši pirms divi simti mirkļiem un divi simtām atdzimšanām - pacēlās prieks prieks prieks prieks - laime ?
ai
sākumā bija plāns konspektēt visas atziņas, bet tad - nu, kāda jēga? tā jau būs tikai uzņemta informācija, atmiņa, neīstums prāta mirušajai bibliotēkai, tāpēc vienkārši padevos - - - -
pa straumīti ļāvos apziņā un vienkārši smaidīt...
tagad tikai jāsaplēš visi spoguļi, jāiekļaujas savā būtībā, jāattopas mirkļumos - īsi, dievišķajos mirkļumos... ai, cik skaļi smaidīt
la la la la la
la l a la al la lal lal lal la
March 10, 2023
4.4*/5*
-Những quan điểm mới mẻ về tâm linh được Osho luận bàn rất sâu và rộng. Từ “thập mục tầm ngưu”, Osho chia sẻ về hành trình quay về nguồn cội, về lại chính mình mà bất cứ ai cũng nên “hành hương” chí ít một lần trong đời thông qua các lăng kính cuộc sống như: cái tôi, tình yêu, dục vọng, địa vị, quyền lực…
-Nhiều thứ về bản thân mình sẽ cần thay đổi sau khi hoàn thành một cuốn sách rất uyên bác như này
Kiệm, 090323.
-Những quan điểm mới mẻ về tâm linh được Osho luận bàn rất sâu và rộng. Từ “thập mục tầm ngưu”, Osho chia sẻ về hành trình quay về nguồn cội, về lại chính mình mà bất cứ ai cũng nên “hành hương” chí ít một lần trong đời thông qua các lăng kính cuộc sống như: cái tôi, tình yêu, dục vọng, địa vị, quyền lực…
-Nhiều thứ về bản thân mình sẽ cần thay đổi sau khi hoàn thành một cuốn sách rất uyên bác như này
Kiệm, 090323.
August 16, 2017
"Laimei nevajag iemeslu. Ja meklējat iemeslus, jūs nekad nebūsiet laimīgi." (Osho)
Grāmata man iekrita rokās īstajā brīdī - brīdī, kad vēlos, lai prāts tik ļoti neiejaucas manā dzīvē. Gribu dzīvot ar sirdi. Un tieši to māca šī grāmata.
Grāmata man iekrita rokās īstajā brīdī - brīdī, kad vēlos, lai prāts tik ļoti neiejaucas manā dzīvē. Gribu dzīvot ar sirdi. Un tieši to māca šī grāmata.
December 23, 2014
This is an amazing little book, A must read for everybody involved or interested in the spiritual search.
May 12, 2025
This book actually helped me answer some of the biggest questions I’ve been sitting with. I didn’t expect it to be this profound, honestly. I’ve been avoiding Osho’s teachings for a while… for obvious reasons (For me).
But the way he explained the story of ”The Ten Bulls” made more sense than I thought it would. It’s usually such a poetic and abstract story, kind of hard to really grasp. Osho had a way of explaining something complex and make it much easier to understand.
There are some parts where he talked about love that I don’t fully agree with, some of it feels a bit off to me. But overall, I think he has interesting thoughts about love, enlightenment and the inner voice - to name a few. 🪷
🌿 Setting down roots:
“It is as if the plant has been removed from one place to another again and again. The plant cannot grow; the plant needs to settle on one ground so that roots can go deep. If you go on moving the plant again and again, the roots will never grow; and if roots cannot go deeper, the plant cannot go higher.
Hence commitment. Commitment means: this is the soil for me now and I am ready to settle for it. It is risky because, who knows, a better soil may be available somewhere else. So the risk is there, but one has to take that risk some day or other. If you go on and on just waiting for something better, the time may be lost, and by the time you have arrived you will be dead.
The real thing is the work. It is good to go around, have a look, visit many places, many people – but don’t make it a habit. That habit is dangerous. It won’t allow you roots. If roots are not there, the tree cannot be alive ‒ flowers are not possible; fragrance will not spread from you and your life will remain empty.”
But the way he explained the story of ”The Ten Bulls” made more sense than I thought it would. It’s usually such a poetic and abstract story, kind of hard to really grasp. Osho had a way of explaining something complex and make it much easier to understand.
There are some parts where he talked about love that I don’t fully agree with, some of it feels a bit off to me. But overall, I think he has interesting thoughts about love, enlightenment and the inner voice - to name a few. 🪷
🌿 Setting down roots:
“It is as if the plant has been removed from one place to another again and again. The plant cannot grow; the plant needs to settle on one ground so that roots can go deep. If you go on moving the plant again and again, the roots will never grow; and if roots cannot go deeper, the plant cannot go higher.
Hence commitment. Commitment means: this is the soil for me now and I am ready to settle for it. It is risky because, who knows, a better soil may be available somewhere else. So the risk is there, but one has to take that risk some day or other. If you go on and on just waiting for something better, the time may be lost, and by the time you have arrived you will be dead.
The real thing is the work. It is good to go around, have a look, visit many places, many people – but don’t make it a habit. That habit is dangerous. It won’t allow you roots. If roots are not there, the tree cannot be alive ‒ flowers are not possible; fragrance will not spread from you and your life will remain empty.”
February 12, 2024
This word ’interlude’ is very beautiful. It comes from two Latin words: ’inter’ and ’ludus’. Ludus means games, play, and inter means between. Interlude means between the games. You are playing the game of a husband or a wife; then you play the game of a father or a mother. Then you go to the office and you play the game of being a banker, a businessman – a thousand and one games you play, twenty-four hours. Between two games, interludes.
Remember this: if I say to you to be aware, it is just a device. If I say to you to be disciplined, it is just a device, a measure useful for you; don’t make it a goal. Remember always: it has to be transcended one day, so don’t get in deep attachment with it. It is very difficult. First I have teach to people how to meditate; then it is difficult to move them into meditation. Reluctantly... they create all sorts of difficulties, but somehow I force them into meditation. Then the day comes when I want them to drop it; then they don’t want to drop it.
Remember this: if I say to you to be aware, it is just a device. If I say to you to be disciplined, it is just a device, a measure useful for you; don’t make it a goal. Remember always: it has to be transcended one day, so don’t get in deep attachment with it. It is very difficult. First I have teach to people how to meditate; then it is difficult to move them into meditation. Reluctantly... they create all sorts of difficulties, but somehow I force them into meditation. Then the day comes when I want them to drop it; then they don’t want to drop it.
August 24, 2021
This is the first book I read by Osho.
I was taken by the title of the search, because I feel this is all that I am mostly doing. Searching for the unknown, the hidden codes, the underground, etc.
So this book wasn't really a manual, or a way to promote a belief system. It is mostly a gentle conversation to put you at ease so you can enjoy anything including reading this book.
It came to be right on time, and I feel I will read it again and again just for the joy of it.
I was taken by the title of the search, because I feel this is all that I am mostly doing. Searching for the unknown, the hidden codes, the underground, etc.
So this book wasn't really a manual, or a way to promote a belief system. It is mostly a gentle conversation to put you at ease so you can enjoy anything including reading this book.
It came to be right on time, and I feel I will read it again and again just for the joy of it.
October 17, 2021
The best book I have ever read, period.
This book offers the ultimate answer to... everything.
I read this book and my immediate thoughts are that I really need to read it many times over.
To absorb the knowledge in this book a certain basic level of openness and awareness is required.
You finish reading this book and you are a changed person. You are not the same person who started... and then, you are.
This book offers the ultimate answer to... everything.
I read this book and my immediate thoughts are that I really need to read it many times over.
To absorb the knowledge in this book a certain basic level of openness and awareness is required.
You finish reading this book and you are a changed person. You are not the same person who started... and then, you are.
May 6, 2020
The read is life changing if one allows it.... thought provoking and enlightening. Gave me so many answers, but also left me searching for more answers. So many lessons from his teachings in the book. Here’s to listening to life from one’s whole being and not from the mind!
Worth the read, and am now eager to drink from the well of his teachings.
Worth the read, and am now eager to drink from the well of his teachings.
Read
October 19, 2024my uncle bought this for me in India last year, whereupon I quickly read the first third. I loved it. however once I got back home I basically stopped reading completely. now I'm back in Asia, I had to pick this thing up again. I finished it pretty quickly. it's a great book, that's all I really have to say.
October 4, 2020
Every book of Osho...the page moves like water. The rivers were flowing before you start reading the book. And then while reading the book you have so many doubts and questions and those wonderful timeless explanations. And when you finish the book the rivers are still flowing.
November 18, 2020
I bow to the divinity contained in this book. Just as Osho advices, I am dropping my mind and not attempting to analyse this book. Just enjoying what I heard (I listened to the Amazon Audible audiobook version).
July 24, 2019
As always, Osho is at his best even in this book.
April 27, 2021
Excellent book.
August 15, 2022
One of Oshos' best talks, in my opinion. Worth a second and third listen 👍🏼
January 18, 2023
Cuộc hành hương nội tại - không có điểm bắt đầu cũng không có điểm kết thúc
December 4, 2023
عندما تكون حياً، فإن الحياة تسري في كل ما تلمسه. بينما عندما تكون ميتاً فإنك ستقتل كلّ ما تلمسه.
وتصبح لمساتك سامة.
وتصبح لمساتك سامة.
September 5, 2025
4.25 ⭐️
July 15, 2023
Osho has a beautiful way of communicating. He portrays through parables much like Jesus was said to.
Ego. We can see the ridiculous of it in others but we are blind to our own egos. Egos are reflections of others opinions of ourselves. That is why they are conflicting. One person says you are beautiful. Another says you are ugly. How can both be right. If you look in the mirror you are not looking at yourself, you are looking at a reflection.
We think we are so important. Everyone is paying attention to me. But everyone is thinking the same about themselves. That is the trick of the ego.
Escapism. Man can hide away from things and suppress. Man is obsessed with images. We are more moved by a story on a theater screen than by walking past a homeless person. We become desensitized. Images aren't real. Televisions, movies, exist in your imagination.
A rose is a rose is a rose. Nothing more can be said about the rose. Words can not communicate what it is to experience the rose yourself, see it face to face, smell its fragrance, feel its shape. Words can only point to ideas, they are only "signposts" as Eckhart Tolle would say.
In the same vein there is no past or future. These things exist only as concepts in your mind. The only real thing is right now, in front of you.
The human as they are, with just consciousness is just gaps. Only silence is real. When you are in the moment the mind is blank. Nothing can be said. It can only be experienced.
Western philosophy places the emphasis on doing. A bad person can do good things. In Eastern philosophy it is being which is most important. A good being can do no bad things. It's the place that things come from that matter not the thing itself. A man can be a robber or a theif but if he comes from the right place he is a good person.
Each moment arises from the previous moment. If this moment is perfect, all following moments will come from perfection. Focus on making the most of right now.
Religion. Race. Family. You are born into it. Your father was a Christian. Your mother was a Christian. When you are a Christian it was not by choice. It was just coincidence.
Decidophobia. One is scared of making decisions and taking responsibilities. But really you decided everything in your life. Whatever situation you are in you have picked for yourself. It wasn't the devil, it wasn't karma, it wasn't your parents, it was you who picked this life out for yourself.
Ego grows from saying no. You deny this thought you deny this person you deny this opportunity. Say yes. Be open to life.
Discipline and awareness and needed. The whip and the saddle. The saddle is your discipline. The whip is your awareness. Discipline with no awareness is a zombie moving through life. Do whatever you must do by practicing discipline. A little discipline is needed in the beginning. To get you on the right path. And awareness will give life to that path.
Ego. We can see the ridiculous of it in others but we are blind to our own egos. Egos are reflections of others opinions of ourselves. That is why they are conflicting. One person says you are beautiful. Another says you are ugly. How can both be right. If you look in the mirror you are not looking at yourself, you are looking at a reflection.
We think we are so important. Everyone is paying attention to me. But everyone is thinking the same about themselves. That is the trick of the ego.
Escapism. Man can hide away from things and suppress. Man is obsessed with images. We are more moved by a story on a theater screen than by walking past a homeless person. We become desensitized. Images aren't real. Televisions, movies, exist in your imagination.
A rose is a rose is a rose. Nothing more can be said about the rose. Words can not communicate what it is to experience the rose yourself, see it face to face, smell its fragrance, feel its shape. Words can only point to ideas, they are only "signposts" as Eckhart Tolle would say.
In the same vein there is no past or future. These things exist only as concepts in your mind. The only real thing is right now, in front of you.
The human as they are, with just consciousness is just gaps. Only silence is real. When you are in the moment the mind is blank. Nothing can be said. It can only be experienced.
Western philosophy places the emphasis on doing. A bad person can do good things. In Eastern philosophy it is being which is most important. A good being can do no bad things. It's the place that things come from that matter not the thing itself. A man can be a robber or a theif but if he comes from the right place he is a good person.
Each moment arises from the previous moment. If this moment is perfect, all following moments will come from perfection. Focus on making the most of right now.
Religion. Race. Family. You are born into it. Your father was a Christian. Your mother was a Christian. When you are a Christian it was not by choice. It was just coincidence.
Decidophobia. One is scared of making decisions and taking responsibilities. But really you decided everything in your life. Whatever situation you are in you have picked for yourself. It wasn't the devil, it wasn't karma, it wasn't your parents, it was you who picked this life out for yourself.
Ego grows from saying no. You deny this thought you deny this person you deny this opportunity. Say yes. Be open to life.
Discipline and awareness and needed. The whip and the saddle. The saddle is your discipline. The whip is your awareness. Discipline with no awareness is a zombie moving through life. Do whatever you must do by practicing discipline. A little discipline is needed in the beginning. To get you on the right path. And awareness will give life to that path.
December 28, 2023
A good introduction to Zen. Discourse on the ten bulls of zen. Q and A sessions with disciples.
September 27, 2014
OSHO beautifully improvises the Zen understanding.
September 17, 2022
Spectacular book
One of the best books that I’ve read. I love how simple it was to understand and yet it carried so much depth within. Definitely a book worth meditating over.
One of the best books that I’ve read. I love how simple it was to understand and yet it carried so much depth within. Definitely a book worth meditating over.
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