The Art Of Living

by Osho

Osho present and explores five principles: non-violence, non-possessiveness, non-theft, non-esire and non-unawareness. He shows how they can be applied to everyday life by bringing awarness o=to the simplest of actions and the minute of details, as well as to the most powerful of human energies, sex.

Genres: Spirituality, Philosophy

344 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Rajneesh (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.

Reviews

[Bhakta Kishor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the humanity is vegetating rather than living, they need to learn the art of living so that death may also become a celebration. Man is born to achieve life but it all depends on him. He can miss it, he can go on breathing, eating, ageing… but it’s not life. It’s gradual death, 70 year long. And because millions are dying slow like this… you also start imitating them. Children learn from those around them and they are surrounded by the dead. So first we have to understand what I mean by life. It must not be simply growing old, it must be growing up. Any animal is capable of growing old. Growing up means moving every moment deeper into the principle of life, going farther away from death, not towards death. The deeper you go into life the more you understand the immortality in you. When you see death is nothing but changing of clothes, houses, forms… nothing dies. Death is the greatest illusion there is. For growing up just watch a tree… as the tree grows up, it’s roots are growing down, deeper, there is a balance… higher it goes, deeper the roots go. Growing up means growing deep within your self, where your roots are.

[Saravanan]

good

[Jimmy Quintana · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that captures the meaning of life and the bigger picture. Loved every minute of this read

[Nick S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brief, simple book with observations on life that still ring true today.