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Aspects of Meditation Book 1
In spiritual teacher Osho's Aspects of Meditation Book 1: The Body, the First Step , you'll discover a deeper understanding of meditation through an investigation into the subtle workings of the mind, focusing on the body.
The West has taken to meditation with great enthusiasm. We contemplate. We concentrate. We embrace mindfulness techniques and a multitude of mantras. We have undertaken to “do” meditation.
The Aspects of Meditation series is comprised of brief, precious texts in which Osho shows us the core of meditation is not about sitting silently or chanting a mantra. It is, instead, a question of understanding the subtle workings of the mind. In Book 1, Osho re-introduces us to our body, focusing on the “root” of the human, the soul.
The West has taken to meditation with great enthusiasm. We contemplate. We concentrate. We embrace mindfulness techniques and a multitude of mantras. We have undertaken to “do” meditation.
The Aspects of Meditation series is comprised of brief, precious texts in which Osho shows us the core of meditation is not about sitting silently or chanting a mantra. It is, instead, a question of understanding the subtle workings of the mind. In Book 1, Osho re-introduces us to our body, focusing on the “root” of the human, the soul.
112 pages, Paperback
Published February 22, 2022
11 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
Osho
4,296 books6,800 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 - 11 of 11 reviews
October 26, 2023
An interesting dialogue on proper meditation and the true residence of the soul. Where the essence of a human being resides and how to tap into this energy inside. Loved the side stories on Buddha and examples of people who came to their own God realization. Also a great text for the application of energy creation. OSHO definitely knows how to make you ponder the importance of having the right motivations. Recommend this to anyone seeking inner liberation.
April 25, 2022
I was curious about a new series featuring insights from Osho, the creator of the Osho Zen tarot deck, in part because I find that deck so intriguingly strange and wondered about the person who made it! Osho (a 20th-century Indian spiritual teacher) does not tie his approach to a religious tradition, but the feel of his writing is reminiscent of some Buddhist writers. These teachings are transcribed from conversations with retreat students, and they’re little oddly edited but still readable.
Osho uses parables, principles, and practices to prepare the reader to meditate. This volume focuses on Osho’s philosophies of the body and how to prepare it for meditation.
The body is described as a vehicle for divine, an instrument tuned through meditation. Osho argues that our minds are “too tight” with control and anxiety, while our hearts are “too loose” and not tuned in on love, and in general we’ve lost the idea of a connected bodymind. He offers ways to “tune” heart and mind and access the navel, the source of soul in his view. Basically: sleep, eat, and exercise in moderation (no extremes of indulgence or deprivation), but also use specific meditation techniques.
I resonated with “navel work” focused on deep engagement with life and moving past fear—extremely relevant to our current disconnection crisis. The idea that social conditioning and over-focus on the brain create restlessness over peace is obvious, and I love the suggestion of processing emotion by letting the body do what it wants—reminiscent of more recent writing on metabolizing “dirty pain” (Resmaa Menakem’s term) and collective embodied trauma.
The statistics seem offhand and unverified, though, and some of Osho’s statements I can’t accept. He lost me at the idea of some “strong” people having more stored potential energy they need to use towards creation. Theorizing around the nature of hate, love, and anger is confusing and overly binary. Some interesting ideas, but skippable.
(ARC provided by NetGalley for review.)
Osho uses parables, principles, and practices to prepare the reader to meditate. This volume focuses on Osho’s philosophies of the body and how to prepare it for meditation.
The body is described as a vehicle for divine, an instrument tuned through meditation. Osho argues that our minds are “too tight” with control and anxiety, while our hearts are “too loose” and not tuned in on love, and in general we’ve lost the idea of a connected bodymind. He offers ways to “tune” heart and mind and access the navel, the source of soul in his view. Basically: sleep, eat, and exercise in moderation (no extremes of indulgence or deprivation), but also use specific meditation techniques.
I resonated with “navel work” focused on deep engagement with life and moving past fear—extremely relevant to our current disconnection crisis. The idea that social conditioning and over-focus on the brain create restlessness over peace is obvious, and I love the suggestion of processing emotion by letting the body do what it wants—reminiscent of more recent writing on metabolizing “dirty pain” (Resmaa Menakem’s term) and collective embodied trauma.
The statistics seem offhand and unverified, though, and some of Osho’s statements I can’t accept. He lost me at the idea of some “strong” people having more stored potential energy they need to use towards creation. Theorizing around the nature of hate, love, and anger is confusing and overly binary. Some interesting ideas, but skippable.
(ARC provided by NetGalley for review.)
February 1, 2022
This review is of Aspects of Meditation Books 1 through 4. The books are short, and my comments apply to all of them.
After reading another book by Osho, I wanted to know a bit more about how this man thinks. This series satisfied my curiosity. His ideas must have been quite revolutionary when first presented to gain him such acclaim and recognition. I had never heard of him before last year.
He presents his material in a logical way, step by step, with stories to illustrate his point. I can't say there's anything striking about any of the books, but readers will no doubt find something they can relate to.
My thanks to St. Martin's Essentials who granted me access to an e-ARC of this book via NetGalley. The set is scheduled for publication in paperback on 2/22/22. All opinions stated in this review are my own and are freely given.
After reading another book by Osho, I wanted to know a bit more about how this man thinks. This series satisfied my curiosity. His ideas must have been quite revolutionary when first presented to gain him such acclaim and recognition. I had never heard of him before last year.
He presents his material in a logical way, step by step, with stories to illustrate his point. I can't say there's anything striking about any of the books, but readers will no doubt find something they can relate to.
My thanks to St. Martin's Essentials who granted me access to an e-ARC of this book via NetGalley. The set is scheduled for publication in paperback on 2/22/22. All opinions stated in this review are my own and are freely given.
August 30, 2025
a good, short read. typical in terms of religious aphorisms. nothing particularly different from most mindfulness advice in the new age bent, nothing out of pocket, nothing that can't be viewed in a psychological lens.
I appreciate that it knows and admits it is using and investing its own religious stories of Jesus and others to prove points. The points are good ones.
Presumably this is part of some religious institute's course. It's got slightly enough practical advice to give more than just inspirational and an advertisement for a spiritual/religious authority (for all the good and bad those are) but it's a pretty good inspirational introduction into a long hard journey of mindfulness and spiritual practice/mindset.
I appreciate that it knows and admits it is using and investing its own religious stories of Jesus and others to prove points. The points are good ones.
Presumably this is part of some religious institute's course. It's got slightly enough practical advice to give more than just inspirational and an advertisement for a spiritual/religious authority (for all the good and bad those are) but it's a pretty good inspirational introduction into a long hard journey of mindfulness and spiritual practice/mindset.
August 6, 2021
This is a review for the Aspects of Meditation Books 1-4: These books are pretty short, and if you're familiar with Osho's many, many other works, you're used to his style which I think in many ways is quite logical while also being quite deep. He was very wise even though he was very flawed (as are many brilliant individuals). His take on meditation is a bit different than I read before, and I'm sure it will work for lots of readers. I certainly didn't find all of it useful, but found some helpful ideas here.
I really appreciate the free ARCs for review!!
I really appreciate the free ARCs for review!!
November 9, 2025
A sort of preparation for meditation, which mainly involves relaxing the mind and body. One of the most interesting ideas is an exercise where you let your body do what it wants, supposedly releasing all 'disharmonies' and blockages that your conditioning has suppressed. I have to say, it's just not fair to ask for $20 for each of these - maybe only 80 pages or so. Find them in a library or online.
November 15, 2025
Osho guides us through the journey of meditation. The first step of the meditation, which is identifying the centre-soul, is realising that the body is an instrument and it should be taken care of. It is crucial to maintain harmony between the mind and the body.
May 21, 2023
Good guide.
Learned new aspects.
Of body, mind, anger, controlling the imbalances.
The navel being the core was absolutely new info. Kinda was blown away. But ya, made me think.
Learned new aspects.
Of body, mind, anger, controlling the imbalances.
The navel being the core was absolutely new info. Kinda was blown away. But ya, made me think.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 28, 2023
I read it and found it really helpful
October 9, 2024
Lots of good currently needed little tips here
August 14, 2024
Classic story telling which provides a clear point of objective and essential beginning for meditation… a good start for newbie’s
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews