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The Book of Wisdom

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Based on the eleventhcentury text Seven Points of Mind Training, this book crystallizes the message of Tibetan Budhism, teaching readers how to train the mind, awaken the heart, and increase compassion for others.

436 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1984

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About the author

Osho

4,353 books6,778 followers
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.

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69 (12%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
Profile Image for Claudius Odermatt.
16 reviews1 follower
October 13, 2013
Woah, well this book really dives deeper into understanding meditation. I have been reading quite a a bit of Osho lately and have immensely enjoyed this book. Here Osho takes us deeper into his understanding of meditation which in turn develops our OWN understanding of meditation...from a meditative perspective ofcourse! The wisdom packed in this book...is practical, very practical, which is beauty in it itself. Whats covered ranges from HIS understanding of Atisha's sutras, followed by insightful Q&A between osho and his friends. And why is this beautiful? because ordinarily scriptures of such tend to be surrounded with years and decades worth of traditions, which makes it harder for one to understand who has not learnt the ways of the tradition - therefore osho sheds new light to pervade the old - wether new or old, all light comes from the same source.
And ofcourse as every piece of osho literature, his humour, be the joke upon yourself!
Really recommend this book to anyone interested in meditation, and those who already are acquainted with osho, will also in my opinion find this book insightful.
Profile Image for Yassmin.
Author 2 books109 followers
July 8, 2018
كتاب فلسفي قيم رغم انكار المتحدث ( أوشو) للفلسفة
ويدعو الي الايمان بقوة ، رغم انكار المتحدث ( أوشو) للايمان !
ويجذب النفس التفكر بآيات القرآن اكثر وأكثر ، رغم ان المتحدث( أوشو ) لا ديني يتهكم من كل الديانات ويميل الي البوذية والزرادشتية

اذا كنت متدين ، ولكن لديك نصيب من ضيق الافق ، فلا تقرأه لانك لن تستطيع استكمال قراءته
ان كنت تائه ولا تدري من اين تبدأ فلا تقرأه لانه سيزيدك تيهًا
اذا كنت تؤمن بما تؤمن به، وتتسم بسعة الافق ولديك قدرة علي استخلاص الفوائد من اي انسان بغض النظر عن اتجاهاته او ايدلوجياته .. فإني ادعوك الي قراءة هذا الكتاب
لانه سيفتح لدي عقلك افقًا جديدًا او سيؤكد علي بعض الفلسفات التي توصلت اليها بتأملاتك بالفعل.. كما حدث معي..
Profile Image for Miha.
1 review
February 28, 2015
This was a beautiful read or should I say listen. So much food for thought, so much insightful ideas to meditate upon. It has to be one of my favourite books/lectures of all time. Subsequently it is the first book that I simply had to write a review of.
His eccentric, yet at the same time easy to understand, perspective is both mind-boggling and somewhat easily applicable, if you are willing to make a change to your perception of life...be it out of need or just out of simple curiosity.
His lucid and humorous take on life will have you grinning like an idiot and I would really suggest getting your hands on the audio-book version. Because that way you can experience Osho at his fullest, with all the stillness his voice and words bring.

And I leave you with one of his many jokes:

''Three surgeons, old friends, met on holiday. On the beach, sitting under the sun, they started boasting. The first said, "I came across a man who had lost both of his legs in the war. I gave him artificial legs, and it has been a miracle. Now he has become one of the greatest runners in the world! There is every possibility that in the next coming Olympics he is going to win."
The other said, "That's nothing. I came across a woman who fell from a thirty-story building: her face was completely crushed. I did a great job of plastic surgery. Now just the other day I came to know through the newspapers that she has become the world beauty queen."
The third was a humble man. They both looked at him and asked, "What have you done lately? What's new?"
The man said, "Nothing much -- and moreover, I am not allowed to say anything about it."
Both his colleagues became more curious. They said, "But we are friends, we can keep your secret. You need not be worried, it will not leak out."
So he said, "Okay, if you say so, if you promise. A man was brought to me: he had lost his head in a car accident. I was at a loss to know what to do. I rushed into my garden just to think what to do, and suddenly I came across a cabbage. Finding nothing else, I transplanted the cabbage in place of the head. And do you know what? That man has become the prime minister of India."

(feel free to substitute ''the prime minister of India'' with your own favourite politician.) :P
Profile Image for Jessica.
2 reviews1 follower
Currently reading
August 21, 2011
amazing. very inspiring. still reading...
Profile Image for Ahsan Butt.
45 reviews8 followers
May 2, 2019
I have translated this book from English into Urdu for Nigarshat Publishers, Lahore, Pakistan. The title of Urdu translation is Kitab-e-Daanish کتابِ دانش.
Profile Image for Marcel Armstrong.
Author 5 books3 followers
October 9, 2019
More Than a Talk

In these 28 talks, given to an audience of sannyasins and seekers during his Poona One days, Osho does what he does best: sell enlightenment. With a combination of commentary on Atisha's Seven Points of Mind Training as well as Q&A sessions from his sannyasins, Osho not only brings Atisha's wisdom to life but also infuses it with his own tremendous clarity in classic Osho-fashion. 

Osho's vision is all-encompassing. He embraces all of the Masters and Mystics from the past in an effort to cast a wide net to pull his audience in. He is no different with Atisha. After illuminating sutras from Atisha, Osho then deconstructs questions from his listeners in a systematic logical fashion with a touch of poetry as well. This style is pure genius and mystic insight interwoven in one.

On a deeper level, Osho is performing spiritual alchemy on his listeners. He speaks so the listener can become quiet. For those who are sensitive enough, there is an energy-transmission taking place. Osho's words come from a deep place of silence within his own Being and this silence can be transformative. In truth, these talks are more of a Satsang (being with truth). Osho takes the listener on a pilgrimage - from mind to no-mind, from ego to Being. Not only are these talks engaging for the mind, but they keep the listener in tune for long enough to become attuned to the silence of the Master - the silence of Atisha, the silence of Osho, the same eternal silence of all those who have ever known. This is the true function of a Buddha.
Profile Image for Dina Toum-Benchekroun.
17 reviews
August 31, 2015
The Book of Wisdom is an intriguing book of philosophy and one can clearly agree that the title speaks for itself. It gives the audience a great insight on Tibetan Buddhism and is mainly targeted to people who want to find peace within themselves and transition from childhood to adulthood. The descriptions of the discipline that one should follow are exemplary and truly admirable. Therefore, this book was an eye opener and a spiritual classic that one won't hesitate to read once agian. In addition to its rich vocabulary, Osho does a wonderful job in giving the readers a visual image and ideas to meditate upon. Hence, this book deserves fives stars because it gives the lecturers a sense of wisdom in a fresh and modern manner.
Profile Image for Effie.
52 reviews15 followers
July 12, 2016
Empieza con lo negativo y encontrarás lo positivo. Cava un pozo. Al principio sólo encontrarás tierra, rocas, basura. Poco a poco llegas al agua. Al principio el agua está muy sucia, después se hace más y más pura. Exactamente de la misma manera, uno tiene que cavar un pozo en su propio ser. El principio tiene que ser negativo y el final es positivo por sí mismo. Tu trabajo tiene que ser con lo negativo; lo positivo es la recompensa. [...] Vosotros no sois nuevos, sois buscadores de la verdad antiguos. [...] Todo el mundo es un peregrino antiguo.
Profile Image for LakshmiSandeep.
51 reviews87 followers
February 24, 2017
Really amazing book of wisdom . Osho's replies to 'seekers' of various levels . Loved reading - enjoyed ,laughed and confused about the contradictions that he proposes . Journey towards 'No Mind' state .
Profile Image for Rachel Nancy.
30 reviews1 follower
October 5, 2019
So simple, so logical yet so easily forgotten... I listen to this when I need grounding.
1 review
December 10, 2016
After reading even a small portion of this masterpiece, you find yourself retracing the insights that have been laid down by Osho in such an enticingly simple manner, for their strikingly profound potency. In fact, the flow of the book is, at times, almost too simple; of course the intellect will always be hit by the disillusioning whirlwind of Osho's "non-philosophy", (which reminds me of Meno's likening of Socrates to the Torpedo Fish, which causes anyone that approaches it to go numb):

"For truly, both in soul and in mouth, I am numb and have nothing with which I can answer you. And yet thousands of times I have made a great many speeches about virtue, and before many people, and done very well, in my own opinion anyway; yet now I’m altogether unable to say what it is."

In one chapter there may be advice on why individualism is an ultimately corrupt philosophy, but in another he may turn the previously stated conception on its head: "Have you ever heard of a crowd becoming enlightened?" At some points the spiritualists may be deceived that Osho is giving them exactly what they want; ample reason to reject thought and/or "theory" as ultimately unnecessary abstraction from the realities of everyday life, until it is knocked down and replaced with the notion of a "complete man" who is both in tune with his head AND heart. Of course, these honest assessments of human nature are so reasonable that the reader may find themselves baffled at the text's precision in pinpointing portions of intellectualism which lead to immense suffering and unconscious arrogance, as well as its flexibility in regards to questions such as: "What takes precedence in assessing the morality of any action: Intention or Consequence?" The answer is obviously neither, because both subjective and objective reality are interconnected (the true illusion is the separation of subject from experience).

However appealing this may be to those of us inclined towards the actual progress of Religion and Spirituality, I have found from personal experience that Osho's apparent refusal to take a solid stance on anything is not for everyone. Nevertheless, the presentation of Atisha's seven points of mind training seamlessly tie into the array of topics discussed in the book, and the amount to meditate over is worthy of an entire lifetime.

If there is a definitive Osho book which could be presented as a basic summation of his philosophical and spiritual views (again, we can call them "non-views") it would be this one.

Profile Image for Dr. House.
188 reviews155 followers
September 2, 2016
كتاب رائع ، من أفضل اقتباسته :
* الحقيقة ليست شيئا عليك ان تخلقه ، هي موجودة هنا و الآن حولك ، و هي محيطة بك كما المحيط بالاسماك ، ربما لا تعي الاسماك ذلك لكنها إن اصبحت مدركة للمحيط ستستنير

* العقل مجرد وهم ،هو قدرة على الحلم فق�� ، أحلام من الماضي و من أجل المستقبل

* أنا لا أجيب من أجل الاجابة ، بل من أجل تدمير السؤال

* النساء اكثر حسما ، ان تصرفاتهن تنبع من القلب ، ان الجانب الشعوري منهن لا يزال حيا ، لحسن الحظ انهن غ��ر حضاريات كثيرا حتى الآن ، لازلن بريئات قليلا و لديهن نزعة باتجاه الحدس و ليس باتجاه النباهة و الذكاء ، لازلن شجاعات بما بكفي. ليتصرفن بحسم و بداهة و بدون منطق

* لقد خلقك الله لانه يحبك

* الفراغ هو القانون المطلق ، كل شيئ فارغ

لا تجعل هذا الكتاب أول تجربة لك مع أوشو
Profile Image for ferl.
27 reviews17 followers
October 17, 2016
on my top 3 shelves of best book ive read. Not for is literary prowess (these word come from osho lectures) and are an easy read , but for its practicality and clarity. For anyone who want to use the mind at its fullest without being identified with it. Osho is one of the most intelligent person ive come across. He go back in time to pick the original sanskrit meaning of atisha 7 point of mind training and trow it back in our future with perfect clarity. For those who want to know. Follow the exercises and use your mind as a sword!
10 reviews1 follower
October 19, 2016
الاستنارة ، الحكمة ، التأمل كلها تقرأها مرة واحدة في هذا الكتاب
لكن
وأنت تقرأ
اترك كل تعصبك
اقرأ وأنت مسترخ
اقرأ كإنسان كمسلم ومؤمن بالله والقرءان
اقرأ بعمق وإلا سيغضبك الكتاب لن تجد ما يفيدك إذا غضبت
اترك ما لا تؤمن به
وقوي حكمتك بما يفيد
...
يستحق الكتاب ثلاث نجمات ؛ اثنتان للأشياء التي أدهشتني وأثارتني
وواحدة لأني خضت رحلة تأملية ما بين موافقة و اعتراض
وكلما تعارضه هنا وتنتقده سيزيدك حكمة أيضا !
الحكمة حتى فيما لا تؤمن به
.
أظن أن أوشو أعجبني رغم تناقضته ونبذه للعقل والإيمان كما يقول
لكن أظن أن أوشو يؤمن ويستخدم عقله
صحيح ستجد تناقضا لاتهتم
اقرأه فقط
كتاب مزهر جدا
Profile Image for Bhakta Kishor.
286 reviews46 followers
April 10, 2022
Authentic morality is a by-product of consciousness and the art of consciousness is religion. There is no Hindu religion, there is no Christian religion, there is no Mohammedan religion; there is only one religion, and that is the religion of consciousness – becoming so aware, so enlightened and awakened, that you have eyes to see clearly and can respond according to that clarity. A man of consciousness cannot be deceived by words. Mohammedans say that if you die in a religious war… how can there be a religious war? War is basically irreligious.
Profile Image for safi kurdia.
17 reviews1 follower
August 18, 2023
توضيح قبل بدأ المراجعة:

أثرت أن أقسم مراجعتي النهائية للكتاب الى قسمين وذلك بسبب طول المراجعة التي أردتها ان تكون شاملة لمعظم الأفكار في هذا الكتاب، حيث أن القسم الثاني خصصته لعرض أراء أوشو عن رجال الدين وذلك لكثرتها وأهميتها وتركيز أوشو عليها في أغلب كلامه.

#القسم الأول
كتاب الحكمة يمكن اعتباره الكتاب المقدس للدين الذي يؤسسه أوشو، ففيه كل التعاليم التي يود أن ينشرها للناس.
يريد أوشو في هذا الكتاب ان يوصل أتباعه إلى سر الألوهة الحقيقي ولذلك يبدأ برحلة طويلة لمناقشة أفكار وفلسفات مختلفة عن الحب والجنس والمال والدين وغيرها من الأمور التي يقول أنها بحاجة للتصحيح قبل أن يصل الشخص إلى مرحلة "السماداهي" أو "الألوهة" والتي عندها ستنتهي معاناته ويتخلص من مشاعره وأفكاره السيئة.
من يقرأ لأوشو يجد تأثره بشكل كبير بالفلسفة البوذية في الحياة ولكنه مع ذلك يختلف معها ببعض الأفكار.
سنجد في هذا الكتاب العديد من الأراء المثيرة والمهمة والعديد من الجدليات والتناقضات وهذا ما سنحاول توضيحه بالتفصيل في هذه المراجعة.
Profile Image for J. Maximilian Jarrett II.
134 reviews
October 6, 2017
The heart of the Tibetan tradition cuts straight to the Heart of the Matter. Osho‘s insights are once again provocative, comprehensive (with references to a range of spiritual teachers and traditions including Sufi and Christian mystics and Zen master) and clear. Highly recommended for anyone wiling to approach the teaching of this controversial “spiritual contrarian” with an open and receptive heart and mind.When the student is ready, the teacher will appear”. Enough for today ;).
Profile Image for Srikanth.
235 reviews
July 26, 2019
Osho's method of teaching is not to straightaway clarify our doubts, but to create more confusion so that out of the confusion we organically develop a sense of clarity. The essence of his teachings is to be a light unto oneself and also to develop wisdom rather than just accumulating knowledge. This book is interspersed with hilarious jokes that convey the subtle messages in a humorous way.
Profile Image for Deepak Imandi.
190 reviews7 followers
September 15, 2015
Remarkable book. Though, it starts with Atisha's seven point mind training, it gives small insights into the realities of life and about some ways to improve our experience on Earth. I finished it in 4 days, never losing interest anywhere in the book.
Profile Image for Ala.
414 reviews10 followers
August 15, 2025
Awkward mind provoking philosophies, talks, and answers to his students. Comes at times as hypocrisy as he sometimes encourages others to transcend from other beings, while he can't stop mocking politicians and other competitors
2 reviews
March 29, 2007
He was a swindler and his followers are kind of nuts from what I hear, but he has some interesting perspectives...
Profile Image for Rahul Karn.
Author 12 books1 follower
August 6, 2016
Wonderful book! Talks about many deep aspects of human psychology.
Profile Image for Pablo.
2 reviews101 followers
October 23, 2021
This was my second reading. I love this book and keep revisiting it.
Profile Image for Josie.
25 reviews
October 3, 2022
It’s in the title. THE BOOK OF WISDOM. If your just starting to get into OSHO’s philosophies, you should start with this book! 10/10 just beautiful
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews

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