Don’t fight with the mind

(This tekst will deviate a little from Osho’s original English words, as I had first translated it in Dutch, and could not find the original text any more, so I translated it back in English)

Osho: “And this is something that has to be done all your life. Don’t fight with anything, and try not to escape anything. Let things take their own course. You simply close your eyes and move to the centre, where no sunray has ever penetrated. (…) So what has to be done? One: don't listen to the mind. The mind is a good tool for the outer world, but it is definitely a barrier to the inner world. Logic is good for other people; it is not good for yourself. Doing things requires logic and doubt. Science relies on doubt, and religion relies on faith, trust. Just sit, with a deep confidence that your inner nature will take over. It always takes over. You just have to wait, only patience is needed. And whatever your mind says, simply don't listen to it.

Listen to the mind for as to the outside world is concerned; don't listen to the mind concerning your inner world - simply put it aside. And there is no need to fight with it because if you fight with it, it will affect you. You simply put it aside. That's what trust is. Trust is not a fight with the mind – if you fight with it, the enemy will impress you. And remember, even friends don't have such an impact as enemies do. If you are constantly fighting with someone, you will be influenced by them because you will have to use the same techniques to fight them. Eventually all enemies become equal to each other. It is very difficult to be distant and detached from the enemy; the enemy influences you.

And those who begin to fight with the mind become great philosophers. They will talk about anti-mind, but all their talk is about the mind. They will say “Be against the mind”, but whatever they say comes from the mind, even their hostility to it. You must then stick to your hostility, and gradually the enemies rule, and they become the same as the enemy.

Always remember: don't fight with the mind. (…) If you want to convince the mind, you have to use arguments, and that's the whole point. If you have to convince the mind, you have to use words, and that's the whole problem. Simply slide it aside. This sliding aside is not against the mind, it is beyond the mind. It's just sliding it aside. Just like when you go out you use your shoes and when you come in you put them aside – there is no fight, nothing. You don't say to the shoes, "Now I'm going in, and you're not needed, so I'll put you aside." You simply put them aside; they are not necessary.

Just like this: easy is the right thing; there is no fight. Easy is the right thing - there is no fight and no conflict. You simply put the mind aside, move into the inner shadow and just sit. (…) And you can only become what you already are. So I tell you, you are like God, you are Gods. Don't go for less than that.”

Osho, Intimacy, Trusting Oneself and the Other