Meditation Weekend Retreats at Wajid

Taken from Osho's instructions given at the 3-day Nargol meditation camp in the late sixties - In Search of the Miraculous

Remember that you come to meditation with an empty stomach without taking any solid food. If you can do even without liquid, it would be better. But don't force yourself to be hungry; if you cannot fast, then take something like tea or milk.

No one should come without bathing; bathing is a must. And the clothes should be as loose as possible, should not be tight at all, not even at the waistline. Along with the rest of the body, the waistline too, should have loose fittings. Our clothes have done a lot of mischief at the level of our body mind. They have created any number of obstacles. When some energy begins to rise upward the clothes put obstacles in its way at various levels. And while sitting for meditation keep your whole body loose and relaxed.

Later on Osho deviced the maroon robe and for the evening meditation the white robe.

Another important thing to remember is that you should go into silence a half hour before meditation will begin. Some friends, who can, should observe silence for these three days that we are here. They should be in complete silence. And other friends should see to it that they are not disturbed in their silence. The greater the number of people going into silence, the better. And it would be good if one could be silent throughout the camp time. Nothing would be better. 

If you cannot go completely silent, then see that you speak as little as possible. Use as few words as possible, as you do in telegraphic messages. While sending messages by telegraph you do with the minimum number of words say ten or eight words because you have to pay for each word. Even in life you have to pay for every word that you say; words are really costly. Those who cannot go into complete silence should do with the minimum number of spoken words.

In the same way, use of the sense organs should be reduced to the minimum. For example, use your eyes less and less. When using them lower the sight to the earth or raise it upward and see the sky.  As far as men and women are concerned see as little of them as possible. Because most of our mental associations are formed of human faces, they immediately stir all kinds of thoughts in your mind. While walking, lower your gaze and keep it confined to a distance of four feet from you.  And keep your eyes only half open so they concentrate on the tip of your nose. That is enough. 

And help others that they see and hear as little as possible. Things like radios and transistors (nowadays mobiles) should be shut down; they should not be used during the camp. And don't allow newspapers to enter the campus. The more rest you let your senses have, the better. The more rest you have the more energy you conserve, which can be used in meditation; otherwise you will exhaust yourselves. 

Most of us are exhausted and spent, like spent cartridges. We spend ourselves completely in twenty four hours; we save nothing. What little we save during the night's sleep, we start squandering right after leaving the bed in the morning. Going through the newspapers and listening to the radio, the squandering begins. We have no idea of what conservation of energy means, how a lot of energy can be conserved. 

Meditation will need much energy. So if you don't conserve it, you will soon get tired and exhausted. Some people tell me that they tire after an hour's meditation. But it is not meditation that is responsible for it. The real reason is that you have squandered all your energy and that you live on the point of exhaustion. You have no idea that you spend energy when you just focus your eyes and see a thing. When you tune your ears to hear something you again spend energy. Even when you think, energy is being spent. And energy is also spent when you speak. Whatever we do, it costs energy. 

In the night, however, we save some energy, because other activities are suspended although a little energy is spent even in dreaming. But this is a different thing. A little energy is saved in the night however, and that is how we feel fresh in the morning. So for these three days you have to conserve energy so that it may be wholly used for meditation.

During discourse I communicate with you through words; during silent sitting I will communicate with you through silence. No one will come late. People coming late will be a kind of disturbance; they will be really harmful. 

Two things have to be kept in mind. One: that each one of you will be at a place from where I can be seen. Not that you have to look at me, but you must find a place for yourself from where I can be visible. Then you will close your eyes. If any of you prefer to keep your eyes open, you can do so. But it would be good if you keep your eyes closed. 

This time of silence will be just a waiting for the unknown. You don't know who will come, and yet he will come. You don't know what you will hear, and yet you will hear. You don't know what you will see, and yet you will see. You will sit silently for an hour, just awaiting the unknown guest whom you have never seen and heard. You may sit or lie down as you would like. 

But be receptive, become receptivity itself, for a whole hour. Be passive, but receptive to that which is, or is going to happen. Let it just happen. Be passive but alert and awaiting, wakefully awaiting. And through silence I will try to communicate to you what I have to say. You may, perhaps, understand through silence what you don't understand through words. 

Again at night I will answer any questions that you may have to ask. We are going to have nine sittings in the course of three days. And right from tomorrow morning you should begin exerting your all so that by the ninth, the last sitting, you will have really exerted your all. 

But what are you going to do in your spare hours? You have to be silent. A lot of trouble is removed just by avoiding conversations. 

Be alone, don't form groups of friends and families. It is just possible that a few people will form groups and fool around. Keep away from them and live alone. Know that for these three days each one of you is all alone here. Because if you are going to meet with Existence, you can only go alone; no one will walk with you. Each one of you should know that you are the lonely pilgrim and you have to go it alone. It is a journey of the alone to the alone. So be alone, alone to the greatest extent. 

And now remember this last instruction: 

Don't grumble, don't complain about anything. Stop complaining for three days. Don't grumble if the food is bad. Don't grouch if mosquitoes bite you at night. For three days let there be total acceptance of all that may happen. Mosquitoes will of course gain something, but you will gain more, much more. If the food is not right it will harm your body a little, but it will harm you a lot if you grumble about it. And there are reasons for it -- a complaining mind is never at peace. Our complaints are petty, but what we lose is too much. 

So don't grumble; for three days know it clearly that you will not grumble at all. What is, is. Howsoever it is, is. Accept it absolutely. Then these three days will be wonderful. If for these three days you stay above petty matters, if you accept everything as it is and delight in it, then you will cease to have any complaints for the rest of your life. Because then you will know how peaceful and joyous it is to live without grudging. For three days give up all petty matters.