Abgeschickt von sw.an.sargam am 26 Oktober, 2001 um 12:06:49
Autobiography of a Spiritually Incorrect Mystic
by Osho
(St. Martin's Press, 288 pages, $25.95)
OSHO HOLY
Consistency and clarity were never the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh's strong points. On his central Oregon commune in the '80s the controversial Indian guru preached a message of individual freedom while mandating a dress code, which included a large, pendant photo of himself; he also mocked American materialism while wearing almost a million dollars in jewelry and being chauffeured in one of his 99 custom-painted Rolls Royces. The Bhagwan's ideal, which he claimed to exemplify, was Zorba the Buddha--mixing Buddha's meditative nature with Zorba the Greek's innate sensuality. Facts, definitions, and linear thinking were antithetical to his pursuit of the ethereal and timeless "Truth." Fine. Whatever. So I knew not to expect a traditional narrative from the Bhagwan's newly published book, Autobiography of a Spiritually Incorrect Mystic. What I didn't anticipate was that it would be so mind-numbingly dull.
The Bhagwan, who changed his name to Osho shortly before his death in 1990, was an insufferably precocious child who didn't get any better with age. Raised by his grandparents in rural India, he fought with his teachers. Studying philosophy at university, he fought with professors and administrators. Establishing communes in Pune, India, and Rajneeshpuram (née Antelope), Ore., he took on all the small-minded powers that be. As presented in "Autobiography," however, none of this information offers even the remotest insight into Osho or his philosophy. Each chapter tells a different version of the same story--Osho tears down a false idol and opens the eyes of those around him--and each tells it in formulaic, stilted language. Osho, it seems, was ready to burst everyone's bubble but his own.
(Rachel Graham)