No need to worry...

A MONK RUSHED INTO TOKAI'S BEDROOM, SHOUTING: 'A FIRE, MASTER, A FIRE!' 'OH?' SAID TOKAI, SITTING UP. 'WHERE?' 'WHERE?' EXCLAIMED THE MONK. 'WHY, UNDER THE KITCHEN FLOOR -- GET UP AT ONCE.' 'THE KITCHEN, EH?' SAID THE MASTER DROWSILY. 'WELL, TELL YOU WHAT, WHEN IT REACHES THE PASSAGEWAY, COME BACK AND LET ME KNOW.'

When it has become part of the present, then let me know. It is still in the future -- don't bother me.

TOKAI WAS SNORING AGAIN IN NO TIME.

This is the quality of an enlightened person: so relaxed that although a fire is burning in the kitchen, the house is catching fire -- everybody is excited and running around, nobody knows what is going to happen, everything is a mess -- he can relax and go to sleep again. He was snoring in no time.

This non-tenseness must come out of, has to come out of, a deep trust that whatsoever happens is good. He is not worried -- even if he dies he is not worried; even if the fire comes and burns him he is not worried, because he is no more. The ego is not there; otherwise there will be fear, there will be worry, there will be a future, there will be planning, there will be a desire to escape, to save oneself. He is not worried; he simply falls back into sleep, relaxed.

There is no possibility of relaxation if you have a mind and an ego; the ego is the center of the mind. You will be tense, you will remain tense. How to relax? Is there any way to relax? There is no way unless understanding is there. If you understand the nature of the world, the nature of the very existence, then who are you to worry, and why be in a worried state continuously?

Nobody asked you about being born, nobody is going to ask you when the time comes for you to be taken away. Then why be worried? Birth happened to you; death will happen to you; who are you to come in between?

Things are happening. You feel hunger, you feel love, you feel anger -- everything happens to you, you are not a doer. Nature takes care. You eat and nature digests it; you need not bother about it, about how the stomach is functioning, how the food is going to become blood. If you become too tense about it you will have ulcers -- and king-size ulcers, not ordinary ones. No need to worry.

The whole is moving. The vast ocean, the infinite is moving. You are just a wave in it. Relax, and let things be.

Once you know how to let go, you have known all that is worth knowing. If you don't know how to let go, whatsoever you know is worthless, it is rubbish.

You are Responsible...

If you are miserable it is because of you, not because of a God or because of a Devil. If you are miserable, you are behaving with the energy in a wrong way. You will be happy and blissful if you move with the energy. If you move against it, it is you who are responsible. Remember, if there is no God then you are responsible for whatsoever happens. And if you are responsible then there is a possibility to transform oneself. If God is responsible, then how is one going to transform oneself? God seems to be a trick of the mind to throw responsibility on somebody else, because the mind is always throwing responsibility on somebody else. Whatsoever happens, you always throw responsibility on somebody else. If you are angry, then somebody has insulted you -- he has created anger. If you are sad, somebody is making you sad and unhappy. If you are frustrated, somebody is blocking your way. Always somebody else is responsible, never you. This is the attitude of the mind: to make somebody else responsible. Then you are freed of the responsibility. But... this is why you are miserable.

Responsibility is yours. And if you take it as yours, you can do something about it. If it is somebody else's, what can you do? If others create sadness, you will always remain sad because what can you do about it? Millions of others are all around: if others make you frustrated then nothing can be done. You will remain frustrated, then this is your destiny -- because how can you change others? If you are responsible, immediately you become a master. Now you can do something. You can change yourself, you can change your attitudes. You can look through different attitudes towards the world, and you can feel that if you feel miserable, somewhere you are a misfit in the total energy system. That's all that sin means: you are a misfit, not knowing how to move in this total energy system. And the energy system is neutral. If you follow it you will be happy. If you don't follow it, you will be miserable.

The disciple would like the Master to be responsible so that the Master becomes answerable, so that the disciple can claim. 'If I am not redeemed yet you are responsible!' This is a trick of the disciple to protect himself and to throw the responsibility on the Master's head. And then you can go on living the way you want to live, because what else can you do? You have accepted Jesus as your Master, now it is HIS responsibility.

This is not the way to become free. This is not the way towards NIRVANA or MOKSHA. This is not the way towards liberation. You are playing tricks even with your Master. And the disciple would like that the Master remain in a kind of contract -- even when he is dead he has to look after you. And what have you done? What have you done on YOUR part? You have not done anything. In fact, you are trying to do everything to hinder, to obstruct. You are clinging to the prison, and the responsibility is the Master's. Don't befool yourself.

Christians have done that. Millions of Christians are thinking in their minds that they can do all kinds of things, whatsoever they want, and finally Jesus is going to redeem them. On the Day of Judgement he will he standing there, and he will call to all his Christians 'These are my children. Come and stand behind me.' And all the Christians will be standing behind Christ, and will enter into heaven with flying flags. And all others will go into hell... obviously. Those who are not with Christ -- they will go to hell.

And that is the idea of everybody. The Mohammedan thinks the same: that only those who are Mohammedans will be saved -- the prophet will come and save them. These are stupid ideas. If you go on living the way you are living, nobody can save you -- no Jesus, no Mohammed.
You will have to change your quality of life, you will have to change your vision, and then you are saved. You can learn the art of changing your vision from Jesus, from Mohammed, from Krishna, from Buddha; from any source you can learn how to change your vision. But you will have to learn the art and you will have to practise the art. Nobody else is going to transform you -- nobody can do that. And that is beautiful that nobody can do it. If it were possible for somebody to transform your being, then you would have been a thing, not a person. Then you wouldn't have any soul.

That is the difference: A thing can be made. You can make furniture out of wood, you can make a statue out of stone, but you cannot make a soul out of a man. You cannot create enlightenment out of a man. If somebody from the outside can do it, that will be very very insulting; it will be below human dignity. And what kind of freedom will it be which has been created by somebody else? If that some-body else changes his mind, then he can create your slavery again. It won't be much of a freedom.

Freedom is freedom only when you have attained it!

YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE for your life, nobody else is responsible.

Master's final Test...

A master is on his dying bed, and soon he has to leave this earth and its vehicle, the body, and he would like to have a successor who can carry the flame that he has kindled, one who will be able to continue the work that he has started. He chooses a disciple, calls him near, and says to him, "You are the most capable of those around me and you are going to be my successor. You will have to continue this work. For seven generations a book has been passed from the master to the disciple who is going to be the successor. I received this book from my master and I give it to you. It is a very precious, a unique treasury. Seven enlightened persons have noted down their experiences of truth in it, and I have also added a few of my own understandings. Preserve it. Don't lose it; don't let it be lost."

The disciple said, "But I have achieved the experience without any book, and I am happy and blissful. I am not even a little bit dissatisfied, so why add this burden to me, why give an unnecessary responsibility to me? I have already experienced the truth and the book was not needed. It is unnecessary."

The master still insisted, "Much that is valuable is written in it. It is no ordinary book, it is the book, The Bible. So don't be sacrilegious, pay respect to this book, keep it and hand it over to your successor. By giving this book to you I certify this book is a representation that you are my successor."

The master gave the book to the disciple. It must have been a cold night because the fire was burning. In one hand the disciple received the book, and in the same instant he thrust it into the fire. The master, who had never been angry in his life, shouted, "What are you doing?"

And the disciple shouted, even louder than the master, "What are you saying?"

This is beautiful, the master must have died peacefully. This was the right man. The book had to be thrust into the fire or the disciple would have missed. If he had kept the book he would have missed, and then he would not have been the successor. You keep the book only when the thing has not happened to you. Who is bothered about words when the truth is with you? Who is bothered about a book when the real thing has happened within? Who is bothered about explanations when the experience is there? Explanations are precious because the experience is lacking; theories are significant because there is no knowledge. When you know, you can throw theories -- they are rubber bands. And when the notes are with you, you can throw the rubber band. Preserving a rubber band shows foolishness.

This book was not precious -- no book is precious -- and the master was playing a game, the same that his master must have played with him. Nobody knows what was written in the book, but I tell you nothing was written in it. It was empty. Had the disciple preserved it, when the master died he would have opened it, and then he would have cried. Nothing was written in the book. It was just a game, an old game. Every master tries to test the experience of a disciple, whether he knows. And if he knows, he will not be addicted to the book. Why? -- there is no point in it. That is why the disciple said, "What are you saying? To preserve the book when I have achieved without it, when I have already achieved? What are you saying?

The master provoked a situation, and in that situation the disciple proved his mettle. He proved that he knew. Even a slight inclination to preserve and he would have missed, he would not have been the successor. He didn't even look in the book to see what was there. He was not even curious, because only ignorance is curious. If you know, you know.

What is curiosity? What would have happened to you? The first thing the mind would have said was: At least look in it, see what is there. But that gesture would have been enough to prove that you had not achieved. Curiosity means ignorance. Wisdom is not curious. Curiosity asks questions; wisdom has no questions to ask.

What would you have done? The first thing that comes to the mind: At least see what is there. If my master insists that this precious book has to be preserved, handed down from one generation to another with seven enlightened persons having written in it, and with my own master having added his own understanding to it, at least have a look before you throw it in the fire.

But I tell you -- if he had looked, he would have been thrown out of the house with the book: Get out, and never come back again! He acted out of a deep understanding. How can the master who knows insist that the book is precious? There must be some game. The master had never been angry, never in his life, and suddenly he was angry and said, "What are you doing?" He created the whole situation.

In the anger the disciple may have yielded, may have said, "I have done something wrong, forgive me. This is how the mind functions. The mind might have come in and thought, "I have done something wrong. The master may not appoint me as successor now. If my master is so angry, it means I have done something wrong, and I may miss being the successor. I was going to be the chief, I was going to be the master of the monastery and millions would have followed me. Thousands would have been my disciples, and now I have done something wrong. A man who has never been angry is angry, shouting."

If you had been there, you would have touched the feet of the master and said, "Forgive me, but appoint me." But the disciple said, "And what are you saying?" If the master can play at anger the disciple can also play. but this can happen only when both know. He answered in the right coin. He answered correctly and the master was satisfied: This is the man. He became the successor, he was the successor.

Master needs a Volunteer to give Key...

Gautam Buddha's cousin-brother, Devadatta, was very jealous of Gautam Buddha and his enlightenment, and his thousands of disciples. He was a very intellectual man himself, and he became a disciple of Gautam Buddha in the hope that Gautam Buddha would choose him as his successor. First, he was Gautam Buddha's cousin-brother, very close; secondly, he was as intelligent as you can hope a person to be -- very erudite, very scholarly.

Time went on and Buddha started becoming old. Finally one night Devadatta told him, "It is time you should declare the name of your successor because you are getting old. Without a successor your disciples will break apart into small groups after your death."
Buddha said, "Do you have somebody in mind?"

Devadatta was in much difficulty. He had not thought that this was going to be the case, but he was very ambitious, so finally -- although he was feeling embarrassed -- he said, "Yes, I offer myself. I belong to the same family; our blood is the same and I have grasped everything that you have said. I can represent you perfectly well, and I don't think anybody else can be a competitor to me."

Buddha said, "The very idea is egoistic. I can only choose someone who has never thought about being chosen, who is so innocent that he could not even think of it. Certainly you cannot be my successor, so forget all about it."

Buddha came one morning, and as usual a crowd had gathered, many people were waiting to listen to him. But one thing was unusual -- he was carrying a flower in his hand. Never before had he carried anything in his hand. People thought that someone must have presented it to him. Buddha came, he sat under the tree. The crowd waited and waited and he would not speak. He wouldn't even look at them, he just went on looking at the flower. Minutes passed, then hours, and the people became very much restless.

It is said that Mahakashyap couldn't contain himself. He laughed loudly. Buddha called him, gave him the flower and said to the gathered crowd, "Whatsoever can be said through words I have said to you, and that which cannot be said through words I give to Mahakashyap. The key cannot be communicated verbally. I hand over the key to Mahakashyap."

This is what Zen masters call transference of the key without scripture -- beyond scripture, beyond words, beyond mind. He gave the flower to Mahakashyap, and nobody could understand what happened. Neither Mahakashyap nor Buddha ever commented upon it again. The whole chapter was closed. Since then, in China, in Tibet, in Thailand, in Burma, in Japan, in Ceylon -- everywhere Buddhists have been asking for these twenty-five centuries, "What was given to Mahakashyap? What was the key?"

Buddha, had many enlightened persons around, but the key can be given only to such a person who can become a master in his own right, because the key is to be delivered on and on. It has to be kept alive. It was not going to become a treasure for Mahakashyap; it was a great responsibility, it had to be given to somebody else.

There were other enlightened persons but the key couldn't be given to them; the key would be lost with them. Really, Buddha chose the right person, because the key is still alive. Mahakashyap did well. He could find another person who would transfer it to somebody else. The question is to find the right person. Just enlightened is not enough -- not all enlightened persons are masters -- a distinction has to be made.

Jainas have a beautiful distinction; they have two types of enlightened persons. One enlightened person is known as kaivali, one who has attained to absolute aloneness. He has become perfect but he cannot be a teacher, he cannot give this perfection to somebody else. He is not a master, he cannot guide; he himself has become an ultimate peak, but whatsoever he knows he cannot transmit in any way.

The other type of enlightened person is called tirthankara, one who becomes a vehicle for others. He is enlightened, but he is also a master of a certain art of communicating through words and communicating through silence. He can deliver the message. Others can be enlightened through him.