A handful of dry leaves

Osho
Satyam Shivam Sundram
Truth Godliness Beauty

A handful of dry leaves









WHEN I HEAR YOU SAY THAT YOU ARE ONLY HERE FOR US, I FEEL SUCH AN URGENCY ARISING IN ME, SUCH A DEEP URGE TO MOVE DEEP INSIDE BEYOND ALL MY LITTLE PIDDLY TRIPS AND LIMITATIONS, AND YET INSIDE REALIZING SUCH A DEEP HELPLESSNESS. IS THERE ANY SECRET OR SHORT CUT, SO I DON’T MISS?

Gautam Buddha was passing through a forest. It was fall time and the whole forest was full of dry leaves and naked trees were standing against the evening sun, looking so beautiful. Ananda, his close disciple, asked him,”I wanted to ask it many times, but other people were present. Now fortunately a few disciples have gone ahead, a few are coming behind, and this is a moment I am alone with you and I can ask the question.” And his question was,”Have you told us everything that you know or are there some secrets that you are holding back?”

Gautam Buddha bent down, filled his hand with dry leaves, showed him those dry leaves in his hand and said, ”Whatever I have told you is just like these few dry leaves; what I have not told you is just like the whole forest full of dry leaves. But it is not because I am a miser, it is not because I wanted to hold it back from you; even to say these few leaves has been such a difficult task. I have wasted my whole life in conveying something about these few leaves, but these few leaves are enough as far as understanding all the leaves of the forest are concerned. If you can understand these few leaves, just a handful, you have understood all the leaves of the whole forest.”

It is a question of understanding. You do not have to know all the oceans to come to the conclusion that ocean water is salty. From anywhere, just a little taste of the ocean will give you the taste of all the oceans which you may never visit.

Whatever was necessary, whatever was essential I have been telling you. Whatever is left untold is left untold because there is no way to tell it. If you can understand what I have told you, you will come to a situation, a position, a consciousness, a perceptivity, where you can know all that which I have not been able to tell you.

But I am not holding anything back from you.
this is a moment that you should be contented that you have come so close. Your urgency should not turn into a discontent; otherwise you will be thrown back far away.

Your urgency should be transformed into a deep contentment and a rejoicing that you have been able to be a fellow traveler of one who is fully awakened, and you have been a fellow traveler of many who are also searching and seeking with tremendous intensity something which the whole world is unaware of. If this contentment settles in you, perhaps the quantum leap will happen on its own accord.

I am not talking about such contentment. Your contentment should be a song, a dance, a rejoicing, a love, a sharing. Your contentment should not be dead; it should be alive and dancing.