But even Buddha is trying to throw ashes into the eyes of the questioner. It must be out of compassion. He does not want you to think much about death; he wants you to think much about life. He wants you to go deeper into life, and death will disappear on its own accord. The more alive you are, the farther away death is. When you are totally alive, there is no death for you. Of course you will not be in a form, you will be a pure isness spread all over the existence. Not confined in a body of any species, just a white cloud floating in the open sky, unconfined to any form.

Have you ever watched a cloud moving in the sky? It has no form, because its form goes on changing. It is free of any bondage to remain in the same form. It is free as far as form is concerned.

It is freedom.

Maneesha’s first question is: “Osho, You are one who has come back to life from the great death. Yet we who have not died are not nearly so abundantly alive as you. Would you please talk about this?”

I have been teaching you nothing else except to be more alive, more loving, more singing, more dancing….

My approach is not the approach of Gautam Buddha. His approach is negative. On his path there are no dances, no songs. On his path you will not find any oasis. His path is perfectly right; it reaches, although it is hard.

But when there is a choice, why choose the hard? Why not choose the way of dancing and singing and being aware – and move through gardens where flowers blossom. There is no need to move through deserts where nothing grows.

It was a historical necessity for Gautam Buddha to move through the desert, but it is not for you. What was the historical necessity for him to move through the desert? For twenty-nine years he lived in beautiful gardens, in palaces, surrounded by beautiful women, song, dance…he was tired of it. It all created a kind of negativity because he knew that this is not life. I was not there to teach him that this in itself is not life, but if you just add a little awareness to it, it is life – more life. There is no need to go on a desert path.

I am teaching you to reach to the same goal of ultimate death, but I would rather call it ultimate life. That’s where my expression and Gautam Buddha’s expression differs.

I don’t think that his path of negativity has helped humanity very much; in fact, who wants to die? Have you ever asked yourself – do you want to die? An ultimate death, with no possibility of turning back? And for this ultimate death making all kinds of disciplines, rituals, following a thousand and one rules – you will certainly think that this is mad. If in the end you are only going to gain the ultimate death…it doesn’t seem right. And that’s why Buddhism has not been of as much help as it could have been.

But it was Buddha’s individual necessity. He had lived the life of immense luxury – he was tired of it. If this is life then he does not want to live. He moved in the opposite direction to find the truth. But you have not lived the life of Buddha, the luxury that was available to him. You need not be, and you cannot be negative in your approach. Your approach can only be positive.