It is not unwelcoming. He is saying, “If there is no object in coming, if there is nothing to say, nothing to listen to, I am not interested in playing. I have left those childhood toys far behind.”

His closing the door is simply mystifying. He is not a man without compassion and he is not a man who has no respect for others – but he has to close the door. In his clarity perhaps Chinso has had some glimpses, but he is still not fully awakened. This closing of the door may help.

Setcho says:

Perfect the circle, pure the sound,
Bright and abundant the encircling jade,
Loaded on horses and mules,
Loaded on board the iron boats,
Given to those who know
The peace and freedom of land and sea.

Setcho is Setcho. Where he has no business, there too he tries to make some commentary….

Now his whole comment is absurd. Just a pure silence would have been enough, but he has taken it upon himself – being a schoolmaster – that he has to explain everything. He himself does not understand and he is trying to explain it to others. This is not only Setcho’s situation, this is the situation of millions of people who know nothing, but who go on giving advice to everybody.

It is said that advice is the only thing that is given freely and nobody takes it. A man of real wisdom does not open his mouth unless invited, but the ignorant enjoys advising very much; his understanding is that the more he gives advice the more people will think he is a man of wisdom. But you can fool only those who are already foolish….

Setcho goes on saying:

He put down the tackle to fish the turtle.
Setcho comments here:
“Monks throughout the world can’t jump out of it.”

In his whole commentary only this statement is significant. How can you jump out of a circle drawn in the air? But in fact, there is no need to jump out of it. The need is to jump in – that is my reply to Setcho.

Maneesha, you have asked a few questions….

First: “Osho, I know you will have me hit or pinched if I have got it wrong, but it seems to me that in the same situation as Shifuku you might have drawn a spiral instead.”