A Buddha says 'Be a light unto yourself.- OSHO

A Buddha says 'Be a light unto yourself.

The Buddha says, 'At the most I am a friend. I can indicate the way; I cannot force it on you. If you choose, you choose out of your freedom, and when you choose the responsibility is yours.' That has to be remembered!

With an authoritative person there is one good thing: you are not responsible, he is responsible.

That's why people like authoritative persons -- because you can throw all responsibility you have just to follow the orders. If he says go this way, you go that way; if something goes wrong, he is responsible.

That's why people want authorities -- somebody to tell them that this is to be done, this is not to be done. They want leaders.

They want leaders like Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin or Mao Tse Tung, who are very arrogantly authoritative, who think that they are infallible. That is one of the concepts of Christian popes -- that they are infallible.

But people want these people. Why? Because they can throw their responsibility; they can become just slaves. Then there is no problem for them, there is no anxiety; the leaders will look after everything.

People don't want to be free, they want to be slaves.

Whatsoever they say, deep down they want to be slaves, so they are searching for authorities. But when you fall into the hands of an authority, this dichotomy will arise.

So listen to me but there is no necessity to follow me. You will not be following me and the responsibility will be yours.

My whole effort here is to make you as responsible as possible.

I don't want to make you cripples, I don't want you to become dependent on me.

How can I want that? I love you! I love you so much I would like you to be as independent as possible, pure independence, because then only is a person beautiful; then he has a soul!

That's why I go on speaking: morning and evening I go on speaking. My whole effort is to make your mind more clear, more understanding, so that you can act on your own.

❤Osho❤