Joy: The Happiness That Comes from Within

Osho is a goofball - and I say that with love! You can't read this book without smiling, even when he's kicking you around for acting the fool. Osho talks a lot about why people choose to be miserable. That's a good place to begin if you're looking for joy. Of course every minute you're looking for joy, Osho is yelling at you to STOP LOOKING! Osho has no trouble taking on the Constitution on one page and Jesus on the next - ie there are no keep-off-the-grass issues here! The writing challenges us to drop our stuff - to get out of the box - to claim the joy that is our birthright. And he does it in a playful way! Do not give this book to that person in your life who you think needs a little joy. Save it for someone who will really appreciate it - someone who doesn't take themself too seriously!

He gives wisdom (not advice) to questions like "is this all there is? life seems meaningless" and "why do i feel so much pain in letting go of the things that are causing me misery?" well! osho is the first to give me a peace of mind on these matters. if you just don't see the point to anything, maybe this book is for you.

This is an outstanding guidance for people who want to liberate themselves from the complication of their daily living and make a change towards obtaining a real joy and happiness in life. This book opens new insight about life. It uncovers the illusions of the world that have been created by the society. Under the influence of the society, we consider materials as the value for reaching our joy or happiness goal. Because we used to look outside, we always feel that others create our misery - or the misery is from outside. Osho, in contrast, shows the fact that the misery, the joy and the happiness is not come from the materials or from others - but from within oneself. To eridicate misery and to gain joy and happiness, one needs to build one's conciousnesss, which can be obtained through the practice of meditation.

In "Joy--The Happiness that Comes From Within" Osho proves himself once again to fit squarely in the tradition of cultural physicians past and present (Nietzsche, Colin Wilson, Erich Fromm, Laing) and clearly states that society as it exists is little more than a mass neurosis of fear, culturally glorified narcissism, and above all, fear of openness. Perhaps the only problem with his work is that it is being marketed in a culture directly inimical to it's message--as a Westerner, I have trouble inculcating his on-the-mark attacks simply because I am a Westerner. Osho has written the same book countless times, and his message never becomes less relevant for the repetition. He is a poet, philosopher and sage all at the same time, and his constant exhortation to 'drop the ego' could be characterized as the central message in his work. The only thing I take issue with in his work is his persistent dismissal of culture's irrevocable (and sometimes irreversible) influence on the individual. If one could simply 'drop out' of this mass neurosis a lot more intelligent people would have done it by now. Nonetheless, his work is invaluable and I am certain that one day Osho's name will be up there with the greats of both literature, eastern thought and creativity.