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You're referring to “This. This. A Thousand Times This: The Very Essence of Zen,” Discourse #10, one of Osho’s celebrated Zen talks. Here's a breakdown:
🧘♂️ Context & Background
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Speaker & Venue: Osho delivered this talk on 5 June 1988 at the Gautam Buddha Auditorium in Pune, India, as part of his larger collection This. This. A Thousand Times This (Internet Archive).
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Theme of the Book: Through 15 discourses, Osho illuminates Zen’s direct, experiential essence. He guides listeners beyond the intellect into meditative awareness, often using silence, drumbeats, and playful “gibberish” to catalyze presence .
🔍 Discourse #10: “Nothing Is So Daring as Zen”
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Core Story: Osho recounts the tale of Isan, a monk who abandoned scholarly study and became a simple grave-keeper. One day, a stone strikes a bamboo, prompting a sudden awakening. In that instant he “forgets himself” and laughs—exemplifying a Zen breakthrough (Internet Archive).
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Zen Message:
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Spontaneous enlightenment arises from the simplest event—even the sound of bamboo.
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True Zen is fearless and radical: master texts are burned, intellectual pride is cast aside, and one returns to simplicity and total presence (Internet Archive).
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The power of this moment: when the mind stops and the self disappears, one is radiantly present—“this … this … a thousand times this.”
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🛠 Practice in This Talk
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Use of ritual and group practice: Osho incorporates drumbeats, vocal releases, and sustained silence to help participants drop the mind and experience “this” directly (the point of pure awareness) (Internet Archive).
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Emphasis on immediacy: Zen isn’t delayed or conditioned—it’s available right now, in the simplest sounds, sights, and bodily senses.
🎯 Why It's Essential in Zen
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It dismantles intellectualism: Zen is not a doctrine—you don't become enlightened by understanding, but by being in the moment.
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It brings Zen into the everyday: even mundane sounds can break through conditioning and reveal underlying presence.
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It points to the courage required: letting go of the need for control, for explanation, for status—and embracing raw reality.
📘 Where to Find It
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Book: This. This. A Thousand Times This: The Very Essence of Zen by Osho—an illustrated collection of these discourses (Amazon).
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Audio: Available as an audiobook narrated by Osho—includes this very discourse titled Nothing Is So Daring as Zen (Audible.com).
✨ In Summary
Discourse #10 is a powerful invitation: Zen is found in simplicity—in a stone hitting bamboo, in a laugh, in silence. It requires courage to drop the mind, awareness to be present, and a willingness to embrace the rawness of the moment.
Would you like to explore another discourse, or discuss how to incorporate this immediacy into your own meditation practice?
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