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Osho's Final Message: Kavya's Response "That Osho might have been teaching 'thinking for oneself' at the Ranch is probably a correct observation. a) meditate in any or all of the ways he suggested, especially at 'camps' (Kavya, Sept, 03)
His teaching on the Master's presence and the soul of Buddha both can be taken in much 'deeper' ways. There are levels of Buddhist teaching such as Dzogchen which deal with such ideas in great detail (and which I am learning now & which I mention so that you know my basic standpoint). Briefly one experiences through meditation and through logic - both are necessary and I guess logic can be translated as science which the Inner Circle supposes it is promoting - that Awareness is not what we think it is, nor is ordinary life and living, memory and action, etc. All this is exactly as Osho taught, many many times. His teaching is pure Dzogchen, sometimes called Mahamudra or Vajrayana, and although people argue about whether these threads are identical or merely similar - no matter at the moment.
The individual awareness is not as the individual usually naively supposes, separate from the rest. If you realise this, then Osho's words below take on a completely different meaning, but you have to realise it innerly, not just suppose it might be true intellectually. Consequently, there are no individual souls lasting thousands of years (let alone reincarnations with personal memories) and yet at the same time there are individuals and connections... all this is nonsense to the ordinary reader, however clever and learned, until through meditation ie careful intense and extensive meditation, at least glimpses of these possibilities arise.
Osho of course knew he would die and any man of 60 thinks about this personally much more than does a man of 50. I would read absolutely nothing in his words to do with knowing he was about to die, preparing for it earlier than 'nature' intended, or any such thing. He is trying in various ways to alert his very different sannyasins, with different cultures, intelligence and experience, to the fact that enlightenement is possible for everyone, that a master is a help but one does not give up when he dies or one leaves him, etc.
The Buddha and the bathtub goodbyes are pure wicked humour! Lighten up, you guys!
Whatever particular instructions Osho gave anyone, they are not now being followed. First, much of what they were has only been reported by those who assure us they were given special importance. Second, as so reported, they are now not being followed, such as the Inner Circle of 21 to be replaced individually as any dropped out, and suich replacement to be the subject of a unanimous vote.
If you want to follow Osho's teachings, you can do no better than
b) read and listen (above all, listen if you can) to his discourses
c) meditate at home, alone, in vipassana
d) contact other sannyasins, watch them carefully so that you are sure you are among real seekers
e) find a new Master - being very careful to whom you listen. If you think the new one isn't up to Osho or worse, is seriously lacking, don't be afraid, just move along, alone, until you find another.