Ordinary Mind

Free Man

Germany, a country of scientists, philosophers, professors, poets, giant intellectuals, fell victim to a very ordinary, mediocre man. And that man ruled over it. This must help everybody to understand the foolishness of intellect. Intellect is superficial. One should grow in being otherwise one is always prone, one always tends to become a victim of such people. They always happen.

Mind is conditioned from the outside; it can be ruled from the outside. You have to grow into no-mind, only then can you not be ruled from the outside. Only a man of no-mind is a free man, independent. He is neither German, nor Indian, nor English, nor American – he is simply free. American, Indian, German…these are the names of your prisons, these are not your freedom skies. These are not skies to fly in, these are the prisons to live in.

A free man belongs to himself and nobody else. A free man is simply an energy with no name, no form, no race, no nation. The days of nations and races are past, the days of the individual are coming. In a better world there will be no Germans, no Indians, no Hindus, no Christians – there will be pure individuals, perfectly free, living their life in their own way, not disturbing anybody’s life and not allowing anybody to disturb their lives.

Otherwise, the mind is childish and yet cunning. It can fall victim to any Adolf Hitler, to any chauvinist, to any mad person who is bold enough…and people are bold, they never hesitate. That was the appeal of Adolf Hitler. He was so bold that he was absolutely bold. He would never hesitate, he was absolutely certain. And people who are uncertain in their being immediately find a deep appeal in such a person. This is a man who is so certain about truth that he must have attained to truth. They start falling in line with him.

Because of your uncertainty you become a victim to somebody who is mad. But mad people are always certain, only very, very alert and aware people hesitate. Their hesitation shows their awareness and the complexity of life. And the mind is very cunning. It can rationalise everything.

I have heard. Berger, hiding with his wife from the Nazis in a secluded Berlin attic, decided to get a breath of fresh air. While out walking he came face to face with Adolf Hitler. The German leader pulled out a gun and pointed to a pile of horse manure in the street. ‘All right,.Jew!’ he shouted. ‘Eat that or I’ll kill you!’ Trembling, Berger did as he was ordered.

Hitler began laughing so hard he dropped the weapon. Berger picked it up and said, ‘Now, you eat the manure or I’ll shoot!’ The Fuhrer got down on his hands and knees and began eating.

While he was occupied, Berger sneaked away, ran through an alley, climbed over a fence, and dashed up the stairs to the attic. He slammed the door shut, bolted and locked it securely. ‘Hilda! Hilda!’ he exclaimed to his wife. ‘Guess who I had lunch with today!’

Mind goes on rationalising. Even if you eat horse manure it can make it a lunch – and ‘Hilda, Hilda, guess who I had lunch with today’! Beware of the traps of the mind. And the more you become alert, the more you will be able to live in the moment, in the act, totally. Then there is no motivation: you do it because you delight in it.

And that’s why I call it the hardest work. To get out of the mind is the hardest work. But it is not effort, it is awareness; it is not effort, it is intense alertness.