The Cypress
in the Courtyard
Darshan Diary
by Osho
individual talks with seekers   May - June 1976
Pune, India
oshobob  The Living Workshop                                
Osho Books—Darshan Diaries

    [ A sannyasin says: I use the I Ching and I was
    wondering if there is anything wrong with this
    sort of thing? ]

    You can continue to use it, mm? There is
    nothing wrong in it because nothing is right in it
    [laughter]. It is just a game.

    If you enjoy it, you can play. Right and wrong
    are relevant when something is real, but when
    something is a game it is right if you enjoy it. If
    you feel it helps, it is right. In itself it has no
    meaning; it is absurd.

    But it can suit you and you can find ways
    through it. That simply shows that you are not
    clear about your own ways and you need some
    help to find them out. The I Ching makes it
    easier. You can throw the responsibility on it.
    You can say that the I Ching has decided this,
    so now you have to do it. It may have been
    difficult for you to decide to do so or not and it
    would have created much conflict in you. Now
    the I Ching has decided and you trust it.

    Decision becomes easier. It makes your life a
    little smoother. It functions like a lubricating oil.
    But ultimately one has to come out of all games.
    It is your life -- why leave it for someone who
    has written a book five thousand years ago to
    decide for you? It is better to decide on your
    own. Even if you err and go astray, then too it is
    better to decide on your own.

    And even if you don't go astray and you have a
    more successful life through the I Ching, then
    too it is not good because you are throwing the
    responsibility. And through responsibility, one
    grows...

                                                      – Osho
                      The Cypress in the Courtyard, ch. 1
    The Cypress in the Courtyard　

    Chinese pinyin:
    Tingyuan li de baishu

    Chinese traditional:
    庭院裏的柏樹

    Chinese simplified:
    庭院里的柏树