The Wise Die Before Death

The Wise Die Before Death

“The wise man dies before death; he breaks all his connections, separating himself from all identities.  He knows he is neither the body nor the mind; both these will die.  He knows he is not the ego, which is also sure to die.  It is destructible; it is a small form that has appeared like a wave.  No matter how beautiful the wave may be, no matter how high it may rise and boast of touching the skies, the very next moment it begins to drop into oblivion.  In youth all waves boast of touching the skies.  Ask the same people in their old age!”

“In youth the wave is at its peak; therefore youth is foolish.  The West put its faith in youth and suffered, and that suffering is increasing by leaps and bounds.  The Orient never trusted youth or gave it a place of importance, for it would be like giving importance to foolishness.  Youth is the peak of the wave, the longest shadow.  In the length of the shadow you see all kinds of dreams.  What doesn’t each of us dream of becoming?  The East has venerated old age, for then the shadow contracts to almost nothing, and if old age does not awaken you and make you aware of the ego, then when will you awaken?  If you awaken in young age, your life is filled with glory.  If you do not awaken even in old age you are the greatest of fools.  In youth your not awakening can be forgiven; not so in old age.” – Osho “The True Name” pg. 474-475

Tupac and Bruce Lee represent the youth, still full of much ego.  Buddha, Lao-tzu, and Osho represent old age, an ego that they have mastered control over, they are full of wisdom. Buddha, Lao-tzu, and Osho are the sages, the Zen Masters.  Tupac and Bruce Lee were on the path towards becoming Masters, but yet to fully mature before their lives were taken away early.  If you have been inspired by Tupac or Bruce Lee, notice that their expression is incomplete.  When you follow the teachings of great sages, they will give you the full picture.  Yes during your youth you will be full of ego but as you age and become wise, the ego will start to calm down and your expression will be clear and pure.  During your youth, your vision is blurred, your expression is corrupted, there is spirituality mixed in with ego, and that energy can be very dangerous. 

It is like a half truth, Osho would say that a half truth is much more dangerous than a full lie.  Your charismatic strong ego mixed in with spirituality can be responsible for a lot of misguidance in this world.  2pac can inspire millions to smoke weed, drink alcohol, go to jail, use profanity, shoot at cops, and incite violent behavior through aggressive music.  Bruce Lee can inspire millions to forget all about the beauty of choreographed forms, tradition, culture, and respect to elders.  Bruce Lee can inspire millions to become irresponsible rebels who have yet to mature.  Bruce Lee can inspire millions to only care about what actually works in fighting rather than taking the time to deeply understand the meaning behind the non-violent peaceful and graceful expression of the Martial Arts expressed by many Martial Artists from China. 

The artistic expressions of 2pac and Bruce Lee are dangerous expressions.  Their expressions contain half-truths.  The real truth is expressed by Zen Masters, by great sages.  If you truly wish to head towards truth, you cannot stop at 2pac and Bruce Lee, you must go beyond them and study the real sages, such as Buddha, Lao-tzu, and Osho.