Man standing on two feet created two things: it freed the hands and,
because he was standing erect, less blood was reaching the brain. That was
the greatest thing that happened, because in animals blood flows equally
throughout their body. Their tail and their head are on an equal level so
the blood is circulating equally. Because the blood is circulating equally,
they cannot grow the very delicate tissues in the brain which are needed for
thinking.

            Man's brain has ten billion small cells which will be killed if
he walks on all fours. That's why the yogis in India who have been standing
on their heads have never created anything. They became just idiots, for the
simple reason that if you stand on your head, so much blood is rushing
towards the head that it will destroy all your finer tissues.


            So if you look at the whole history of the yogis - yes, they
will be more quiet because there is no mind to create a disturbance. They
will look more calm and cool, obviously, because the disturber is killed.
They will not get so easily angry or become violent, for the simple reason
that it takes them a longer time to think about what is happening: Have I
been insulted? It is that the brain tissues are gone, and very few tissues
here and there are left.



            I am against the headstand. Yes, if you stand on your head for
not more than three seconds, that's okay. That will be helpful because three
seconds cannot destroy anything but simply gives a quick shower to the whole
brain. Then jump back on your feet. Not more than three seconds - that's my
calculation, because I have tried it on many people, but not on myself.



            In my university there was a Department of Yoga. Of course the
head of the department was an absolute dodo. I used to go there and he used
to ask me, "Why do you come here? You are not enrolled and I never see you
doing any exercises."


            I said, "I don't come here to do Yoga or to participate in
exercises."


            "Then," he said, "what do you come here for?"


            I said, "To me these are all guinea pigs."


            He said, "What do you mean? - these are Yoga students." Even
professors were learning Yoga there.


            I said, "Yes, to me these are all guinea pigs. And you are the
head of the department."


            I watched, and I found a few people ready to answer my questions
about what was happening. And I discovered this fact: that people can only
stand on their heads for three seconds; more than that is absolutely
harmful. But no Yoga scripture mentions three seconds. They say, "The longer
you stand, the better." Of course their purpose is different. The longer you
stand on your head, the less you will be disturbed in the world, naturally,
because for disturbance - even to be aware that there are so many problems -
intelligence is needed.


            For a yogi, all problems disappear; not because he has
transcended problems, but because he has destroyed the very mechanism
through which he was going to become aware of the problems.


            I am not for destroying the mind. I am for transcending the
mind.


            The mind transcended is always there: in fact, more clear, dean,
more strong, energetic. Because it is not used, it is full of energy.


            So whenever a person who has transcended the mind wants to use
the mind, naturally he is a genius. In whatsoever dimension he wants to use
his mind, he will be a genius. Geniuses will look like pygmies before him
because they have tired minds, and he has a mind reserved, rarely used, not
tired.


            The transcendental consciousness is able to see things, to know
things.


            It does not need the help of the mind.


            The mind is needed only when the transcendental consciousness
wants to convey something to you - a song, a message; only then is the mind
used.


            The yogi has fallen into a stupid trap.


            From Personality to Individuality



            For ancient ones there is a new thing in the world to do; its
name is Punk Yoga. Punk yoga is where you stand on someone else's head.


            The Great Pilgrimage: From Here to Here






           To read more on this subject, go to Library.

            You can read previous/future entries
            of this column in the form of an ebook,
            Osho Yoga: Yoga for the Twenty-First Century
            (see Barnes and Nobles website).
            And if you find it of interest,
            submit a "reader's review" to their website!
            Copyright