If an American jail cannot take my bliss away from me, then no hell can take it from me - Osho

When Osho was arrested in America

" In my Twelve Days in American Jails, one day in an English jail, one day in a Greek jail, I loved it. I loved it for the simple reason that it was not affecting me at all. I was as blissful as ever; that gave me a tremendous confirmation that my bliss cannot be taken away from me.

If an American jail cannot take it away from me, then no hell can take it from me — that’s what I said to the Ameri

can jailer in whose jail I was for the first three days. He was surprised that I was not worried; in fact I had never had such a time — twenty-four hours of meditation, no disturbance.

I said, “Why should I be disturbed? Just because chains are on my hands, chains are on my legs, chains are on my waist — why should I be disturbed? My body is a jail, on that jail you have put a few more ornaments. I am perfectly happy.” My bliss was absolutely confirmed, because an American jail is the most refined way of torturing people.

I said, “You have freed me from the idea that if I fall into hell there will be a problem. If I can manage an American jail there is no reason why I cannot manage an old, out-of-date bullock cart type hell where no improvement has happened since the beginning. I would love to visit it.”

I was perfectly happy, but I was certainly not happy about millions of people who are in jail and suffering for no reason except that they are black. Now the difference between a black man and a white man is so small. In the old days the difference used to be near about four anas. Now prices have gone high — it may be a difference of one rupee. And remember, that difference is in favor of the black man. The black man has a pigment of color which makes him worth one rupee more than the white man. That black pigment of color protects him from the sun, the white man is unprotected. God seems to be more concerned to protect the black man than the white. The white man’s body is weaker, the black man’s body is stronger.

It was a surprise to me, whenever I entered a jail in America there were black people behind bars who had seen me on the television, because in every jail there are televisions. And they were showing me the two fingers of victory. They were talking in their own languages which I don’t understand, but this language I can understand. They were saying,”Your victory is our victory and we are going to be victorious,” because all the sins are on the white man. He has tortured the whole human earth for three hundred years, sucked its blood, has been a parasite. He should understand it, confess his guilt, be humble and help these people whom he has made poor.

These black people in American jails filled me with tears; those tears were for their freedom. We have done enough harm to them, it is time they should be compensated. But as far as I am concerned I was absolutely blissful; just as I am blissful here, I was blissful there. Space makes no difference in your state of being, nor does time make any difference, nor life, nor death. "