Osho – Whenever you listen to the voice of the ego, sooner or later there will be trouble. You will fall into the trap of misery. This you have to watch: ego always leads into misery, always, unconditionally; always, categorically, absolutely. And whenever you listen to nature, it leads you to a well-being, a contentment, a silence, a bliss. So this should be the criterion. You will have to make many errors; there is no other way. You have to watch your own choice, from where the voice is coming, and then you have to see what happens — because the fruit is the criterion.
When you do something, watch, be alert. And if it leads to misery, then you know well that it was ego. Then the next time, be alert, don’t listen to that voice. If it is nature, it will lead you towards a blissful state of mind. Nature is always beautiful, ego always ugly. There is no other way but trial and error. I cannot give you a criterion so that you can judge every thing, no. Iif e is subtle and complex and all criteria fall short. You will have to make your own efforts to judge. So whenever you do something, listen to the voice from within. Make a note of it, of where it leads. If it leads to misery, it was certainly from the ego.
If your love leads to misery, it was from the ego. If your love leads to a beautiful benediction, a blessedness, it was from nature. If your friendship, even your meditation, leads you to misery, it was from the ego. If it were from nature everything would fit in, everything would become harmonious. Nature is wonderful, nature is beautiful, but you have to work it out.
Always make a note of what you are doing and where it leads. By and by, you will become aware of that which is ego and that which is nature; which is real and which is false. It will take time and alertness, observation. And don’t deceive yourself — because only ego leads to misery, nothing else.
Don’t throw the responsibility on the other; the other is irrelevant. Your ego leads to misery, nobody else leads you into misery. Ego is the gate of hell, and the natural, the authentic, the real that comes from your center, is the door to heaven. You will have to find it and work it out. If you work it out diligently, soon you will be absolutely certain of what is from nature and what is from the ego. Then don’t follow the ego. In fact, then you will by yourself not be following the ego. There will be no need to make an effort; you will be simply following the natural. The natural is Divine. And in nature the supernature is hidden. If you follow the natural, by and by, by and by, slowly and slowly, without even making any noise, suddenly one day the natural will disappear and the supernatural will appear. Nature leads to God, because God is hidden in nature.
First, be natural. Then you will be flowing in the river of the natural. And one day the river will fall into the ocean of the supernatural.
source – osho book “yoga the alpha and the omega part4”