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Osho viewed self-love as fundamental to esteem and the ability to love others, stating it requires first knowing and accepting yourself through meditation, which he saw as a primary, not secondary, practice. He taught that self-love involves unconditional acceptance, respect, and gratitude for your unique existence, and it creates an overflowing energy that allows for authentic love and creativity to flourish and be shared with others.
Self-esteem and self-love
- Know and accept yourself: True self-esteem comes from unconditional self-acceptance, not from external validation. This means accepting your «imperfect self» rather than hiding behind a fake persona.
- Gratitude for uniqueness: Be grateful that existence created you and no one else, seeing yourself as a «blessing». This sense of unique, unrepeatable value is the foundation of self-respect.
- Self-condemnation vs. self-love: Osho critiqued self-condemnation, as taught by many moralistic systems, arguing that hating yourself makes you incapable of truly loving others and only allows for pretense.
- Self-love creates outward love: Loving yourself is a prerequisite for loving others. A person who loves themselves will respect others because they understand, «Just as I am, so are others,» and will have the capacity to share love freely.
The path to self-love through meditation
- Meditation is primary: Before you can love others, you must love yourself. But to love yourself, you must first know yourself. Osho argued that meditation is the primary path to self-knowledge and is therefore primary to love.
- Meditation dissolves the ego: Through meditation, you move beyond the ego and personality to realize your true self. This self is a silent, clear, peaceful center that is the source of true love.
- Spontaneous blossoming: When you are in the «climate» of meditation, love spontaneously blossoms from within you. It isn’t something you have to force or manufacture; it is a natural flowering of a silent and clear mind.
- Nourishing your inner garden: Loving yourself means creating a beautiful «garden around yourself» by nourishing and expressing your potential. This internal care makes you graceful and transforms your inner world,