A True Rebel
It is an old association, and a misunderstanding, that to be a nonconformist is to be a rebel. The nonconformist is a reactionary; he acts out of anger, rage, violence and ego. His action is not based in consciousness. Although he goes against the society, just to be against the society is not necessarily to be right. In fact most of the time to move from one extreme to another is always to move from one wrong to another wrong.
The rebel acts with a tremendous balance, and that is not possible without awareness, alertness, and immense compassion. It is not a reaction, it is an action -- not against the old, but for the new.
The rebel is creating the new world so that this misery and this suffering and this ugly society disappears and man can live more naturally, more beautifully, more lovingly, more peacefully, enjoying all the riches that existence makes available, all the gifts of life which are invaluable.
Freedom, love, silence, truth, enlightenment, the ultimate flowering of your being -- all are available to the true rebel. The hindrances just have to be removed. All the old structures were creating more and more hindrances and obstructions against your growth. If the rebel is against those obstructions, it is to enable the new man to live without fetters, to live without imprisonment, to live outside the concentration camps and to live a life as free as a bird on the wing ... as free as a rosebush dancing in the rain, in the sun; as free as a moon moving in the sky beyond the clouds in utter beauty, blissfulness and peace.
The rebel is a totally different kind of man from the nonconformist. Never forget it, because to be a nonconformist is very easy, but to be a rebel needs a tremendous transformation in your being.
--Osho