The Art of Staying in Balance

The most difficult thing, the almost impossible thing for the mind, is to remain in the middle, to remain balanced. And to move from one thing to its opposite is the easiest. To move from one polarity to another is the nature of the mind. [...]

It is difficult for the mind to come to the right diet, difficult for the mind to stay in the middle. It is just like a clock's pendulum. The pendulum goes to the right, then it moves to the left, then again to the right, and again to the left; the clock's working depends on this movement.

If the pendulum stays in the middle, the clock stops. And when the pendulum moves to the right, you think it is only going to the right, but at the same time it is gathering momentum to go to the left. The more it moves to the right, the more energy it gathers to move to the left, and vice versa.

Thinking means momentum. The mind starts arranging for the opposite. When you love a person you are gathering momentum to hate him. That's why only friends can become enemies. You cannot suddenly become an enemy unless you have first become a friend. [...]

Logic is superficial, life goes deeper, and in life all opposites are joined together, they exist together. Remember this, because then meditation becomes balancing.

Buddha taught eight disciplines, and with each discipline he used the word right. He said: Right effort, because it is very easy to move from action to inaction, from waking to sleep, but to remain in the middle is difficult.

When you are standing in the middle you are not gathering any momentum. And this is the beauty of it -- a man who is not gathering any momentum to move anywhere, can be at ease with himself, can be at home.

--Osho