The Way of Disobedience
Obedience has a
simplicity; disobedience needs a little higher order of
intelligence. Any idiot can be obedient, in fact only idiots can be
obedient. The person of intelligence is bound to ask why? - "Why am
I supposed to do it?" And, "Unless I know the reasons and the
consequences of it, I am not going to be involved in it." Then he is
becoming responsible.
Responsibility is not a game. It is one of the most authentic ways
of living - dangerous too - but it does not mean disobedience for
disobedience's sake. That will be again idiotic.
A story about a Sufi mystic, Mulla Nasruddin...
From the
very beginning it was thought that he was upside down. His parents
were in trouble. If they would say, "Go to the right," he would go
to the left. Finally his old father thought that rather than
bothering with him, it is better, if they want him to go to the
left, to order him to go to the right - and he is bound to go to the
left.
One day they were crossing the river. On their donkey they had a big
bag of sugar, and the bag was leaning more towards right so there
was a danger that it may slip into the river; it had to remain
balanced on the donkey. But to tell to Nasruddin, "Move the bag
towards the left," will mean losing the sugar - he will move it
towards the right.
So he said to Nasruddin, "My son, your bag is slipping; move it
towards the right." And Nasruddin moved it towards the right.
The father said, "This is strange, for the first time you have been
obedient!"
Nasruddin said, "For the first time you have been cunning. I knew
you wanted this to be moved towards the left; I could see with my
eyes where it needs to be moved. Even in such a subtle way you
cannot make me obedient."
But just to go against obedience is not moving your intelligence
higher. You remain on the same plane. Obedient or disobedient, but
there is no change of intelligence.
To me disobedience is a great revolution.
It does not mean saying an absolute no in every situation. It simply
means deciding whether to do it or not, whether it is beneficial to
do it or not. It is taking the responsibility on yourself. It is not
a question of hating the person or hating to be told, because in
that hating you cannot act obediently, disobediently; you act very
unconsciously. You cannot act intelligently.
When you are told to do something, you are given an opportunity to
respond. Perhaps what is being told is right; then do it, and be
grateful to the person who told you at the right moment to do it.
Perhaps it is not right - then make it clear. Bring your reasons,
why it is not right; then help the person - what he is thinking is
going in a wrong way. But hate has no place.
If it is right, do it lovingly.
If it is not right, then even more love is needed, because you will
have to tell to the person, explain to the person that it is not
right.
The way of disobedience is not stagnant, just going against every
order and feeling anger and hate and revenge towards the person. The
way of disobedience is a way of great intelligence.
So it is not ultimately obedience or disobedience. Reduced to the
basic fact, it is simply a question of intelligence - behave
intelligently.