Ten Zen paintings that tell the famous story of a farmer in search of his lost bull are an allegory for everyone’s search for enlightenment. Originally Taoist, The Ten Bulls were repainted by the 12th century Chinese Zen master, Kakuan, and first appeared in the West in American author, Paul Reps’ book, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones. These discourses are Osho’s commentaries on the paintings. Osho retells these deceptively simple stories with great charm and wisdom while exploring the deeper layers of meaning behind each picture. In many traditions, the tenth picture showing the farmer returning to the marketplace with a bottle of wine has been purposely omitted, whereas for Osho, this is a beautiful symbol of how we can truly celebrate life in the world once we are filled with inner richness and truth. This is his vision of the new man, whom he calls Zorba the Buddha, whose feet are firmly on the ground, yet whose hands can touch the stars.

So the first thing:
I am for life, all for life, and all for enjoyment. I am not for somber seriousness, I am not for sadness. I am against all those religions which go on teaching people to be serious. God is not serious; otherwise flowers won't exist. God is not serious; otherwise birds won't be able to sing. God is tremendously in fun -- that's why we say in India that the creation is not a creation in fact but a play, a leela.

....

Loving life, one day you love God. Living life, one day you live God.
So don't be halfhearted. Be totally in life. And I am not here to distract you from your life. It has already been done. The whole of humanity is suffering because of that. Religions have proved a calamity because they tried to make goals opposite to life, diametrically opposite to life.

Chapter Titles
Chapter 1: The Search for the Bull; Discovering the Footprints
Chapter 2: Dropping the Why
Chapter 3: Discourse in Silence
Chapter 4: Perceiving the Bull; Catching the Bull
Chapter 5: Taming the Bull;Riding the Bull Home
Chapter 6: Come In!
Chapter 7: The Bull Transcended; Both the Bull and Self Transcended
Chapter 8: Life Is the Goal
Chapter 9: Reaching the Source; In The World

"Kakuan first tried the unconscious language because that is the deepest: he painted these ten bulls. But he felt dissatisfied. Then he wrote ten poems as a supplement, as an appendix. Poetry is mid-way between the unconscious and the conscious: a bridge, a misty land where things are not absolutely in the dark and are not absolutely in the light - just somewhere in the middle. That’s why where prose fails, poetry can indicate. Prose is too superficial; poetry goes deeper. Poetry is more indirect but more meaningful, richer.

But still Kakuan felt dissatisfied, so he wrote prose commentaries.

First he wrote the language of the unconscious, the language of painters, sculptors, dreamers; then he wrote the language of the poets, the bridge between the unconscious and the conscious – of all art. And then he wrote the language of logic, reason, Aristotle – the conscious. That’s why I say such an experiment is unique; nobody else has done that. Buddha talked in prose. Meera sang in poetry. Unknown painters and sculptors have done many things – Ajanta, Ellora, the Taj Mahal. But a single person has not done all three things together.