One friend of Mulla Nasrudin was amazed to see that the Mulla had hitched his prize-winning possession, his prize-winning bull, to the plough, and was guiding it across his fields.
He said, "Mulla, have you gone crazy? That bull is worth twenty-five thousand rupees! Why are you letting him pull a plough?"
"That bull," said the Mulla grimly,''has got to learn that life is not all play."
There are people who become disturbed the moment you laugh; they would like to teach you that life is not all play. These people are themselves ill. They have missed life and they would not like anybody else to enjoy it.
The priests are ill people; they would not like you to enjoy. They have missed; they are jealous of you. And they have staked too much: their egos are fulfilled only because they have been against life. They have chosen ego against life. If you choose life they will be against you. They will go on curbing you, they will go on condemning you, they will go on creating guilt in you. No greater calamity, not a bigger calamity can happen to humanity as has happened through religions. The calamity is that they have created a guilty conscience.
So whenever you are enjoying, deep down somewhere you start feeling guilty, as if you are doing something wrong. Whenever you are healthy, you start feeling something is wrong. Whenever you are dancing, you start feeling something is wrong. Whenever you laugh, you can never laugh totally because deep down something goes on pulling you back: "What are you doing?"
From the very childhood, whenever you were happy there was somebody to teach you that life is not all play: "Stop laughing! Be serious! When will you be mature? Be grown up! Enough is enough! Drop all this nonsense of childhood." Somebody was always round the corner to teach you.
They have lost: they could not enjoy so they cannot allow others to enjoy. This is how, from generation to generation, diseases are being transferred.
Take hold of your own life. See that the whole existence is celebrating. These trees are not serious, these birds are not serious. The rivers and the oceans are wild, and everywhere there is fun, everywhere there is joy and delight. Watch existence, listen to the existence and become part of it.
Become a lover — because love can exist only with a deep respect for fun, with a deep respect for delight. Love cannot exist with a serious mind. With a serious mind, logic is in tune. be non-serious.
I'm not saying not to be sincere. Be sincere, but be non-serious. Sincerity is something else; seriousness is totally different. Be sincere with existence, then you will be true; you will become part of this cosmic LEELA, this cosmic play.
OSHO