A. Morality, or moral behaviour, is simply utilitarian as far as society is concerned, but for the individual, it is not a utility, it is his joy.
Therefore, society’s needs are satisfied even by pseudo-morality, but that is not good enough for the individual. That you behave well towards others is good enough for society, but it is not good enough for you, for it is also worth considering whether you are good inside yourself or not. Society is concerned with your personality, not with your inner being. But for you yourself, the personality is nothing more than your clothing. Your being begins where this clothing ends. Behind this mask of personality, separate from it, is your real being. And this is where real morality is born.
A society created by false morality is called a civilisation. A society consisting of men who have attained to real life is called a culture. This is the difference between civilisation and culture. Civilisation is based on utility; culture is based on inner joy and harmony.
Today, we have civilisation but not culture. But if we want, we can give birth to a culture with our individual efforts together. Civilisation is born out of purifying our behaviour with other people; culture is born out of purifying ourselves. Civilisation is the body; culture is the soul. Those who are rooted in their beings create a culture.
Abridged from The Perfect Way, courtesy: Osho International Foundation, www.osho.com
