Watts × Osho: The Cosmic Joke

What happens when you combine Alan Watts’ playful Zen humour with Osho’s rebellious refusal to behave? Somewhere between a cosmic joke and a polite riot.

Watts tells us life is a dance we’re taking far too seriously. Osho tells us society depends on us staying afraid, obedient, and confused. Together, they ask an unsettling question: what if freedom isn’t something to achieve — but something we keep talking ourselves out of?

In this Philosophy in Pubs mashup, we’ll stir together ideas like:

• The ego as a useful illusion… and a social control mechanism
• Letting go (Watts) vs. burning the script entirely (Osho)
• Meditation as play, rebellion, and awareness
• Love, desire, attachment, and the messiness of being human
• Whether “going with the flow” and “radical freedom” can coexist.

Expect playful chaos, contrasting quotes, and conversations that bounce between laughter and genuine unease. This isn’t about choosing sides, reaching consensus, or becoming “spiritual.” It’s about exploring two thinkers who, in very different ways, invite us to loosen our grip, question authority (including our own), and maybe stop living like we’re under constant supervision.

No robes, no chanting, no groupthink — just conversation, curiosity, and the dangerous thought that living fully might require letting go of who you think you’re supposed to be.