"But their manifesto made me laugh. Every statement begins, 'We believe' And a belief is always ignorance. Somebody believes in God – he is ignorant. Somebody believes in no God – he is as ignorant as the one who believes.

"Each sentence of the whole manifesto begins, 'We believe that there is no God.' But on what grounds? Finally they give their grounds: 'We believe our faith is reason. Because God is not reasonable, we will not believe in God.' These are the most intellectual people of America, and it is a very prestigious thing to be accepted by the group as a member.

"I am making this statement just before some of my friends in the group are going to propose my name as an honorary member in their coming meeting. It is good for me to make my situation clear to them.

"In the first place, I don't become a member of any party, any organization, because every membership is a subtle slavery.

"Truth can live and blossom only in freedom.

"Love can blossom and be fragrant only in freedom.

"Every membership is a concession and a compromise.

"Sannyas is not a movement and not an organization. On the contrary, it is a declaration of independence from all organizations and all parties and all churches.

"I laughed at the Humanist manifesto because finally they say, 'Our faith is in reason.' But if you have a faith, every faith is unreasonable. And it is so simple to see. To have faith in reason means you will not allow anything unreasonable in life.

"Love is unreasonable. What is the reason of love? What is the reason of existence itself? What is the reason of reason itself? If there were no reason, would you complain to somebody? If there were no life, would there be any way to complain to some court, to some higher authority? If there is nothing, there is nothing; if there is everything, there is everything. Reason itself is unreasonable. And if one has to be vast enough, one has to include contradictions. Reason on the one side, and irreason on the other side – both have to be accepted.

"The Zen Manifesto is not for anything special."