Conversation between Krishnamurti and Prof. Huston Smith, at the time, a professor of religion at M.I.T. Prof. Smith begins the conversation with the question ‘Is it Possible to Live with Total Lucidity?‘
Huston Smith: \’I am Huston Smith, professor of philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and I invite you to a conversation arranged by the Blaisdale Institute of Claremont, California, with Krishnamurti, who was raised by Annie Besant and the Theosophists to be a teacher, and who, though he discarded the mantle of Theosophy, did indeed become a sage of our century, one whose voice is heard as much by the youth of today as throughout the world for the last sixty years.
\’Krishnamurti, maybe this morning I will have only one question which in one way or another I will be coming back to in various ways. In your writings, in your speaking, time and again you come back to this wonderful little word, lucid and lucidity, but is it possible living as we are in this confused and confusing world, torn by conflicting voices without and conflicting tensions within, with hearts that seem star crossed and tensions that never go, is it possible in such a life, in such a world, to live with total lucidity? And if so, how?
Life Ahead presents lessons that move far beyond the traditional forms of education taught in most schools and colleges. Drawn from transcripts of talks given to Indian students, the book covers a wide range of universal topics.
In short, accessible chapters, Krishnamurti explores the danger of competition, the value of solitude, the need to understand both the conscious and the unconscious mind, and the critical difference between concentration and attention, and between knowledge and learning. Krishnamurti exposes the roots of fear and eradicates deeply entrenched habits of tradition, limitation, and prejudice. The life he holds forth requires a complete change of thought, even a revolution, one that begins “not with theory and ideation,” he writes, “but with a radical transformation in the mind itself.” He explains how such transformation occurs only through an education that concentrates on the total development of the human being, an education carefully described in this simple yet powerful book.
A Wholly Different Way of Living: San Diego, California 18th February 1974
1st Conversation with Dr. Allan W. Anderson‘Knowledge and Transformation’
J Krishnamurti was born in South India and educated in England. For the past 40 years he has been speaking in the United States, Europe, India, Australia and other parts of the world. From the outset of his life’s work he repudiated all connections with organized religions and ideologies and said that his only concern was to set man absolutely unconditionally free. He is the author of many books, among them THE AWAKENING Of INTELLIGENCE, THE URGENCY OF CHANGE, FREEDOM FROM THE KNOWN and THE FLIGHT OF THE EAGLE.
This is one of a series of dialogues between Krishnamurti and Dr. Allan W. Anderson, who is professor of religious studies at San Diego State University where he teaches Indian and Chinese scriptures and the oracular tradition. Dr. Anderson, a published poet, received his degree from Columbia University and the Union Theological Seminary, he has been honoured with the distinguished teaching award from the California State University.
Life Ahead presents lessons that move far beyond the traditional forms of education taught in most schools and colleges. Drawn from transcripts of talks given to Indian students, the book covers a wide range of universal topics.
In short, accessible chapters, Krishnamurti explores the danger of competition, the value of solitude, the need to understand both the conscious and the unconscious mind, and the critical difference between concentration and attention, and between knowledge and learning. Krishnamurti exposes the roots of fear and eradicates deeply entrenched habits of tradition, limitation, and prejudice. The life he holds forth requires a complete change of thought, even a revolution, one that begins not with theory and ideation,” he writes, but with a radical transformation in the mind itself.” He explains how such transformation occurs only through an education that concentrates on the total development of the human being, an education carefully described in this simple yet powerful book.
Radical Revolution – J. Krishnamurti
We will see how very important it is to bring about, in the human mind, the radical revolution. The crisis, is a crisis of consciousness. A crisis that cannot anymore, accept the old norms, the old patterns, the ancient traditions. And, considering what the world is now, with all the misery, conflict, destructive brutality, aggression, and so on… Man is still as he was. Is still brutal, violent, aggressive, acquisitive, competitive. And, he’s built a society along these lines.
J. Krishnamurti, one of the most beloved and renowned religious teachers of the twentieth century, often taught his students that they must look at the state of the world, with all its violence and conflict, if they are ever to understand themselves. To turn away from world events was for him not to be alive to what life has to teach.
Facing a World in Crisis presents a selection of talks that Krishnamurti gave on how to live in and respond to troubling and uncertain times. His message of personal responsibility and the importance of connecting with the broader world is presented in a nonsectarian and nonpolitical way. Direct and ultimately life-affirming, Facing a World in Crisis will resonate with readers today who are looking for a new way to understand and find hope in challenging times.
Jiddu Krishnamurti Crisis in Ourselves
Jiddu Krishnamurti was born on 11 May 1895 in Madanapalle, a small town in south India. He and his brother were adopted in their youth by Dr Annie Besant, then president of the Theosophical Society. Dr Besant and others proclaimed that Krishnamurti was to be a world teacher whose coming the Theosophists had predicted. To prepare the world for this coming, a world-wide organization called the Order of the Star in the East was formed and the young Krishnamurti was made its head.
In 1929, however, Krishnamurti renounced the role that he was expected to play, dissolved the Order with its huge following, and returned all the money and property that had been donated for this work.
From then, for nearly sixty years until his death on 17 February 1986, he travelled throughout the world talking to large audiences and to individuals about the need for a radical change in mankind.
Krishnamurti is regarded globally as one of the greatest thinkers and religious teachers of all time. He did not expound any philosophy or religion, but rather talked of the things that concern all of us in our everyday lives, of the problems of living in modern society with its violence and corruption, of the individual’s search for security and happiness, and the need for mankind to free itself from inner burdens of fear, anger, hurt, and sorrow. He explained with great precision the subtle workings of the human mind, and pointed to the need for bringing to our daily life a deeply meditative and spiritual quality.
Krishnamurti belonged to no religious organization, sect or country, nor did he subscribe to any school of political or ideological thought. On the contrary, he maintained that these are the very factors that divide human beings and bring about conflict and war. He reminded his listeners again and again that we are all human beings first and not Hindus, Muslims or Christians, that we are like the rest of humanity and are not different from one another.
He asked that we tread lightly on this earth without destroying ourselves or the environment. He communicated to his listeners a deep sense of respect for nature. His teachings transcend man-made belief systems, nationalistic sentiment and sectarianism. At the same time, they give new meaning and direction to mankind’s search for truth. His teaching, besides being relevant to the modern age, is timeless and universal.
Both in the physical as well as in the psychological world
Fear has many factors, which we’ll go into when we are talking about fear
And the constant pursuit of pleasure
Pleasure of possession
Pleasure of domination
Pleasure of money, which gives power
The pleasure of a philosopher with his immense knowledge
The guru with his circus
Pleasure again has innumerable forms
And there is also
Sorrow
Pain
Anxiety
The deep sense of abiding
Endless sense of loneliness
And not only the so-called personal sorrow
But also the enormous sorrow of mankind has brought about through wars
Through neglect
Through this endless sense of conquering one group of people by another
And in that consciousness there is the racial group content
And ultimately there is death
This is our consciousness
Beliefs
Certainties
And uncertainties
Great sense of anxiety
Loneliness
Sorrow
And endless misery
This is a fact
And we say this consciousness
IS MINE
Is that so?
Go to the Far East or the other east,
India, American, Europe
Anywhere you go where human beings are
They suffer
They’re anxious
Lonely
Depressed
Melancholy
Struggling conflict
Same like you
Similar like you
So is your consciousness from the other?
I know it’s very difficult
Maybe to logically accept
Which is intellectual verbally say yes
That is so
Maybe
But to feel this total human sense that there is no humanity except you
You are the rest of mankind
That requires great deal of sensitivity
It’s not a problem to be solved
It isn’t that, ‘I must accept that I’m not an individual
And how am I to feel this global human entity?’
Then you’ve made it into a problem
And the brain is ready to solve the problem
Do this
Don’t do that
Go to a guru
You know all the circus that goes on
But if you really look at it
With your mind
With your heart
With you whole being
Totally aware of this fact
Then you have broken the program
See
It is naturally broken
But if you say ‘I will break it’
You are getting back in the same
I wonder if you understand
Shall I go over ii again?
Is it necessary for the speak to repeat
But please don’t accept this because the speaker feels this
To him this is utter reality
Not something verbally accepted
Because it’s pleasant
But it is something that is actual
Then if that is so
Which is logically
Reasonably
Sanely examine and you’ll see
It is so
But the brain which has been accustomed to
This program of the individuality is going to revolt
Which you are doing now
Which is the brain is unwilling to learn
Where as the computer is willing to learn
Here we are frightening of losing something
And if you don’t understand this
We’ll go over and over again
But a serious person confronting the world situation
The world catastrophe
The terror
The atom bomb
The endless competition between nations
That is destroying human beings
It’s destroying us
Each one
And the decision comes
When you perceive the truth that you are not an individual
song: godspeed you black emperor – sleep
speaker: jiddu krishnamurti – learning that transforms consciousness
J. Krishnamurti talks about Love and Freedom in a public talk held in Saanen on July 23rd 1981.
Jiddu Krishnamurti was born on 11 May 1895 in Madanapalle, a small town in south India. He and his brother were adopted in their youth by Dr Annie Besant, then president of the Theosophical Society. Dr Besant and others proclaimed that Krishnamurti was to be a world teacher whose coming the Theosophists had predicted. To prepare the world for this coming, a world-wide organization called the Order of the Star in the East was formed and the young Krishnamurti was made its head.
In 1929, however, Krishnamurti renounced the role that he was expected to play, dissolved the Order with its huge following, and returned all the money and property that had been donated for this work.
From then, for nearly sixty years until his death on 17 February 1986, he travelled throughout the world talking to large audiences and to individuals about the need for a radical change in mankind.