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J Krishnamurti on Sensitivity – The Heart of Spiritual Living

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Jiddu Krishnamurti Speaks on Sensitivity

Sensitivity – The Heart of Spiritual Living

There are many profound and creative ways to describe the spiritual path and a spiritual life, but none capture the essence of spiritual living more precisely or succinctly than the following single word – Sensitivity.  The spiritual life can simply be called the sensitive life.  The following excerpt from J. Krishnamurti does a very thorough treatment of this topic and below I would like to share these thoughts of his with you.

Book:     Krishnamurti’s Notebook

Author:  J. Krishnamurti

Pages:   265-266

Without sensitivity there can be no affection; personal reaction does not indicate sensitivity; you may be sensitive about your family, about your achievement, about your status and capacity.  This kind of sensitivity is a reaction, limited, narrow, and is deterioration.  Sensitivity is not good taste for good taste is personal and the freedom from personal reaction is the awareness of beauty.  Without the appreciation of beauty and without the sensitive awareness of it, there is no love.  This sensitive awareness of nature, of the river, of the sky, of the people, of the filthy road, is affection.  The essence of affection is sensitivity.  But most people are afraid of being sensitive; to them to be sensitive is to get hurt and so they harden themselves and so preserve their sorrow.  Or they escape into every form of entertainment, the church, the temple, the gossip and cinema and social reform.  But being sensitive is not personal and when it is, it leads to misery.  To break through this personal reaction is to love, and love is for the one and the many; it is not restricted to the one or to the many. 

To be sensitive, all the senses must be fully alive, active, and the fear of being a slave to the senses is merely the avoidance of a natural fact.  The awareness of the fact does not lead to slavery; it is the fear of the fact that leads to bondage.  Thought is of the senses and thought makes for limitation but yet you are not afraid of thought.  On the contrary; it is ennobled with respectability and enshrined with conceit.  To be sensitively aware of thought, feeling, of the world around you, of your office and of nature, is to explode from moment to moment in affection.  Without affection, every action becomes burdensome and mechanical and leads to decay.

Analysis of Krishnamurti on Sensitivity:

The-Heart-of-Spiritual-Living1

I have highlighted the key parts of this excerpt and these are the areas that I would like to focus on in this analysis with you.  There are essentially 6 key aspects to the idea of sensitivity, understanding which will go a long way in giving you deep insight into meditation, spiritual living and enlightenment.

1. Awaken the Senses:

Sensitivity means to really listen, see, smell, taste and feel.  To not just glance at the world, but to really take some time to behold it, to really taste the food you are eating, instead of just gobbling it down, while watching TV.  In other words to really come into significant contact with the world at a basic perceptual level.

2. Observe all 4 Environments:

There are 4 environments that you need to be sensitive to.  Your physical, mental and emotional dimensions being 3 very important environments, with the fourth being the world around you.  The more you are able to stay present to what is taking place inside and outside you, the more you will develop your awareness and the further you will move towards Self Realization.

3. Sensitivity Means Vulnerability:

If you are really interested in spiritual growth, you have to be willing to embrace the unknown and face the danger that lurks there.  As Krishnamurti points out, you can build walls around yourself, or simply keep yourself lost in entertainment, but if you are truly interested in living a full life, you will have to open yourself up to whatsoever the moment has to offer.

4. All Inclusive Sensitivity:

Along the lines of vulnerability I mentioned above, it is important to note, that to be sensitive means to be sensitive to both beauty and ugliness, to both pleasure and pain.  That then really means to be open and going with the flow of life.

5. Impersonal Sensitivity:

Normally sensitivity is attributed to ego related attachments and self image, but Krishnamurti is trying to clarify here that by sensitivity he is speaking of the impersonal observation of the 4 dimensions mentioned above.  It is the awareness of what the ego is up to, and the endless chaos that creates.  This state of careful observation is sensitivity.

6. Insensitivity Leads to Misery:

If we live without sensitivity, without awareness of the moment, we simply reduce ourselves to being a mechanical, robotic process.  Such repetitive living leads to a meaningless existence and exclusively pleasure based activity.  The outcome of such activity, breeds attachment, fear and greed, which is devoid of love and always ends in suffering.

Summary of Krishnamurti on Sensitivity:

All of us who are on the spiritual path and passionate about spiritual living, realize that often the hustle and bustle of life can pull us away from moment to moment awareness, which then requires us remember our practice and true purpose.  That is why I love the idea of sensitivity so much.  Just remember to practice this one thing, and you are back on the path.  Just remember to be sensitive and love will sweetly blossom and flow.

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Famous Jiddu Krishnamurti Quotes: A Revolutionary Philosopher on Spiritual Matters

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Today we will share some wonderful Krishnamurti Quotes with you to get you inspired for the week ahead. These quotes are designed to remind us of the deeper truths of life, as well as inspire and uplift you.

Krishnamurti was a sickly child, discovered by a prominent member of the Theosophical Society at age 14 and perceived as being a future world leader. He was tutored and schooled by the society into his mid-twenties. But after an intense awakening experience of his own, he broke with the Society, saying that ‘truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect.’

Despite making a break with a particular organisation, Krishnamurti continued to speak all over the world, and formed relationships with many notable leaders. His works are available in many books. 

One thing to always keen in mind though is that the teachings are much more important than the teacher.  So forget the teacher if you have to, but always remember the teachings.

You will find some more great quotes and inspiration on our facebook FAN page here.

https://www.facebook.com/MasteryOfMeditationAndYoga

Krishnamurti Quote 1

Meditation is not something that you practise for an hour or ten minutes and the rest of the day do your mischief. Meditation is the whole of life and that is the beauty of meditation, it is not something set aside, it covers and enters into all our activities and to all our thoughts and feelings. So it is not something that you practise or give attention to once a day or three times a day or ten times a day and the rest of the day live a life that is shoddy, neurotic, mischievous, violent. – Krishnamurti

Image from the free web

Krishnamurti Quote 2

You learn a great deal by watching, watching the things about you, watching the birds, the tree, watching the heavens, the stars, the constellation of Orion, the Dipper, the Evening star. You learn just by watching not only the things around you but also by watching people, how they walk, their gestures, the words they use, how they are dressed. – Krishnamurti

Photo by BestTravelPictures

Krishnamurti Quote 3 

I must love the very thing I am studying. If you want to understand a child, you must love and not condemn him. You must play with him, watch his movements, his idiosyncrasies, his ways of behavior; but if you merely condemn, resist or blame him, there is no comprehension of the child. Similarly, to understand what is, one must observe what one thinks, feels and does from moment to moment. That is the actual. – Krishnamurti

 

Photo via http://pinterest.com/pin/212021094928637808/ 

Krishnamurti Quote 4

To understand yourself is to understand the giver of values. Without understanding yourself, there is no renunciation of the world; without self-knowledge there can be only escape, called renunciation, which gives birth to endless problems and miseries. – Krishnamurti

Photo via free web 

Krishnamurti Quote 5

The constant assertion of belief is an indication of fear. – Krishnamurti

Oil Painting – via Free Web

Hope you enjoyed these quotes from J. Krishnamurti. 

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Magical Words for Meditation by J. Krishnamurti

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Words on Meditation

J. Krishnamurti on Meditation

One profound advantage to living in an ashram or monastery is that you are continuously reminded to meditate and focus on spiritual evolution, and you are kept inspired by the environment, teachers and fellow aspirants. But for those of us who live out in the world and are surrounded by family, work, school, kids, bills, society, etc., inspiration can sometimes be hard to come by and the zest for Enlightenment and the Truth can come and go.

So one of my goals here on Mastery of Meditation and Yoga, along with giving you a wealth of information on meditation and yoga techniques, is to find and share words on meditation which keep you ever inspired. This inspiration I think is critical for meeting the critical requirement of life-long passion for Self-Realization.

Early in my meditation days one the most intriguing things was that whenever I read the words of great meditation masters, such as J. Krishnamurti, I felt as if what they were saying was already known to me or even that it had written by me. This included their description of enlightenment.  This sense, this feeling is called “fore-feeling”, and if you experience it, hold on to it tight and ride it as far, deep and long as you can. It is like the scent of Reality and once you smell it, I think you should follow it like an obsessed bloodhound :-).

Magical Words

Today, I felt it again as I read Krishnamurti’s words on meditation and it inspired me greatly. So I would like to share those words with you below and I hope you are inspired by them just as much.

I suggest, to read the words with an open mind and just allow them to work their magic on you.

Often, such readings are in and of themselves enough to propel you from your normal dualistic reality to the Truth. At the very least they can give you the “fore-feeling” I spoke of above and inspire you to deepen your mediation practice.

 

Words on Meditation by J. Krishnamurti

Book: Meditation

Author: J. Krishnamurti:

Meditation is one of the most extraordinary things, and if you do not know what it is, you are like the blind man in a world of bright color, shadows and moving light.  It is not an intellectual affair, but when the heart enters into the mind, the mind has quite a different quality; it is really, then, limitless, not only in its capacity to think, to act efficiently, but also in its sense of living in a vast space where you are part of everything.

Meditation is the movement of love.  It isn’t the love of the one or the many.  It is like water that everyone can drink out of any jar, whether golden or earthenware: it is inexhaustible.  And a peculiar thing takes place which no drug or self-hypnosis can bring about: it is as though the mind enters into itself, beginning at the surface and penetrating ever more deeply, until depth and height have lost their meaning and every form of measurement ceases.  In this state there is complete peace – not contentment which has come about through gratification – but a peace that has order, beauty and intensity.  It can all be destroyed, as you can destroy a flower, and yet because of its very vulnerability it is indestructible.  This meditation cannot be learned from another.  You must begin without knowing anything about it, and move from innocence to innocence.

The soil in which the meditative mind can begin is the soil of everyday life, the strife, the pain and the fleeting joy.  It must begin there, and bring order, and from there move endlessly.  But if you are concerned only with making order, then that very order will bring about its own limitation, and the mind will be its prisoner.  In all this movement you must somehow begin from the other end, from the other shore, and not always be concerned with this shore or how to cross the river.  You must take a plunge into the water, not knowing how to swim.  And the beauty of meditation is that you never know where you are, where you are going, where the end is.

Inspiring Words on Meditation Summary:

I have highlighted some aspects of the excerpt above which I feel capture the essence of this teaching.  Specifically I want to direct your attention to the part which points you to where to start this journey.  Start exactly where you are.  Start by becoming aware of your thoughts and feelings as best you can.  Just begin to shine the light of awareness on what is taking place in and around you.  This awareness will change everything.  This awareness is the beginning of meditation and it is what will take you to bliss and beyond.  It will open your eyes to the Truth.

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Overcoming the Fear of Death – Krishnamurti on Death

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Overcoming Fear

Fear of Death

Here is a great experiment I shared in the free Mastery of Meditation newsletter a few months ago.  I think it is worth doing by all of us, as it helps us overcome the fear of death and in the process teaches us how to live.

Overcoming the Fear of Death

I want to share with you all today an extraordinary excerpt for the great teacher J. Krishnamurti on death and why we fear it.  In addition, I want to suggest for you a particular experiment on death, which I feel was incredibly helpful in helping me in my own spiritual evolution and I am sure which you be of great value to you as well.  

Fear of Death

This experiment, which I call the Death Experiment will help you understand what the spiritual masters have been trying to teach you about living moment to moment, and will give you a taste of the freedom that comes with such enlightened living.  
 
First is the excerpt from Krishnamurti from his book “Think of These Things”, and following that is the experiment he proposes for you and my thoughts on it.
 
Questioner: What makes us fear death?
 
J. Krishnamurti’s Reply:
 

Do you think a leaf that falls to the ground is afraid of death?  Do you think a bird lives in fear of dying?  It meets death when death comes; but it is not concerned about death, it is much too occupied with living, with catching insects, building a nest, singing a song, flying for the very joy of flying.  Have you ever watched birds soaring high up in the air without a bear of their wings, being carried along by the wind?  How endlessly they seem to enjoy themselves!  They are not concerned about death.  If death comes, it is all right, they are finished.  There is no concern about what is going to happen; they are living from moment to moment, are they not?  It is we human beings who are always concerned about death – because we are not living.  That is the trouble; we are dying, we are not living.  The old people are near the grave, and the young ones are not far behind.

You see, there is a preoccupation with death because we are afraid to lose the known, the things that we have gathered.  […].  We don’t want to leave the known; so it is our clinging to the known that creates fear in us, not the unknown.  Th unknown cannot be perceived by the known.  But the mind, being made of the known, says, “I am going to end,” and therefore it is frightened.

Now, if you can live from from moment to moment and not be concerned about the future, if you can live without the thought of tomorrow – which does not mean the superficiality of merely being occupied with today; it, being aware of the whole process of the known, you can relinquish the known, let it go completely, then you will find that an astonishing thing takes place.

Try if for a day – put aside everything you know, forget it, and just see what happens.  Don’t carry over your worries from day to day, from hour to hour, from moment to moment; let them all go, and you will see that out of this freedom comes an extraordinary life that includes both living and dying.  Death is only the ending of something, and in that very dying there is renewing.

Overcoming the Fear of Death – My Thoughts:

So the last paragraph is the experiment put forth by Krishnamurti that I want to you to try for 1 full day.  Here are 3 things you should try to do during this day.
 
1. STOP WORRYING ABOUT EVERYTHING:
 
This is the key.  Just stop worrying… completely.  Don’t worry about anything. Drop all your worrying, fretting and obsessing about the future and past.  Leave everything to life and put yourself in her care.  Just tell yourself whatever issues come up in the future, you will deal with them then.
 
Worrying is not just a huge waste of precious energy, it is the also one of the activities that binds you to psychological time and prevents you from cherishing the moments of your life.  Worrying creates other problems as well, such as stress, suffering and fear, so just for this one day let it all go and live without any worry to see what happens.  I assure you it will be quite a liberating experience.
 
Here is an article and Zen story that delves deeper into the concept of time and living in the moment more: The Zen of Time Management.
 
2. GO WITH THE FLOW:
 
Throughout this one day experiment, go with the flow of life completely.  Just doing what needs to be done and allowing life to carry you forward.  Don’t try to control or manipulate the day, just relax and go with it.  Do the task that is presented to you and just let yourself be simple and spontaneous.
 
 
3. DROP YOUR SELF-IMAGE:
 
For this one day, don’t try to live according your who you think you are.  Don’t be anything at all, in fact just be nobody.  Drop all that you know about yourself and just be empty, letting your natural personality and self come through.  Don’t try to live according to all the beliefs and ideas you have been conditioned with, instead drop them all and just live innocently from moment to moment.
 
For those interested, here is an Advaita Vedanta technique with which to shatter the false sense of “I” and penetrate non-duality: Enlightenment via Advaita Vedanta “Who Am I” Neti Neti Meditation.
 

Overcoming the Fear of Death – Summary:

 
The object of this experiment is to completely break away from the past and future.  Dropping all that you know and all that you are trying to become.  This is the art of dying while still living.  This is how to be free of the fear of death.  This is the way to the Now – into the unkown, where resides Truth and God.  So for this 1 day I want you to experience what that is like, and it may very well lead you to living everyday just like that :-).
 
Here is an article on advanced insight meditation, which challenges the fiction of psychological time and helps you break free from it instantly and explosively:  How to Attain Enlightenment. 
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What is Meditation by J. Krishnamurti

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What is Meditation

J. Krishnamurti Quotes

J. Krishnamurti

It has been some time since we discussed the thoughts of the great master meditator and teacher, J. Krishnamurti.  Below is a quote from him, which I think gives one a great deal of insight into what meditation is and how to practice it.  This type of meditation, the only type Krishnamurti would consider as meditation, is along the lines of insight meditation or jyana yoga.

Book:        Meditations

Author:      J. Krishnamurti

Publisher:  Shambhala Publications, Inc.

Page:        41

Meditation is not a means to an end; there is no end, no arrival; it is a movement in time and out of time.  Every system, method, binds thought to time, but choiceless awareness of every thought and feeling, understanding of their motives, their mechanism, allowing them to blossom, is the beginning of meditation.

When thought and feeling flourish and die, meditation is the movement beyond time.  In this movement there is ecstasy; in complete emptiness there is love, and with love there is destruction and creation.

Analysis of What is Meditation by Krishnamurti:

Meditation starts in our dualistic, ego-centric, time bound world.  Right where you are.  It starts like a drip.  Small drops.  Drip, drip, drip.  Like the beginning of the Ganges river high up in the Himalayas.  In the beginning, it is just small, just a drip.  Don’t underestimate what the end is going to be yet.  Just start watching the mind and keep watching the mind.  Drip, drip, drip.

As you remain still and keep watching your thoughts and feeling, the thoughts and feelings run their course, loose momentum and finally start to wither and die.  Then meditation starts to pick up power and energy.  Be patient, persist.  As more energy is freed up, due to diminishing thoughts and feelings, the intensity of the meditation increases even further.  Remaining thoughts that now rise are comprehended at a glace and negated by intelligence at their very onset.  This then brings about great stillness within and makes available the Reality that lies beyond the dualistic, thinking mind.  Here the Ganges, which began with a drip, is now a powerful river, merges in the great ocean of Oneness.

What you need to do is gather all your energy, apply yourself and let the dripping begin.

For those interested in a more detailed look at a very similar technique, you can read the following article: Silent Mind Meditation Technique.

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J. Krishnamurti Meets the Pope

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J. Krishnamurti Quote

Jiddu Krishnamurti on Being Nobody 

These days the Pope is visiting the US and it reminded me of a dialogue between Krishnamurti and the then Pope, when they had once met.  I don’t recall the dialogue exactly or where I had read it, but it went something like this…

The Pope upon meeting Krishnamurti indicated that he had heard of him as the famous Indian philosopher and then proceeded to ask Krishnamurti exactly who he was?

To which Krishnamurti had replied, "I am nobody." 

I don’t recall there was anything more in that dialogue.

Here is part of a great chapter from Krishnamurti’s Notebook, where he speaks on what all this business of being nobody is all about.

From:    Krishnamurti’s Notebook

It seems so impossibly difficult to be simple, to be what you are and not pretend.  To be what you are is in itself very arduous without trying to become something, which is not too difficult.  You can always pretend, put on a mask but to be what you are is an extremely complex affair; because you are always changing; you are never the same and each moment reveals a new facet, a new depth, a new surface.  You can’t be all this at one moment for each moment brings its own change.  So if you are at all intelligent, you give up being anything.  You think you are very sensitive and an incident, a fleeting though, shows that you are not; you think you are clever, well-read, artistic, moral but turn round the corner, you find you are none of these things but that you are deeply ambitious, envious, insufficient, brutal and anxious.  You are all these things turn by turn and you want something to be continuous, permanent, of course only that which is profitable, pleasurable.  So you run after that and all the many other yous are clamoring to have their way, to have their fulfillment… 

So to be what you are is an extremely arduous affair; if you are at all awake, you know all these things and the sorrow of it all.  So you drown yourself in your work, in your belief, in your fantastic ideals and meditations.  By then you have become old and ready for the grave, it you are not already dead inwardly.  To put away all these things, with their contradictions and increasing sorrow, and be nothing is the most natural and intelligent thing to do.  But before you can be nothing, you must have unearthed all these hidden things, exposing them and so understanding them.  To understand these hidden urges and compulsions, you will have to be aware of them, without choice, as with death; then in the pure act of seeing, they will wither away and you will be without sorrow and so be as nothing.  To be as nothing is not a negative state; the very denial of everything you have been is the most positive action, not the positive of reactions, which in inaction; it is this inaction which causes sorrow.  This denial is freedom.  This positive action gives energy, and mere ideas dissipate energy.  Idea is time and living in time is disintegration, sorrow. 

As monk Tara demonstrated in the Zen story The True Meaning of Laziness, your job is simply to be as aware as possible of all that is taking place within you.  Try to watch every action, every thought, every feeling and see every hidden motive and desire.  If you do that, it will be enough.  The rest will take of itself.

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Jiddu Krishnamurti Quote on the Mind & Meditation

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Summary:  The great spiritual teacher, Jiddu Krishnamurti, explains the role of logic and reason in the quest for spiritual enlightenment and points out the need for direct observation of “what is”.

Title:             The Wholeness of Life

Author:          Jiddu Krishnamurti

Chapter:         Chapter VI (Page 159)

Published By:   HarperSanFrancisco

Quote From J. Krishnamurti:

“Reason and Logic have not solved our human problems, and we are going to find out if there is quite a different approach to all the problems and travails of life.  We shall come upon something that is beyond reason; for reason has not solved any of our political, economic or social problems; nor has it solved the intimate human problems between two people.  It becomes more and more obvious that we live in a world that is going to pieces, that has become quite insane, quite disorderly and a dangerous place to live in.  Up to a point we must reason together, logically, sanely, holistically; then, perhaps, beyond that point, we shall be able to find a different state, a different quality of mind, not bound be any dogma, by any belief, by any experience and therefore a mind that is free to observe and through observation see exactly “what is” and also find that there is energy to transform it.”

Jiddu Krishnamurti Quote

The above quote is full of deep insights and practical guidance on how to walk the path to spiritual enlightenment.  In this quote, Krishnamurti is pointing out the fact that first you have to notice that something is amiss.  That, I know is putting it lightly.  Without going into the long list of problems that plague us today, I think it would suffice to say that things are quite a mess, both within and without.  Recognizing this, we see the need for change, and thus embark on our spiritual journey.

For this journey, Krishnamurti does not rule out the value of logic and reason.  In fact, logic and reason have a role to play in bringing us to a certain point of understanding and maturity, unfortunately though they cannot bring about the transformation within us, which would lead to compassion, joy and freedom.

This transformation that Krishnamurti is alluding to above, is the freedom from duality.  The freedom from the false sense of separation, and logic and reason, which belong to the thinking apparatus, are unable to carry us to this state.  Duality lies in our thinking itself, and although logic and reason can give us clarity of thought, it cannot go beyond that.  Here he then indicates that what is needed is the power of direct observation.

Direct observation of things just as they are, reveals the false in the false.  This seeing of the false (separate self) in the false (dualistic thinking) requires energy.  This is the energy of acute awareness and swift intelligence.  It is not seeing via logic and reason, it is perceiving directly that “which is”, in all its complexity, from moment to moment.  This my friends is meditation. 

If you want joy, compassion and wisdom…. then meditate.

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Jiddu Krishnamurti On the Flowering of Goodness

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Jiddu Krishnamurti On Being Good

It has been some time since I added to this series, which I think, at minimum, is very valuable for the following 2 reasons:  It can be very inspiring and it can provide explosive insight.  Having said that let us explore the following quote for Master Meditator, Jiddu Krishnamurti.

From:             Krishnamurti – The Wholeness of Life
Author:           J Krishnamurti
Chapter:         Part II – Chapter V – Pages 176-177
Published By:   HarperSanFrancisco

Quote From J. Krishnamurti:

Flowering of Goodness

“In consciousness there is the good and the bad; the bad is increasing; it is increasing because the good has become static, the good is not flowering.  One has accepted certain patterns of what is thought to be good and one lives according to those patterns.  So, the good, instead of flowering, is withering and thereby giving strength to the bad.  There is more violence, more hatred, there are more national and religious divisions; there is every form of antagonism, right through the world.  It is on the increase because the good is not flowering.  Now, be aware of this fact without any effort; the moment one makes effort one gives importance to the self, which is bad.  Just observe the actual fact of the bad without any effort, observe it without any choice — because choice is a distorting factor.  When one observes so openly, so freely, then the good begins to flower.  It is not that one pursues the good and thereby gives it strength to flower but when the bad, the evil, the ugly, is understood, completely, the other naturally flowers.”

This particular quote gives a very nice framework from which one can understand meditation and spiritual growth.  The essence here is that you cannot do anything more than master the Art of Observation.  Once you master this art, your progress is automatic.  Goodness is not sought, it just flows.  You job is simply to develop the ability to see without distortion.  That’s all.  See things exactly as they are through and through.  For this one must approach the fact without any bias or motive.  One must just simply look carefully.

Let’s try it right now.  Let’s not just discuss endlessly.  Close your eyes and look right now at the thoughts that are moving in your mind.  Without judgment, just observe what is going on.  See yourself making the effort to watch your thoughts.  See yourself getting lost for a few moments and then recovering and regaining attention.  See the desire to witness taking shape and being indulged in.  Guess what, goodness is starting to flow.  That’s right, awareness is the arch enemy of the “bad”.  Why?  Because it is the one thing you can do that does not feed it, and unfed, It starts to wither.  So the framework for spiritual growth is simple, either you attend and allow goodness to flower or you don’t and instead strengthen the “bad”.  The direction to go is a no-brainer.

 

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Jiddu Krishnamurti Ponders His Enlightenment & Kundalini Awakening

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Jiddu Krishnamurti and Kundalini

From:             Krishnamurti’s Notebook
Author:           Jiddu Krishnamurti
Chapter:         Gstaad  23rd: Page 33
Published By:   Krishnamurti Publications of America

In continuing to try to bring you some of the more uncommon teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti – one of the more remarkable spiritual teacher’s of our modern era – I thought the following would be of interest to those passionate about enlightenment and Kundalini Awakening.  The following are a list of “prerequisites” that Krishnamurti came up with when trying to determine why he had been blessed with his Kundalini Awakening and enlightenment experiences.  He, of course, calls what he underwent “the process”, but from the perspective of Yoga, “the process” would be called a Kundalini Awakening.  You can get more information on Jiddu Krishnamurti and his teachings at the Krishnamurti Foundation of America Website.

Jiddu Krishnamurti

Here are Krishnamurti’s thoughts for perhaps why this took place in him in his own words…

“Why should all this happen to us?  No explanation is good enough, though one can invent a dozen.  But certain things are fairly clear.

  1. One must be wholly “indifferent” to its coming and going.
  2. There must be no desire to continue the experience or store it away in memory.
  3. There must be a certain physical sensitivity, a certain indifference to comfort.
  4. There must be a self-critical humorous approach.
  5. You can also add love to this list but it is beyond love.
  6. And you can add also a still, quiet brain.”

(5 and 6 he adds later in the page)

Krishnamurti also says, “It must come and you can never go after it.  Do what you will.”  So there you have it.  His take on what he believes might have led to his enlightenment and Kundalini Awakening.  To me this list can somewhat be summed up by the following 2 phrases.  First, is what I call the first law of Tantra, “Whatever comes let it come, whatever goes let it go.”  Which correlates to items 1, 2, 3 and 4 in Krishnamurti’s list above.  Second, is the phrase, “All you can do is prepare the garden, the flower must bloom on its own.”  Which correlates to items 5 and 6 of his list.  If you can live by these 2 rules, remarkable dimensions will open up for you.

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J. Krishnamurti Speaks on the Atman

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J. Krishnamurti and The Soul

From:             Krishnamurti to Himself – His Last Journal
Chapter:         Monday, April 18, 1983 – Pgs 66 – 67
Published By:   HarperSanFrancisco

Quote From J. Krishnamurti:

“…is there an area in the human brain, or in the very nature and structure of a human being, not merely in the outer world of his activities but inwardly, deep in the vast quiet recesses of his own brain, something that is not the outcome of memory, not the movement of a continuity?”… “There is most certainly, definitely, an area where the past doesn’t cast a shadow, where time, the past or the future or the present has no meaning.”… “You can’t ascend through knowledge; there must be an end to knowledge for the new to be.  New is a word for something which has never been before.  And that area cannot be understood or grasped by words or symbols; it is beyond all remembrances.”

Atman

Most of the avid readers and students of Jiddu Krishnamurti  are quite familiar with his profound teachings that are woven throughout his many books, talks and recordings.  It has also been my experience, when speaking to some of his most ardent fans, that over time they don’t continue to read his works regularly as they don’t find much more in the way of new teachings.  The quote above, though might be something a little different.  It is one that offers a glimpse into his thoughts about that aspect of human nature which is beyond everything.  Although it may be a stretch to indicate that he is commenting on the Hindu concept of the “Atman” or soul, it does reverberate with the same description that is often used to describe the Atman.  Part of which describes the Atman as that aspect of Human Nature that is beyond time, space and self (ego), is untouched by anything worldly and cannot be grasped by thoughts.

Additionally, his more traditional comment regarding the need for the end of knowledge is of course, etymologically speaking, the definition of Vedanta (Veda – knowledge; Anta – End).  Before I continue, I just want to clarify that my objective here is not to try to equate, compare or debate Krishnamurti’s teaching with Hinduism; I am just trying to reveal, in a different light, what will hopefully be some aspects of his teachings that I find to be more uncommon.  So the above insights essentially point to a part of our being which cannot be realized through knowledge.  This aspect becomes visible to us when the activity of memory (thought) ceases to grab our attention and pull us outwards.  It is there when there is nothing.