The Awakening of Intelligence

by J. Krishnamurti

This comprehensive record of Krishnamurti’s teachings is an excellent, wide-ranging introduction to the great philosopher’s thought. With among others, Jacob Needleman, Alain Naude, and Swami Venkatasananda, Krishnamurti examines such issues as the role of the teacher and tradition; the need for awareness of ‘cosmic consciousness; the problem of good and evil; and traditional Vedanta methods of help for different levels of seekers.

Genres: Philosophy, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Psychology, Religion, Meditation, Self Help

544 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

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 humankind.

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 humankind 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 belief systems, nationalistic sentiment and sectarianism. At the same time, they give new meaning and direction to humankind's search for truth. His teaching, besides being relevant to the modern age, is timeless and universal.

Krishnamurti spoke not as a guru but as a friend, and his talks and discussions are based not on tradition-based knowledge but on his own insights into the human mind and his vision of the sacred, so he always communicates a sense of freshness and directness although the essence of his message remained unchanged over the years. When he addressed large audiences, people felt that Krishnamurti was talking to each of them personally, addressing his or her particular problem. In his private interviews, he was a compassionate teacher, listening attentively to the man or woman who came to him in sorrow, and encouraging them to heal themselves through their own understanding. Religious scholars found that his words threw new light on traditional concepts. Krishnamurti took on the challenge of modern scientists and psychologists and went with them step by step, discussed their theories and sometimes enabled them to discern the limitations of those theories. Krishnamurti left a large body of literature in the form of public talks, writings, discussions with teachers and students, with scientists and religious figures, conversations with individuals, television and radio interviews, and letters. Many of these have been published as books, and audio and video recordings.

This author also writes under: Jiddu Krishnamurti

Reviews

[Fergus, Weaver of Autistic Webs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's a thick tome chock full of K's sprightly thoughts on the process that produces real, living and INTELLIGENT people.

Its twofold purpose is this: to help neurotypicals discover the immense inner world of Asperger's Syndrome, and to help us Aspies find wider acceptance in the outer, more disciplined world!

I re-read it many times in the mid-eighties. Its words worked their way slowly into my medicated brain, but made me who I am nowadays.

Intelligence is not about IQ levels. It is PSYCHOLOGICAL.

In fact it's a mind that is awakened to the endless vagaries, roadblocks and highjumps of daily life and within yourself, as they happen - in a HOLISTIC way. According to K, it's Whole Body-Mind intelligence.

It doesn't use maps of the world. It doesn't follow instructions. It thinks its life as it lives it.

Krishnamurti sums it all up In two words.... Choiceless Awareness. A simple, intelligent awareness unaffected by the vagaries of life.

In other words, it's Freedom: IMMEDIATE FREEDOM FROM ALL OUR MENTAL BLOCKAGES.

I bought it - and read it within my upwardly mobile, bulletproof cadre of middle managers on lunch break - in 1985.

Thinking, alas, was a cursedly anathematized subject to their crowd. Sports, women, though - now you were talking! Yikes.

Yes, I hear you, fellow readers. You know the feeling?

Well, it helps also when you read this if you have experienced inner conflicts like that in your life, and want to clear them way - and if you aren't sealed over in bulletproof apathy, as my colleagues were.

Those inner conflicts, K says, are the foundation of real intelligence, as they prove you're ALIVE. Though you may be currently stuck.

All you need is CLARITY. No pain, no gain, folks!

If you live your life as a struggle and not a slough, you'll find considerably more fulfillment in life than your lazy friends will.

But this book is no cakewalk. It'll jar and grate on your nerves. Because it HAS to, to work.

Matthew Arnold famously said the secret of life is to see it whole - in his classic, Culture and Anarchy.

The way of my colleagues is now, alas, reappearing all over the world as brute ANARCHY. Doing as you please.

Our task, though, is to know our lives and our thoughts, like Krishnamurti -

Steadily and Holistically -

No pain, no gain.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Awakening of Intelligence, Krishnamurti repeats the same message that he has always stated: The past, which is the known, keeps us bound. The mind is conditioned by patterns of thought, operating through grooves in the mind that result from clinging to experiences. By repeating and reinforcing these same patterns, a perception is solidified and reality is, consequently, fragmented.

This book helped me a couple of years ago by serving as an introduction to perceptual, empirical conditioning. Krishnamurti's works served as a theoretical springboard to jump into, and fully realize, the pith of his message:

Liberation is spontaneous and non-mechanical. Liberation is freedom from the known. To be in a state of unknowing is the ultimate intelligence and the utmost paradox.

[Cyril Wong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing like Krishnamurti to remind me of that which is important; a revision of Buddhistic ideas about the fluidity of thought--this anti-guru tells us that we should not bother with thought at all! Of course, the paradoxical nature and impossibility (and ultimately, the freedom) of such an idea (a thought!) is what makes this book so captivating, as Krishnaji explains and explains precisely what he means, engaging both the reader as well as the person he is talking to in each chapter, from philosophy professors to famous thinkers like David Bohm. I have finally interpreted the key ideas in this book by grounding them in the context of meditation, in which the avoidance/non-avoidance of thought makes perfect sense. But Krishnaji is too clever to simply say, Go meditate! He gets you there with his humble explanations, critical chiding and constant reminders of the trappings of thought--as an often automated and crippling response of memory.

[Rosa Ramôa · Rating 5 out of 5]

"A forma mais elevada de inteligência é a capacidade de observar sem julgar". (Jiddu Krishnamurti)

[mahesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our Myopic view and suffering in our lethargic life draw us to various pleasures, ambition, and cruelty. After devouring all pleasure and cruelties, the human is not free of his past. He is the same man, But with a different thread of entanglement.
Through this book, Jiddu Krishnamurthi has tried to explore the questions of life without offering definitive answers which often saturates the possibilities of answers. Book is a collection of speeches given by Jiddu Krishnamurthi on different occasions.

Every self-development or spirituality books dupe us with the promises of an answer to all the confusion and pains of our bottomless darkness. Most of the book offers immediate fixes or motivational messages, Which are accepted by the majority of the population. But, are they successful in answering our questions?. The answer is no, Most of them offer outer modification which inevitably leads to another inescapable darkness.
It's not the same story with Krishnamurthi's wisdom, Throughout the book, he never offers a definitive answer to meet our desire to cling. Every word is one to one session with the guru- shishya(teacher- disciple) which is an honest approach to decipher all absurdities, beauty, and conditioning of life.

Reading his book and digesting it is not easy as it seems, Because you will come in face to face with yourselves which we rarely do in our life. All your walls and beliefs crumbled into ashes in your journey, Sometimes you feel all alone in this world Yet you feel free and child again throughout the journey with Krishnamurthi.

Krishnamurthi's way to convey his message simple, According to him the life is simple so even the truth behind it is to be simple which reflects clearly in his writings.
You might feel it's impossible to adapt and examine in the way he guides us like a guru But don't get discouraged from it. Just go ahead and face it. In the end, you might be a child again.

Re-read the book if you don't grasp the concept at first, Beautiful flower always take a time to blossom with full exuberance.

My guru is Sadhguru, But even my guru admires Krishnamurthi. Krishnamurthi doesn't have an answer to all the chaos of life, He has the question to find the answers of our life.

Enjoy it!

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing. It's not a book that you have to read from cover to cover, which I really enjoyed, because you can just pick it up at any point, find a topic you want to "dig in deep and REALLY think about," and go ahead and read about it. My best friend and I once had a 4 1/2hr conversation discussing two pages in this book. I recommend this book to somebody who's just getting into philosophy, because it's definitely not the "easiest" of reads, however there's a wealth of knowledge in it's context, from one who the Dalai Llama deemed to be, "one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century."

[Philen Naidu · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a thinker! This book will rattle your brain in many new directions and will strip away so much conditioned thinking. This is not for the lighthearted. If you enjoy philosophy, you need to read this.

[Lewis Manalo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the five books I took with me when I first deployed to Afghanistan. A record of talks Krishnamurti held, the book can get repetitive as people in his audience keep asking the same questions over and over. The questioners also ask such metaphysically weighty questions with no sense of irony that the book feels a little dated.

That said, Krishnamurti is an amazing thinker, influential to many of the spiritual writers of today - and to Bruce Lee, which is how I discovered him. His iconoclastic sense of religion sets the seeker him or herself as the authority, asking the question "what would you believe in if there was no religion?" Krishnamurti keeps having to remind his audience to think for themselves, and not to pay too much attention to what he himself is teaching. (That reminded me of that scene in THE LIFE OF BRIAN when the crowd keeps shouting back everything Brian says.)

If the title doesn't scare you or make you chortle with disdain, this book can change your life. The Theosophists raised Krishnamurti to believe that he was the reincarnation of Jesus Christ (according to a Herald Tribune article I read.) That Krishnamurti turned his back on his Theosophist background speaks volumes on how he must have reached his conclusions.

[مريم · Rating 4 out of 5]

"ألم يخطر ببالك أبداً أن تتساءل لماذا لم يمتلك الإنسان إلى الآن تلك القدرة ؟ وهو الذي عاش لملايين السنين ، لماذا لم يمتلك حتى الآن تلك الزهرة الاستثنائية التي لا تذبل ؟"


كانت تجربة جديدة من نوعها . تكلم عن مفاهيم كثيرة يمكن من أبرزها هو الشعور بالمسؤولية اتجاه المجتمع و"أن العالم هو الأنا والأنا هي العالم" وعند إدراك هذه الحقيقة سيتغير وعي الإنسان بالكامل ، أثناء القراءة ما كان يتطلب مني أني أفهم وبس كان يطلب مني الشعور بحقيقة الأمر وأعتقد هذا كان أصعب جزء ، أني أتجرد من كل شيء من الفكر اللي هو عبارة عن ماضي ومواقف على أساسها أنا أعيش وأحكم وأتصرف وهل أنا فعلاً بكون قادرة على الوصول لعقل هادئ بلا وقت ولا مستقبل ؟ من بداية الكتاب إلى نهايته كان عبارة عن تساؤلات بدون إجابة واضحة أو مباشرة ، دحض أفكار كثيرة وقال أن بفقدان الدين لمعناه ظهرت الحروب وأنكر الديانات والتقسيم والأحزاب اللي أنتجها الفكر لأن عشان تكون قادر للوصول للحقيقة تحتاج تتخلص من كل هالأفكار وتتجرد من العقل القديم ، وكان الإشكال بالنسبة لي في أنه ناقش كل هالمفاهيم بدون مايناقش فكرة الإيمان أنا كشخص مؤمن مافهمت أيش اللي بيتعارض مع إيماني ؟ ماوصلتني وجهة نظره في هالموضوع بس بشكل عام كان ممتع ، ويحتاج لذهن صافي تماماً . وباي ذا واي الترجمة سيئة 😂

[Seon Ji (Dawn) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant man.

Tagging this was difficult. It is not really "Psychology" but the best I could do for now.

JK does not give answers, but helps you to see and experience for yourself, the truth of reality, and how your mind works.

The book is apparently a transcription of his talks from 1971 and contains questions from his audience. I enjoyed the format and felt myself asking the same questions as his listeners.

JK says he is NOT a guru, is Not a "World teacher" and he has never claimed that he is enlightened. To me he is an extraordinary man, who has clear perception, and has enquired deeply into many things such as how the mind works, what thoughts are, suffering, conditioning, etc.

Many people have said he is a world teacher, in fact he was raised and trained to be one. But when presented for the first time, he declared, "I am Not a world teacher."

Highly recommended.

[Hermi Visser · Rating 1 out of 5]

I laboured through this book! It was a triumph in itself just to finish reading it! His audience seemed to be forever groping in the dark....he is very unattached to anything, doesn't read any books (one can see that clearly!), very self-opinionated, ask the same questions over and over again and always looked down upon anybody's viewpoint....sigh....I took about 9 months to labour through it....phew!

[Timothy Warnock · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is a simplicity and profoundness to Krishnamurti's talks, he often connects the topic back to root causes of the human condition. He offers a brilliant perspective of the nature of ego, security, suffering, and thinking itself. It is a profoundly simple message, yet eloquently conveyed with strong questions to break through the fears and egos that prevent the human mind from understanding something that is otherwise quite simple.

[Kamakana · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you like this review i now have website: www.michaelkamakana.com

211208: maybe not five because it becomes repetitive. when he is on, he is great. i might prefer Freedom from the Known as it is concise and covers similar ideas, but this collection of talks and q&a sessions gives sense of being together with other curious searchers, and k insists he is not 'leading' the talks but everyone is participating together. it is his name that goes on the book. one signal assertion is that k refuses to believe anyone, not himself even, can share this 'awakening' of intelligence and communicate some 'mechanical' process to achieve 'enlightenment' (word he does not like)...

an outgrowth of this belief is that the past, our past as culture, religion etc, and our past as individuals, cannot necessarily help us live tomorrow. that we have all been searching for security and so we apply 'thought' to create everything from fast cars, big houses, God (Brahama) to reincarnation and so on. we are afraid of tomorrow. k is not afraid of slamming 'eastern' thought for its errors (such as zen meditation being 'self hypnosis') as well as 'western' permissive society (drugs)....

for k the answer to our fragmented, confused, violent world is the 'awakening' of intelligence, an awareness he contrasts with 'mechanical' thought, which, while having achieved great things, is trapped within its own conceptual loop of dualities, valuations, and is not our living world. this answer is an awareness, not intellectual, that k connects primarily to love. it is not learned through concentration, meditation, but in the act of 'seeing' or being 'aware'...

this is indic philosophy, thus no firm line between philosophy and religion, and i compare it to the book on husserl just read Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Husserl and the Cartesian Meditations, for an interesting effect: this takes for granted that the important aspect of the world is human thought, it does not argue for it, also, rather than socratic give-take dialog the guru (or anti-guru) presents longer arguments to 'go into sir', to be assessed, argued, asserted...

to be there at these talks must have been engaging...

[Fatimah Mohammade · Rating 4 out of 5]

صحوة الذكاء/للكاتب والفيلسوف الهندي كريشنامورتي

نحن لسنا اذكياء لأننا نكون علاقات غير حقيقية نحن نكونها بسبب الخوف الناجم عن الرغبة أن لا نكون وحيدين او لنشبع حاجة جسدية انها التبعية للآخر، هذا ما يراه كريشنامورتي.

كما أننا لسنا اذكياء لاننا نلجأ للعنف الناشيء من الخوف ونخاف الموت لانه مجهول ونخاف المستقبل لانه غير واضح لنا، نحن بشر نعتمد على ذكريات الماضي العقل القديم ونربطها بالحاضر العقل الجديد، كيف نوقض الوعي لدينا ومااهمية المعارف والفكر لدى الانسان؟ لما البشر يميلون للعنف رغم انهم يمكن ان يعيشوا بسلام، تستاؤلات فلسفية عميقة تغور في النفس البشرية يسحبنا اليها كريشنامورتي خلال287صفحة.

الخوف مسألة معقدة كما يراها الفيلسوف وتحتاج الى بحث عميق دون الانصياع لأي افكار سابقة، فيوجد خوف جسدي ونفسي وكيف نتعامل معها، الخوف من فقد موقع اجتماعي الخوف من خسارة اشخاص نعتمد عليهم الخوف من عدم القدرة على الانجاز الخوف من اشياء كثيرة تجعل عقولنا في حساسية من الأذى، مما يؤدي الى بناء جدار لنفسه، فيكون خجولا جدا او عدوانيا اي مستعد للمهاجمة لفظيا او فكريا، بهدفية الحماية.

يقول كريشنامورتي:هل يمكننا اكتشاف معنى الحب؟لطالما كان السؤال ابديا، ولم يتمكن المرء من ايجاد جواب شاف له، فتجده يقول حب الخالق،حب الفكرة، حب المدينة، حب الجار، ولا اقصد انه لا تحب جارك، بل ان هذه من الامور اصبحت مجرد خيارات الاجتماعية، فالحب ليس امرا جديدا، وهو ليس من نتاج الفكر، اي المتعة، اي الفكر قديم وغير حر فهو استجابة للماضي.

وبنظري ان كريشنامورتي نظر الى المسألة برؤية فلسفية لكن من ناحية علمية الحب ناجم من العقل اي الفكر نحن نفكر قبل ان نحب بعض الاحيان يتشوش التفكير بسبب طغيان العواطف ويكون الحب ليس في محله الصحيح وقد تكون هناك الكثير من الاشارات التي تنبهنا الى ذلك لكن المرء يتغافل ويتخبط في مساره لكن مع الوقت يمكن ان يقدر ما جنى على نفسه.

نأتي على قول اخر لكريشنامورتي اجده من واقع البشر يقول: يقضي المرء معظم حياته في خوض صراع يعج بالتوتر والقلق والشعور بالذنب واليأس والشعور بالوحدة والحزن، انها حقيقة حياتنا التي لا نرغب بمواجهتها، فهل يمكن للعقل مواجهة ذلك كله وعدم مقاومته؟كان الجواب بسيطا كلاسيكيا بقوله:لذا، عندما ننظر لهذه الحياة كما هي،ألن يحدث التحول في ماهية الشي؟

فلسفة كريشنامورتي في الذات والعلاقات والخوف والذكاء والتأملات  تحتاج الى نفس طويل وفكر غير مشغول وشغوف لأن يقرأ الفلسفة البشرية، ويستطعم مذاقها المبهر.

#كتاب_من_مكتبتي
#ملخصي_حول_كتاب
#قراءة_كتاب

[martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Make no mistake, what Krishnamurti teaches is not another philosophical system - it is the end of all systems; it is the end of everything except love, which can operate only in an atmosphere of unselfishness and therefore freedom. The message is that the ending of sorrow is found in the cessation of self-interest which is the source of all conflict - self-interest including the desire to achieve even the most lofty spiritual ideals. If one has ever felt a longing to live completely without conflict, the type of self-examination Krishnamurti encourages could be revolutionary; but it would be a vast misunderstanding to credit his teaching as a step on the ladder to whom you wish to become.
On a practical note -- this happened to be the first book i picked up "by" him, and it is very thorough; however, the message is the same in all his books, some of which are much shorter.

[Sébastien Chagnon-jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most influential book I ever read, proof is I threw it against the wall !

[Sunny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of those paradigm shifting books you occasionally come cross. Jiddu challenges almost all of the fundamental norms and philosophical conventions you or I would typically live by. In many ways his style of discussion (this book comprised a series of lectures and exchanges he had with various audience members and specific individuals) was very Socratic in many places. My one main criticism would be that at times he comes across extremely arrogant to the point that you get the impression that anything the audience member said he would refute without thinking. One of his key points and brain shakers for me is his assertion of the inadequacy of thought and thinking. He believed that it was thought that gave us religion and it is thinking that’s behind the nationalism that we have in the world, and its thinking that separates us as individuals from the other etc etc. He cites may times the example of an observer looking at a beautiful image like a beautiful Himalayan mountain range and how when you look at that image and you are enraptured in the beauty of what you see, your "thinking" comes to a standstill. You have a hand, you use don't you? You don't actively think about using it. Why can't we extend this omnipresence of the mind beyond our nuclear being into the rest of the world, literally, he asks you? It reminds me of young Werther's response to the unrequited love of his life: "think of you? I never think of you. You are always before my soul!" If there is a dichotomy between you and the object of your observation then there will be conflict; it is this conflict which leads to the the inimical and tit for tat violence we swim in in this day and age. What is important is not to learn but to see truly. When you are truly present in the moment, time, thought, analysis, speculation, knowledge of past events relating to what you are looking at are made redundant. Jiddu also talks about topics such as inner revolution, relationships, meditation, the art of seeing, conflict, the pursuit of pleasure, good and evil, the sacred, time and space, order, understanding ourselves, loneliness, fear and intelligence.

[Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is basically a transcription of seminars from the early 70's concerning the nature of intelligence and how thought acts to drown it out, through the pursuit of pleasure and security, which produces a fragmentary world of conflicting concepts and illusions that removes one from the reality of the present. The ideas run parallel with the left brain/right brain concepts of modern neuroscience and the authors teachings are the bedrock of contemporary spirituality literature.
Although much of the book seems to be a repetition of the same basic premises, each new approach seems to contain a different explanation, which keeps it alive and enables one to have a multifaceted view that reinforces the ideas from different angles, and for that reason its worth expending the considerable energy required to keep up the level of concentration required.
I'd recommend the book for anyone left confused/disillusioned with philosophy/psychology/spirituality/religion/quantum physics or needs a more in-depth view of the human experience and the nature of perceived reality.

[Averill · Rating 2 out of 5]

This guy really loved to hear himself talk

[Kenny Guzman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Denzel is reading a book in one of his scenes in the historical autobiographic movie based on a legendary boxer from Paterson, Nj. The man recently passed away this year. But In the movie, Denzel is reading this very exact book in his cell block while awaiting appeal. Framed, coerced and wrongfully imprisoned, he held composure facing wild adversity and did the knowledge to eventually free himself. The movie is called hurricane carter.

Reading the book I got halfway till I realized I should be highlighting some of these gems, its complex yet simplistic. I wanted to highlight what resonates with me so I can review over with ease and clarity. So I figured I better painstakingly start this book over again; lemme say, by far one of the most enlightening books I've ever flipped thru, let alone throughly read from start to finish.. Gossshhh ..spending like 40 mins on 2 pages just reflecting on the severity of what's spoken

To read this is to have reached a level of patience and honesty within oneself. Because that very neurotic bias will disintegrate before the mind .. Ex: habitual modes of thought in valuation of imagery as it upholds a collective idolatry in society and in cultures abroad.. Now what the hell does that mean in our worldly affairs and relations if the container is indivisible to the contained; observer and the observed. Break it down to levels of the heart so it's felt

This book may be an uncomfortable read but give it a shot, chew it up. don't refute its complexities so quickly. Like fine wine let it value over time until those... " Ahaa! ..Moments hit u in between your thought patterns. The awakening..

[Cyberpayanee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one of the outanding spiritual books of the last century. This is also one of the books I will never finish reading. It is to be contemplated upon -not reading in the normal sense. The section pages 384 - 414 for me is favourite. Interview with Bohm at the lastpart is insightful. I have been with this book for several decades but re read when i need contemplation. In fact i have a few books that are favourite for reapeated study. Nissagar Datta maharaj's I am That, Ramana maharishi's talks with maharishi. J.k's Ending of Time and his another dialogue with Bohm called Transformation of Man are in this category.

[Eliza]

200 pages into this book and I finally have some idea what Krishnamurti is speaking about. He is writing about seeing and how this is different than learning and seeking, etc. "So what is important is not to learn, but to see and to listen... Then out of this listening you will find that all seperation between the observer and the observed comes to an end... If you can see, than you have nothing else to do, because in that seeing there is all discipline, all virtue, which is attention. And in that seeing there is all beauty and with beauty there is love."

[Man O'neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a heavy, lengthy and intense read. That being said...it gives one plenty of food for thought. I did find that it does require focus to understand the words of Krishnamurti...but it is not one of those books that just seems impossible to grasp. I don't know if Krishnamurti's philosophy is true or false, but it's definitely interesting and something to take into consideration. Very intriguing and eye-opening (I use that term loosley) at some points. I don't know what else to say after that. I could go into each specific issue one by one and give my reflections...but i don't want to.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me most of a year to read this book. And this was the second time I read it. It still is one of my all time favorite books. It's offers a full view of Krishnamurti's philosophy through transcripts of his talks in India and London. If you want to understadn why "thought is a prison" and why the images you hold about others interfere with your personal growth and realization of Truth and compassion, this is a good book to read. It's the kind of book you have to study and apply to yourself as you read it, if you want to benefit from reading it. I say go for it.

[Justin Podur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I came across Krishnamurti's name digging around in Bruce Lee's Tao of Jeet Kune Do. Krishnamurti is listed in there in one of Bruce's lists under "Mental Training". And that's what this is. Krishnamurti's reading is like meditation, spirituality, or mysticism, but without any of the obesiance to authority, supernatural claims, or mystification. I have gradually become more focused on social and political suffering and social and political solutions to human misery, but for help with trying to understand what doesn't fit into those categories, I find Krishnamurti to be helpful.

[Maryam · Rating 3 out of 5]

الكتاب ككل فيه مفاهيم جيده وتصف الواقع بدقه عاليه
لكن مو كل شيء ، فيه اجزاء عديده من الكتاب حسيت اني ابي اروح واتناقش مع سيد كريشنامورتي واجادله شخصياً فيها. فيه افكار واجد حسيت انها ماتنطبق تماماً على واقعنا ، كما انه كان يتكلم بشكل عام لكن بعمق؟ وبعض النقاط ما وضحت لي بعد وما عطاني جواب واضح وهو الشيء اللي كنت استناه طوال الوقت صراحه يعني كنت اتوقع شيء لكن يمكن انه الهدف نكتشف الجواب بأنفسنا.
ونقطه اخيره الترجمه حسيت فيها مشكله شوي 😬

[Josh Giunta · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKvz3B...


staggering brilliance...

"You are the world and the world is you"

'the world' is your mind's perception of the world...so then it's best to develope both your mind and therefore the world.
Reminds me of that P-Funk song... "free your mind and you ass will follow"

[Bryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This man may have single handedly changed my life. HIm and maybe a punk rock....

[John]

nonfiction,philosophy

[Gary Rosenbaum · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first Krishnamurri book. for me it was the best.