Issue 25 || 2021
Note on the Special Issue: The Journal of the Krishnamurti Schools has been in existence since 1997. It began with the intention of providing a forum for the teachers of Krishnamurti schools all over the world to share their experiences and insights in education. In the twenty-four volumes published thus far it has also had occasional contributions from other educationists, philosophers, anthropologists and artistes. This twenty-fifth volume is a special issue that commemorates 125 years of Krishnamurti. Making a departure from our customary compilation of articles written by teachers and educators, largely from the Krishnamurti schools, for this issue we have invited contributions from several eminent individuals. Representing a wide range of fields of endeavour, all of them have either met Krishnamurti, been deeply touched by his teachings, worked in the Foundations set up by him, or are otherwise conversant with his teachings. By their very nature, these pieces reflect the impact of Krishnamurti’s teachings on the authors’ lives as well as more generally on humanity. The ambit of this volume thus reaches well beyond the concerns of educating young people in schools, to the broader sense of an ‘education for humankind’, which was the raison d’etre of Krishnamurti’s life and mission.
What Do You Mean by Karma?
Written by J.Krishnamurti
Karma implies, does it not, cause and effect— action based on cause, producing a certain effect; action born out of conditioning, producing further results. So karma implies cause and effect. And are cause and effect static, are cause and effect ever fixed? Does not effect become cause also? So there is no fixed cause or fixed effect. Today is a result of yesterday, is it not? Today is the outcome of yesterday, chronologically as well as psychologically; and today is the cause of tomorrow. So cause is effect, and effect becomes cause—it is one continuous movement; there is no fixed cause or fixed effect. If there were a fixed cause and a fixed effect, there would be specialization; and is not specialization death? Any species that specializes obviously comes to an end.
The Inner Always Overcomes the Outer”: Editorial Essay
Written By O. R. Rao
This Journal of the Krishnamurti Schools was started in 1997 as an annual publication. You are now reading its twenty-fifth volume. The contributors to the Journal have been mostly teachers of the Krishnamurti schools, as well as educationists and philosophers who are interested in Krishnamurti’s vision of education.
Krishnamurti Fascinates Students of Vedanta
Written by Swami Chidananda
In the mid-1980s, I was deeply drawn to self-enquiry in the form of the exploration Who am I? as found in the literature of Shri Ramana Maharshi. After a few years, however, I felt I was hitting a blank wall where a lot of my intellectual unrest remained unanswered. It was then that the teachings of J Krishnamurti (to be referred to as ‘the teachings’ here onwards) made a significant contribution to my understanding of not only Ramana but also of classical Vedānta (the Upanishads and Shankara’s advaita or nondual interpretation).
My Association with Krishnamurti and the Impact of his Teachings
Written By Samdhong Rinpoche
I think this is a great opportunity to recall how I have been fortunate enough to see Krishnaji and have a long association with him. It was in 1971 that I was appointed as Principal of the Central Institute of the Tibetan Studies in Sarnath near Varanasi.
Krishnamurti and Tradition: Some Reflections on the Teachings of Krishnamurti
Written by Ravi Ravindra
In 1981 during a walk in Ojai, Krishnamurti turned to me and said, “What do you think is wrong with India?” By that time, I had learned the futility of trying to argue with him; I was more interested in his insights which emerged from a level of clarity far subtler than mine.
Happy is the Man Who is Nothing
Written By J. Krishanmurti
Deeply, inwardly, there may be a slow withering away; of this you may be unconscious or, being conscious, negligent. The wave of deterioration is always on the top of us, it does not matter who it is. To be ahead of it and meet it without reaction and be out of it requires great energy. This energy only comes when there is no conflict whatsoever, conscious or unconscious. Be very awake.
Krishnamurti’s Teachings Changed My Life
Written by Friedrich Grohe
I was privileged to have met Krishnamurti during the latter phase of my life; but even if I hadn’t, my attitude toward the teachings would be the same. In fact, it was coming upon the teachings that made the bigger impression on me. I was fascinated from the first book I read, and am still fascinated.
My Journey with Krishnamurti and the Teachings
Written By Gisele Balleys
In Saanen, a large group of people were sitting under a tent. Suddenly, there was a deep spontaneous silence. Krishnamurti came in. He sat on a simple wooden chair, dressed in European clothes. He looked at the large audience and started speaking in English. The vocabulary was new to me—phrases like ‘wholeness of life’, ‘looking without any image’ did not mean anything to me.
On Nature
Written by J. Krishanmurti
Every tree and flower has its own order, its own beauty; every hilltop and every valley has a sense of its own rhythm and stability. Though man tries to control the rivers and pollutes their waters, they have their own flow, their own far-reaching movement. Apart from man, in the seas, in the air and the vast expanse of the heavens there is an extraordinary sense of purity and orderly existence.
Pedagogy of Freedom
Written By Satish Kumar
The word ‘education’ is derived from Latin educare which means ‘to bring up’, ’to bring forth’ or ‘to draw out’. Thus, education doesn’t mean teaching, or schooling or giving of knowledge or even acquisition of knowledge. Education simply means the development of qualities which are already present. Socrates compared a teacher with a midwife who helps to bring forth the child.
Krishnamurti, Education and Unlearning
Written by Tim Boyd
All of these found a powerful contemporary voice in J. Krishnamurti. Unless one counts his many videos, audio recordings, and books, I was never in his presence. However, I have had a sense of being with him through stories and conversations with many people who worked closely with him, sat with him and discussed, shared ideas, and recited with him his beloved mantras.
The Sacred and the Everyday
Written By Meenakshi Thapan
I first encountered Krishnamurti when I was eighteen years old, studying Psychology at Delhi University. I was a young undergraduate, in search of another way of life, filled with confusion and yearning to be part of ‘something else’ which might help me understand what life is all about. I
The Core of the Teachings
Written by J. Krishanmurti
Man cannot come to it through any organization, through any creed, through any dogma, priest or ritual, not through any philosophical knowledge or psychological technique. He has to find it through the mirror of relationship, through the understanding of the contents of his own mind, through observation and not through intellectual analysis or introspective dissection.
Why I Value Krishnamurti’s Teachings
Written By Hillary Rodrigues
Although I am a professor of Religious Studies, my fondness for Krishnamurti’s teachings is not solely academic. About forty years ago, I worked with passion at a Krishnamurti school in Canada, before going on to a career in academia, during which I have written books and articles on Krishnamurti’s thought.
Don’t Look at Me! Test It Out!
Written by Thomas Metzinger
For the last two decades I have taught as a professor of philosophy at Johannes Gutenberg-Universität in Mainz, Germany. Throughout my academic career I have mostly specialized in the area of analytical philosophy of mind and cognitive science.
A Philosopher of the Self
Written By Raymond Martin
Is it possible to live without relying psychologically on authority—either on external authority or even on the authority of one’s own past experience? For Jiddu Krishnamurti that, suitably qualified, is the key question. His answer is that it is possible and that only in this way can one connect fully with what is real.
Listening, Looking, Learning
Written by J. Krishanmurti
If one listens…without effort, with clarity, then I think that very listening is the vehicle of action. You do not have to do anything about it – the very act of listening is action. It is like seeing something, it is like looking at a flower. We never actually look at a flower, because we look with our minds, with our thoughts, with our ideas, opinions, with our botanical knowledge of that flower.
The Sweep of History … and Krishnamurti’s Challenge
Written By Mark Edwards
My introduction to Krishnamurti came while I was at art school studying photography in the late 1960s. This was a wonderful time to be young; there was a feeling that everyone should re-invent themselves, and the world at large. It was OK to make mistakes but not to follow in other people’s footsteps—especially those of our poor, bewildered parents. Of course, we tripped up all the time—we were busy creating what we felt was an exciting, progressive culture, expressed in music, the arts and science.
Working with Insights from Krishnamurti: Reflections of a ‘Rolling Stone’Working with Insights from Krishnamurti: Reflections of a ‘Rolling Stone’
Written By G Ananthapadmanabhan
In 2016, I was at The School to give a talk at the annual teachers’ conference of the Krishnamurti schools. My talk was scheduled after the morning tea break. When I arrived, it was tea time. I caught up with many people whom I had not seen in some time. The feelings were warm and affectionate. The conversation lively, cheerful and energetic. On that morning, I felt very much at home and in some ways the eighteen years that had elapsed since I left the school had not happened at all!
“I Want to Know What Truth Is”: Lessons Learnt from Krishnaji
Written By Kiran Khalap
It was 1975. I was seventeen years old.
I stood before our family deity, Goddess Shantadurga, in the inner sanctum of her temple in Dhargal, Goa, our family home, along with my Dad.
On Sorrow
Written By J. Krishanmurti
We are concerned with the whole existence of man and whether a human being can ever be free from his travail, his efforts, his anxieties, violence and brutality, and whether there is an end to sorrow. Why have human beings, throughout the ages, sustained and put up with suffering? Can there be an ending to it all?
What is Krishnamurti Saying?: A Personal and Unending ‘Distillation’
Written By David Skitt
Over the years as one of the KFT editors, I have naturally read or listened to a great deal of K material, though very far from anything like the total of it—estimated as equal to four hundred average-sized books—only half of which is available electronically. Any attempt to summarise this massive output seems, therefore, practically impossible.
Krishnamurti: The Uncharted Voyage
Written By Donald Creedon
There is an old Irish story. In ancient days a certain clan was beset by a wasting sickness. It was not only physical but the very souls of the people were afflicted. A young man was tasked with finding the solution. He was told by the wise old woman that he had to go to the other world and drink from the waters of the well.
An Education for Mankind
Written By Javier Gomez Rodriguez
The current state of the world is marked by a series of global challenges whose gravity turns them into veritable crises. These crises are not due to natural phenomena but are the direct result of human action. They are the outcome of our conflicted relationships with nature, with things, with each other and with ideas.
Dharma and Svadharma in the Teachings of J Krishnamurti
Written By Stephen Smith
One of the last things Krishnamurti said was, “Keep the teachings clean and look after the land,” a statement as remarkable for what it leaves out as it is for the two things he mentions expressly.
On Goodness
Written By J. Krishanmurti
To bring about a good society has been the dream of ancient Hindus, the ancient Greeks and Egyptians. And a good society can only exist when mankind is good because being good he creates goodness, brings about goodness in his relationship, in his actions, in his way of life.