Krishnamurti: Let us examine the question of organizations. There is rather a nice story of a man who was walking along a street and behind him two strangers were following. As he walked along, he saw something very bright, picked it up and put it in his pocket. The two strangers observed his action, and one said to the other, ''This is a very bad business for you, isn't it?'' The other, who was the Devil, replied, ''No, though he picked up truth, I am going to help him organize it.'' Can truth be organized, or through any organization can you find it? Must you not go beyond and above all organization and beliefs to discover truth? Why do these so-called spiritual organizations, churches, exist? They are built around beliefs, dogmas, and so on, are they not? Beliefs and organizations are ever separating people, keeping people apart, as the Hindu and Muslim, as the Buddhist and the Christian. Belief, in any form, political or religious, throws up a barrier between man and man, inevitably bringing conflict and misery. Though the adherents of organizations and beliefs talk of brotherhood and love, they are the very people who will encourage and connive at the destruction of others.
Are such organizations necessary? You understand what I mean by organizations? I am referring to the psychological, so-called spiritual, religious organizations. Are they necessary? They exist on the supposition that they will help man to realize truth or God or what you will. They exist for propagandistic purposes, for conversion, for increase of membership, and so on; you want to tell others what you think or what you have learned or what appears to be the true. And can truth be propagated? If truth is propagated it ceases to be the true. Truth is to be experienced not according to any belief or pattern, and if experience is organized it ceases to be the true, it becomes a lie, so a hindrance to reality. The real, the immeasurable, cannot be formulated, the unknown cannot be measured by the known. When you measure it, it ceases to be the true; it is a lie and only a lie can be propagated. Organizations that are supposed to be based on the search for the real, when they become propagandists' instruments, they cease to be of any significance; not only the organization to which the questioner refers, but all so-called spiritual organizations become the means of exploitation. Such organizations become like any other business corporation, with buildings, investments, which become all-important. Truth is not to be found through any organization; truth comes into being when there is freedom. Belief in any form is the craving for security, and he who is seeking security cannot discover truth.
Whether I am a Messiah or not can be answered simply: I have never denied it and I do not think it matters very much what I think about it. What is important is to find out for yourself if my teachings are the truth. Do not judge by labels, do not give importance to the name; and whether I am the World Teacher or the Messiah or something else is of the least significance to you. If the name has become important, then you will miss the truth. One will assert that I am, and another that I am not, but your conflict, confusion, and sorrow are not solved by any of these assertions and denials. It is important, very important, to be earnest after the search of truth, for it gives freedom from strife and pain. The truth of my teachings can be discovered in your daily life, and truth is not distant but very near. The intellectual will not find it for he is caught in the net of his own knowledge which prevents his understanding; the man of devotion will not find it for he is caught in the confusion of his own image and emotion. He who is earnest will understand it.
The above is an extract of an interview by Jiddu Krishnamurti (JK) in 1947. Today as we stand, the Theosophical society (TS) has a small worldwide membership, sits on very expensive properties world over, and has been unable to make any distinct impact on the current world. Daily the memberships dwindle and the one thing the founders expressly never wanted, it has become a cult. A small group of people with their own methods, traditions, meetings, study materials and a language that most people don't grasp or find relevant to their lives.
Did the TS miss the boat? Should it have stripped itself of all the known to reach out to the teachings of JK? As we find around us a psychologically sick society, healthy people turning to lunatics, aren't JK's words and teachings even more relevant than before? If the purpose of the society was to promote free thought and self inquiry, who better than JK to lead such a noble aim.
Why does the TS not throw away all its trappings and put all its man-power, its money and its influence to spread JK 's teaching with greater force? Why not create more schools of the sort that He already created and promote non-competitive education?
The Bhagawadgita is eternal and so are the revelations of The Secret Doctrine. But they do not create a psychologically healthy being. They create dependency on beliefs and ideas. They are an escape from the world as it is.
More than ever before, the TS needs to get a make-over. As ad-nauseum Theosophists quote the literature, becoming more and more redundant to a world which has violence in it, if there is one thing the members of the TS need is to think, WHAT CAN THEY REALLY DO?
Repeating all the aphorisms of the greatest sages of the past has not helped, will not help. The man who is confused, craving, desirous, emotionally distraught, can't see beyond himself- needs empowerment- that he is enough to solve all his problems, looking inward and examining himself. He needs no organisation, no place of worship, no leaders.
A flower comes into being, beautiful for itself, basking under the blue skies, enjoying the breeze and one day withers and dies. That's all we are too.
Are such organizations necessary? You understand what I mean by organizations? I am referring to the psychological, so-called spiritual, religious organizations. Are they necessary? They exist on the supposition that they will help man to realize truth or God or what you will. They exist for propagandistic purposes, for conversion, for increase of membership, and so on; you want to tell others what you think or what you have learned or what appears to be the true. And can truth be propagated? If truth is propagated it ceases to be the true. Truth is to be experienced not according to any belief or pattern, and if experience is organized it ceases to be the true, it becomes a lie, so a hindrance to reality. The real, the immeasurable, cannot be formulated, the unknown cannot be measured by the known. When you measure it, it ceases to be the true; it is a lie and only a lie can be propagated. Organizations that are supposed to be based on the search for the real, when they become propagandists' instruments, they cease to be of any significance; not only the organization to which the questioner refers, but all so-called spiritual organizations become the means of exploitation. Such organizations become like any other business corporation, with buildings, investments, which become all-important. Truth is not to be found through any organization; truth comes into being when there is freedom. Belief in any form is the craving for security, and he who is seeking security cannot discover truth.
Whether I am a Messiah or not can be answered simply: I have never denied it and I do not think it matters very much what I think about it. What is important is to find out for yourself if my teachings are the truth. Do not judge by labels, do not give importance to the name; and whether I am the World Teacher or the Messiah or something else is of the least significance to you. If the name has become important, then you will miss the truth. One will assert that I am, and another that I am not, but your conflict, confusion, and sorrow are not solved by any of these assertions and denials. It is important, very important, to be earnest after the search of truth, for it gives freedom from strife and pain. The truth of my teachings can be discovered in your daily life, and truth is not distant but very near. The intellectual will not find it for he is caught in the net of his own knowledge which prevents his understanding; the man of devotion will not find it for he is caught in the confusion of his own image and emotion. He who is earnest will understand it.
The above is an extract of an interview by Jiddu Krishnamurti (JK) in 1947. Today as we stand, the Theosophical society (TS) has a small worldwide membership, sits on very expensive properties world over, and has been unable to make any distinct impact on the current world. Daily the memberships dwindle and the one thing the founders expressly never wanted, it has become a cult. A small group of people with their own methods, traditions, meetings, study materials and a language that most people don't grasp or find relevant to their lives.
Did the TS miss the boat? Should it have stripped itself of all the known to reach out to the teachings of JK? As we find around us a psychologically sick society, healthy people turning to lunatics, aren't JK's words and teachings even more relevant than before? If the purpose of the society was to promote free thought and self inquiry, who better than JK to lead such a noble aim.
Why does the TS not throw away all its trappings and put all its man-power, its money and its influence to spread JK 's teaching with greater force? Why not create more schools of the sort that He already created and promote non-competitive education?
The Bhagawadgita is eternal and so are the revelations of The Secret Doctrine. But they do not create a psychologically healthy being. They create dependency on beliefs and ideas. They are an escape from the world as it is.
More than ever before, the TS needs to get a make-over. As ad-nauseum Theosophists quote the literature, becoming more and more redundant to a world which has violence in it, if there is one thing the members of the TS need is to think, WHAT CAN THEY REALLY DO?
Repeating all the aphorisms of the greatest sages of the past has not helped, will not help. The man who is confused, craving, desirous, emotionally distraught, can't see beyond himself- needs empowerment- that he is enough to solve all his problems, looking inward and examining himself. He needs no organisation, no place of worship, no leaders.
A flower comes into being, beautiful for itself, basking under the blue skies, enjoying the breeze and one day withers and dies. That's all we are too.
Jiddu Krishnamurti spent more than 60 years talking, discussing and writing. In every recorded talk of his, he was desparately trying to set Man free. So much effort- a life time of effort. There is a mountain of his words available for all to hear and read. Do we need any more at the junction we are all at? We have enough to introspect on for a life-time.
I personally think its time to form one large Krishnamurti Foundation with nothing but the words of the teacher to lead it, dissolving the TS worldwide.
