Jiddu Krishnamurti
Jiddu Krishnamurti | |
|---|---|
Krishnamurti in the 1920s | |
| Born | 11 May 1895 Madanapalle, British India |
| Died | 17 February 1986 (aged 90) Ojai, California, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Relatives | Jiddu Narayanaiah (father) Jiddu Nityananda (brother) Annie Besant (adoptive parent) |
| Philosophical work | |
| Era | 20th-century philosophy |
| Region |
|
| Institutions | Krishnamurti Foundation (founder) |
| Notable works |
|
Jiddu Krishnamurti (/ˈdʒɪduː ˌkrɪʃnəˈmʊərti/ JID-oo KRISH-nə-MOOR-tee; 11 May 1895 – 17 February 1986) was an Indian spiritual speaker and writer. Adopted by members of the Theosophical Society as a child because of his aura as perceived by Theosophic leader Charles Leadbetter, "without a particle of selfishness in it,"[1] he was raised to fill the advanced role of World Teacher to aid humankind's spiritual evolution, but in his early 30s, after a profound mystical experience and a lasting change in his perception of reality, he rejected the worldview of the Theosophical Society and disbanded the Order of the Star in the East, which had been formed around him. He never explicitly denounced the role of World Teacher but mirrored its role in the mission he set himself upon,[2] spending the rest of his life speaking to groups and individuals around the world, aiming for a total transformation of mankind by awakening to this advanced state of being.[3][a][b][c] He gained a wider recognition in the 1950s, after Aldous Huxley had introduced him to his mainstream publisher and the publication of The First and Last Freedom (1954). Many of his talks have been published since, and he also wrote a few books himself, among them Commentaries on Living (1956–60) and Krishnamurti's Notebook (written 1961-62).
According to Krishnamurti an "immense energy and intelligence went through [used] this body,"[d] a consciousness which he called "the otherness," and which started to reveal itself with the onset of "the process,"[e] seizure-like painful episodes which started in 1922.[4][5][f] During his life he tried to share this experience in 'the teachings', famously asserting that "truth is a pathless land,"[6][7] urging for an immediate righteousness without conceptual deliberations and thought.[g] In Krishnamurti's perception, such a righteousness was only possible through a radical transformation of the mind, emphasizing the habit of choiceless awareness, wholeheartedly but with detachment observing the workings and limitations of the mind.[8][h] A few days before his death he stated that nobody had understood what his body went through, and after his death, this consciousness would be gone, and no other body would support it "for many hundred years."[d]
His supporters — working through non-profit foundations in India, Britain, and the United States — oversee several independent schools based on his educational philosophy and continue to distribute his extensive body of talks, dialogues, and writings in various media formats and languages.
- ^ Lutyens (1975), p. 15, 20–21.
- ^ Vernon (2001), p. 268.
- ^ Vernon (2001), p. 68.
- ^ Lutyens (1975), p. ch.18-21.
- ^ Vernon (2001), p. 124-128.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Corewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Rodrigues, Hillary (January 1996). "J. Krishnamurti's 'religious mind'". Religious Studies and Theology. 15 (1): 40–55.
- ^ Vas (2004), p. 26-29.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).