Jiddu Krishnamurti

Jiddu Krishnamurti
J. Krishnamurti cir. 1920s
Born	May 12, 1895 (1895-05-12) Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, India
Died	February 17, 1986 (1986-02-18) (aged 90) Ojai, California
Occupation(s)	public speaker, author, philosopher
Parent(s)	Narainiah and Sanjeevamma Jiddu

Jiddu Krishnamurti (Template:Lang-te) or J. Krishnamurti (Template:Lang-te) or (Template:Lang-ta), (May 12, 1895–February 17, 1986) was a renowned writer and speaker on philosophical and spiritual subjects. His subject matter included: psychological revolution, the nature of the mind, meditation, human relationships, and bringing about positive change in society. He constantly stressed the need for a revolution in the psyche of every human being and emphasized that such revolution cannot be brought about by any external entity, be it religious, political, or social.

Krishnamurti was born into a Telugu Brahmin family in what was then colonial India. In early adolescence, he had a chance encounter with prominent occultist and high-ranking Theosophist C.W. Leadbeater in the grounds of the Theosophical Society headquarters at Adyar in Madras (now Chennai). He was subsequently raised under the tutelage of Annie Besant and C.W. Leadbeater, leaders of the Society at the time, who believed him to be a "vehicle" for an expected World Teacher. As a young man, he disavowed this idea and dissolved the worldwide organization (the Order of the Star) established to support it. He claimed allegiance to no nationality, caste, religion, or philosophy, and spent the rest of his life traveling the world as an individual speaker, speaking to large and small groups, as well as with interested individuals. He authored a number of books, among them The First and Last Freedom, The Only Revolution, and Krishnamurti's Notebook. In addition, a large collection of his talks and discussions have been published. His last public talk was in Madras, India, in January 1986, a month before his death at his home in Ojai, California.

His supporters, working through several non-profit foundations, oversee a number of independent schools centered on his views on education – in India, Great Britain and the United States – and continue to transcribe and distribute many of his thousands of talks, group and individual discussions, and other writings, publishing them in a variety of formats including print, audio, video and digital formats as well as online, in many languages.

Biography

Family background and childhood

Jiddu Krishnamurti came from a family of Telugu-speaking Brahmins. His father, Jiddu Narainiah, was employed as an official of the then colonial British Administration. Krishnamurti was very fond of his mother, Sanjeevamma, who died when he was ten. His parents were second cousins, having a total of eleven children, only six of whom survived childhood. They were strict vegetarians, even shunning eggs, and throwing away any food that the "shadow of an Englishman had crossed".

He was born on May 12, 1895 in the small town of Madanapalle in Chittoor District in Andhra Pradesh. As the eighth child, who happened to be a boy, he was, in accordance with common Hindu practice, named after Sri Krishna.

In 1903, the family settled in Cudappah, where Krishnamurti during a previous stay had contracted malaria, a disease with which he would suffer recurrent bouts over many years. He was a sensitive and sickly child; "vague and dreamy", he was often taken to be mentally retarded, and was beaten regularly at school by his teachers and at home by his father. Several decades later, Krishnamurti referred to his state of mind during childhood: "...Ever since he was a boy it had been like that, no thought entered his mind. He was watching and listening and nothing else. Thought with its associations never arose. There was no image-making. ...[H]e attempted often to think but no thought would come." Writing about his childhood and early adolescence in memoirs he composed when he was eighteen years old, Krishnamurti described psychic experiences, such as "seeing" his sister, who had died in 1904, and also his mother, who had died in 1905. Another aspect of his childhood was his bond with nature that continued throughout his life: "...He always had this strange lack of distance between himself and the trees, rivers and mountains. It wasn't cultivated."

Krishnamurti's father Narainiah retired at the end of 1907, and, being of limited means, wrote to Annie Besant, then president of the Theosophical Society, seeking employment at the Society headquarters estate at Adyar. Although he was an observant orthodox Brahmin, Narainiah had been a member of the Theosophical Society since 1882. He was eventually hired by the Society as a clerk, and he moved his family there in January, 1909. Narainiah and his sons were at first assigned to live in a small cottage that lacked adequate sanitation and which was located just outside the Theosophical compound. As a result of poor living conditions, Krishnamurti and his brothers were soon undernourished and infested with lice.

The "discovery" and its consequences

It was in late April or early May 1909, a few months after the last move, that Krishnamurti first met C.W. Leadbeater, who claimed clairvoyance. During his forays to the Theosophical estate's beach at the nearby Adyar river, Leadbeater had noticed Krishnamurti (who also frequented the beach with others), and was amazed by the "most wonderful aura he had ever seen, without a particle of selfishness in it". This strong impression was notwithstanding Krishnamurti's outward appearance, which, according to eyewitnesses, was pretty common, unimpressive, and unkempt. The boy was also considered "particularly dim-witted"; he often had "a vacant expression" that "gave him an almost moronic look". Leadbeater remained "unshaken" that the boy would become "a spiritual teacher and a great orator".

Pupul Jayakar, in her biography of Krishnamurti, quotes him speaking of that period in his life some 75 years later: "...The boy had always said, 'I will do whatever you want'. There was an element of subservience, obedience. The boy was vague, uncertain, woolly; he didn't seem to care what was happening. He was like a vessel, with a large hole in it, whatever was put in, went through, nothing remained."

Following his "discovery", Krishnamurti was taken under the wing of the leadership of the Theosophical Society in Adyar and their inner circle. Leadbeater and a small number of trusted associates undertook the task of educating, protecting, and generally preparing Krishnamurti as the "vehicle" of the expected World Teacher. Krishnamurti (or Krishnaji as he was often called) and his younger brother Nitya were privately tutored at the Theosophical compound in Madras, and later exposed to a comparatively opulent life among a segment of European high society, as they continued their education abroad. In spite of his history of problems with school work and concerns about his capacities and physical condition, the fourteen-year-old Krishnamurti within six months was able to speak and write competently in English.

During this time, Krishnamurti had developed a strong bond with Annie Besant, and came to view her as a surrogate mother. Apart from his early close relationship with his mother, this was the first of several important and intimate relationships that Krishnamurti established with women during his lifetime. His father, pushed into the background by the swirl of interest around Krishnamurti, sued the Theosophical Society in 1912 to protect his parental interests. After a protracted legal battle, Besant took custody of Krishnamurti and his brother Nitya. As a result of this separation from his family and home, Krishnamurti and his brother became extremely close, and in the following years they often traveled together.

The Theosophical Leadership in 1911 established a new organization called the Order of the Star in the East, to prepare the world for the aforementioned "Coming". Krishnamurti was named as its head, with senior Theosophists in various positions. Membership was open to anybody who accepted the doctrine of the Coming of the World Teacher – however, most of the early members were also members of the Theosophical Society. Controversy erupted soon after, both within the Theosophical Society and without, in Hindu circles and the Indian press.

Growing up

Mary Lutyens, in her biography of Krishnamurti, states that there was a time when he fully believed that he was to become the World Teacher after correct spiritual and secular guidance and education. Another biographer describes the daily program imposed on him by Leadbeater and his associates, which among other things included rigorous exercise and sports, tutoring in a variety of school subjects, Theosophical and religious lessons, yoga and meditation, as well as instruction in proper hygiene and the ways of British society and culture. Unlike sports, where he showed natural aptitude, Krishnamurti always had problems with formal schooling and was not academically inclined. He eventually gave up university education after several attempts at admission. He did take to foreign languages, eventually speaking several (French and Italian among them) with some fluency. In this period, he apparently enjoyed reading parts of the Old Testament, and was impressed by some of the Western classics, especially Shelley, Dostoyevsky and Nietzsche. He also had, since childhood, considerable observational and mechanical skills, being able to correctly disassemble and reassemble complicated machinery.

His public image, as originally cultivated by the Theosophists, "...was to be characterized by a well-polished exterior, a sobriety of purpose, a cosmopolitan outlook and an otherworldly, almost beatific detachment in his demeanor." And in fact, "...All of these can be said to have characterized Krishnamurti's public image to the end of his life." It was apparently clear early on that he "...possessed an innate personal magnetism, not of a warm physical variety, but nonetheless emotive in its austerity, and inclined to inspire veneration." However, as Krishnamurti was growing up, he showed signs of adolescent rebellion and emotional instability, chafing at the regimen imposed on him, and occasionally having doubts about the future prescribed him.

Krishnamurti and Nitya were taken to England for the first time in April 1911, where Krishnamurti gave his first public speech, to young members of the Order. Between that time and the start of World War I in 1914, they also visited several other European countries, always accompanied by Theosophist chaperones. After the war, Krishnamurti (again accompanied by his brother) embarked on a series of lectures, meetings, and discussions around the world relating to his duties as the head of the Order Of The Star. The content of his talks at the time revolved around the Work of the Order and of its members in preparation for the "Coming", while his vocabulary reflected the prevailing Theosophical concepts and terminology. In the beginning he was described as a halting, hesitant, and repetitive speaker, but there was steady improvement in his delivery and confidence, and he gradually took command of the meetings.

In 1922, Krishnamurti and Nitya travelled from Sydney to California on their way to Switzerland. While in California, they lodged at a cottage in then relatively secluded Ojai Valley, offered to them for the occasion by an American member of the Order. At Ojai, the brothers also met Rosalind Williams, the sister of a local Theosophist, who eventually became close to them both. For the first time the brothers were without immediate supervision by their Theosophical Society minders; they spent their time in nature hikes and picnics with friends, spiritual contemplation, and planning their course within the World Teacher Project. Krishnamurti and Nitya found the Ojai Valley to be very agreeable, and eventually a trust, formed by supporters, purchased for them the cottage and surrounding property, which henceforth became Krishnamurti's official place of residence.

It was in Ojai, in August 1922, that Krishnamurti went through an intense, "life-changing" experience. It has been simultaneously, and invariably, characterised as a spiritual awakening, a psychological transformation, and a physical conditioning. Krishnamurti and those around him would refer to it as "the process", and it continued, at very frequent intervals and varying forms of intensity, until his death. According to witnesses, it started on the 17th, with Krishnamurti complaining of extraordinary pain at the nape of his neck, and a hard, ball-like swelling. Over the next couple of days, the symptoms worsened, with increasing pain, extreme physical discomfort and sensitivity, total loss of appetite and occasional delirious ramblings. Then, he seemed to lapse into unconsciousness; actually, he recounted that he was very much aware of his surroundings and while in that state, he had an experience of mystical union. The following day the symptoms, and the experience, intensified, climaxing with a sense of "immense peace".

"...I was supremely happy, for I had seen. Nothing could ever be the same. I have drunk at the clear and pure waters and my thirst was appeased. ...I have seen the Light. I have touched compassion which heals all sorrow and suffering; it is not for myself, but for the world. ...Love in all its glory has intoxicated my heart; my heart can never be closed. I have drunk at the fountain of Joy and eternal Beauty. I am God-intoxicated."

Similar incidents continued with short intermissions until October, and later eventually resumed regularly, always involving varying degrees of physical pain to mark the start of the "process", accompanied by what is variably described as "presence", "benediction", "immensity", and "sacredness", which was reportedly often felt by others present.

Several explanations have been proposed for the events of 1922, and the "process" in general. Leadbeater and other Theosophists expected the "vehicle" to have certain paranormal experiences, but were nevertheless mystified by these developments and were at a loss to explain the whole thing. During Krishnamurti's later years, the continuing "process" often came up as a subject in private discussions between himself and his closest associates; these discussions shed some light on the subject, but were ultimately inconclusive regarding its nature and provenance.

The "process", and the inability of Leadbeater to explain it satisfactorily, if at all, had other consequences according to biographer R. Vernon:

"The process at Ojai, whatever its cause or validity, was a cataclysmic milestone for Krishna. Up until this time his spiritual progress, chequered though it might have been, had been planned with solemn deliberation by Theosophy's grandees. ...Something new had now occurred for which Krishna's training had not entirely prepared him. ...A burden was lifted from his conscience and he took his first step towards becoming an individual. ...In terms of his future role as a teacher, the process was his bedrock. ...It had come to him alone and had not been planted in him by his mentors...It provided Krishna with the soil in which his newfound spirit of confidence and independence could take root."

Finally, the unexpected death of his brother Nitya on November 11, 1925 at age 27 from tuberculosis after a long history with the disease, fundamentally shook Krishnamurti's belief in Theosophy and his faith in the leaders of the Theosophical Society. According to eyewitness accounts, the news "...broke him down completely". He struggled for days to overcome his sorrow, eventually "...going through an inner revolution, finding new strength". The experience of his brother's death apparently shattered any remaining illusions, and things would never be the same again:

"...An old dream is dead and a new one is being born, as a flower that pushes through the solid earth. A new vision is coming into being and a greater consciousness is being unfolded. ...A new strength, born of suffering, is pulsating in the veins and a new sympathy and understanding is being born of past suffering - a greater desire to see others suffer less, and, if they must suffer, to see that they bear it nobly and come out of it without too many scars. I have wept, but I do not want others to weep; but if they do, I know what it means."

Break with the past

In the next few years Krishnamurti's new vision and consciousness continued to develop. New concepts appeared in his talks, discussions and letters, along with an evolving vocabulary that was progressively free of Theosophical terminology. The main themes in his meetings started to diverge from the well-defined tenets of Theosophy and the concrete steps the members of the Order had to undertake, and into more abstract and flexible concepts, which would be "Happiness" one year, "Questioning Authority" the next, or "Liberation" the following. His new direction reached a climax in 1929, when he rebuffed attempts by Leadbeater and Besant to continue with the Order of the Star. Krishnamurti dissolved the Order at the annual Star Camp at Ommen, the Netherlands, on August 3, 1929 where, in front of Annie Besant and several thousand members, he gave a speech saying among other things:

"You may remember the story of how the devil and a friend of his were walking down the street, when they saw ahead of them a man stoop down and pick up something from the ground, look at it, and put it away in his pocket. The friend said to the devil, 'What did that man pick up?' 'He picked up a piece of the truth,' said the devil. 'That is a very bad business for you, then,' said his friend. 'Oh, not at all,' the devil replied, 'I am going to help him organize it.' I maintain that truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. That is my point of view, and I adhere to that absolutely and unconditionally. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organized; nor should any organization be formed to lead or coerce people along a particular path."

and also:

"This is no magnificent deed, because I do not want followers, and I mean this. The moment you follow someone you cease to follow Truth. I am not concerned whether you pay attention to what I say or not. I want to do a certain thing in the world and I am going to do it with unwavering concentration. I am concerning myself with only one essential thing: to set man free. I desire to free him from all cages, from all fears, and not to found religions, new sects, nor to establish new theories and new philosophies."

Following the dissolution, some Theosophists turned against Krishnamurti and publicly wondered whether "...the Coming had gone wrong". Mary Lutyens states that "...After all the years of proclaiming the Coming, of stressing over and over again the danger of rejecting the World Teacher when he came because he was bound to say something wholly new and unexpected, something contrary to most people’s preconceived ideas and hopes, the leaders of Theosophy, one after the other, fell into the trap against which they had so unremittingly warned others."

Krishnamurti had denounced all organized belief, the notion of gurus, and the whole teacher-follower relationship, vowing instead to work in setting man absolutely, totally free. There is no record of him explicitly denying being the "World Teacher"; whenever he was asked to clarify his position, he either asserted the matter was irrelevant, or gave answers that, as he stated, were vague on purpose. In a reflection of the ongoing changes in his outlook, he had started doing so even before the dissolution of the Order of the Star. The subtlety of this distinction was lost on many of his admirers, many of whom were already bewildered or distraught because of the changes in Krishnamurti’s outlook, vocabulary and pronouncements – among them Annie Besant and Mary Lutyens' mother Emily. He eventually disassociated himself from the Theosophical Society and its teachings and practices, despite being on cordial terms with some of its members and ex-members throughout his life.

Krishnamurti would often refer to the totality of his work as "the" teachings and not as "my" teachings. His concern was always about "the" teachings: the teacher had no importance, and spiritual authority was denounced.

"All authority of any kind, especially in the field of thought and understanding, is the most destructive, evil thing. Leaders destroy the followers and followers destroy the leaders. You have to be your own teacher and your own disciple. You have to question everything that man has accepted as valuable, as necessary."

Krishnamurti returned all monies and properties donated to the Order of the Star, including a castle in Holland and 5,000 acres (20 km²) of land, to their donors. He spent the rest of his life holding dialogues and giving public talks around the world on the nature of belief, truth, sorrow, freedom, death and the quest for a spiritually-fulfilled life. He accepted neither followers nor worshipers, regarding the relationship between disciple and guru as encouraging dependency and exploitation. He constantly urged people to think independently and clearly, and invited them to explore and discuss specific topics together with him, to "walk as two friends". He accepted gifts and financial support freely offered to him by people inspired by his work, and continued with lecture tours and the publication of books and talk transcripts for more than half a century.

Middle years

From 1930 through 1944, Krishnamurti engaged in speaking tours and in the issue of publications under the auspice of the "Star Publishing Trust" (SPT), which he had founded with a close associate and friend from the Order of the Star, D. Rajagopal. The base of operations for the new enterprise was in Ojai, where Krishnamurti, Rajagopal, and Rosalind Williams (by then the wife of Rajagopal), resided in the house known as Arya Vihara. The business and organizational aspects of the SPT were administered chiefly by D. Rajagopal, as Krishnamurti devoted his time to speaking and meditation, "...content to leave all practical matters, which bored him, especially financial matters, in Rajagopal's undoubtebly capable hands." The Rajagopals' marriage was not a happy one, and the two became physically estranged after the birth of their daughter, Radha, in 1931. In the relative seclusion of Arya Vihara, Krishnamurti's close friendship with Rosalind deepened into a love affair that continued for many years, a fact that was not made public until 1991.

During this period of time, the first of several schools based on Krishnamurti's educational ideas opened in India. Proper, holistic education, and the overall rearing of children into "sane", "whole" individuals free of conflict, had been one of his major, and continuing concerns. This school and others in India and elsewhere continue to operate under the auspices of the Krishnamurti Foundations.

After the Dissolution of the Order and the break with Theosophy, there was no falling off of the audiences attending the talks, with new people taking the place of those that abandoned him, since several of the old devotees "...were unable to follow him in what seemed to them mists of abstraction.". New people also joined the camps, which were now open to the general public, and Krishnamurti was invited to many new parts of the world. Lutyens states that "...his audiences were to become, increasingly, of a different calibre, people interested in what he had to say, not in what they had been told he was".

Throughout the 1930s, Krishnamurti spoke in Europe, Latin America, India, Australia and the United States, garnering favorable interest, although in a few occasions he encountered hostility or opposition during this period of growing global turmoil. Another matter was the audience's apparent inability to grasp his message; he expressed exasperation over this both privately and publicly, and one of the reasons for his shifting vocabulary was part of the lifelong effort to convey the teaching in a way that was both precise and easy to understand. He wrote to Emily Lutyens that the meetings had "...quantity without quality" and he was vexed by the refusal of older Order of the Star and Theosophical Society members to let go of the past. He acknowledged that what he was saying could seem like just another hard-to-understand theory; he asked his audiences to act on it instead:

"...To awaken that intelligence there must be the deep urge to know but not to speculate. Please bear in mind that what to me is a certainty, a fact, must be to you a theory, and the mere repetition of my words does not constitute your knowledge and actuality; it can be but a hypothesis, nothing more. Only through experimentation and action can you discern for yourself its reality. Then it is of no person, neither yours nor mine."

Krishnamurti introduced several important new concepts and terms which became recurrent themes in later talks and discussions. One such was the idea of "choiceless awareness", a type of awareness that is from "moment to moment", without the implicit or explicit choices that accompany biases or judgments. Another new concept was his challenge of the existence of a division between the conscious and the subconscious mind, maintaining that such division is a man-made one, and that in reality there is only a single consciousness. Spurred by the relative isolation at Ojai, and the long sessions of meditation he was engaging in daily, Krishnamurti started talking about "right meditation". He would touch on this subject in practically every subsequent talk or discussion.

In 1938, he made the acquaintance of Aldous Huxley, who had arrived from Europe during 1937. The two began a close friendship which endured for many years. They held common concerns about the imminent conflict in Europe which they viewed as the outcome of the pernicious influence of nationalism. Krishnamurti's stance on World War II was often construed as pacifism and even subversion during a time of patriotic fervor in the United States, and for a time he came under surveillance by the FBI. He did not speak publicly for a period of about four years (between 1940 and 1944). During this time he lived and worked quietly at Arya Vihara, which during the war operated as a largely self-sustaining farm, with its surplus goods donated for relief efforts in Europe. Of the years spent in Ojai during the war, he was later to say: "I think it was a period of no challenge, no demand, no outgoing. I think it was a kind of everything held in; and when I left Ojai it all burst."

Krishnamurti broke the hiatus from public speaking in May 1944 with a series of talks in Ojai, which would become a regular venue for his talks and discussions. These talks, and subsequent material, were published by "Krishnamurti Writings Inc" (KWINC), the successor organization to the "Star Publishing Trust". This was to be the new central Krishnamurti-related entity worldwide, whose sole purpose was the dissemination of the teaching. Krishnamurti continued introducing new concepts and concerns that were to become constants in his later talks, like the idea that there is no "duality" between the observer and the observed, or between the thinker and the thought. He had remained in contact with associates from India, and in the autumn of 1947 embarked upon a speaking tour there, attracting a new following of young intellectuals. It was also on this trip that he first encountered the Mehta sisters, Pupul and Nandini, who became lifelong associates and confidantes. The sisters also attended to Krishnamurti throughout a 1948 recurrence of the "process" in Ootacamund.

Krishnamurti continued to attract the attention (and occasionally the unwanted admiration) of large numbers of people in public lectures and personal interviews. This was especially true in India, which had a long tradition of wandering "holy" men, hermits, and independent religious teachers, a number of who met Krishnamurti, or otherwise regarded him favorably. He became friendly, and in the following decades had a number of discussions with, well known Hindu and Buddhist scholars and leaders, several of which were later published as books or as parts of books. Although Krishnamurti had a special tenderness for the true sannyasi or Buddhist monk, his criticism of their rituals, disciplines, and practices was devastating. He also met with many other prominent personalities, including the then young Dalai Lama, and prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

Later years

Krishnamurti continued speaking around the world, in public lectures, group discussions and with concerned individuals. His inner life was also active with continuing occurences of the "process" throughout 1961, first while in Great Britain, and then in Switzerland. In the early 1960s, he made the acquaintance of respected physicist David Bohm, whose philosophical and scientific concerns regarding the essence of the physical world, and the psychological and sociological state of mankind, found parallels in Krishnamurti's philosophy. The two men soon became close friends and started a common inquiry, in the form of personal dialogues - and occasionally in group discussions with other participants - that periodically continued over nearly two decades. Several of these discussions were published in the form of books or as parts of books, and introduced a wider audience (among scientists) to Krishnamurti's ideas than was previously the case. Through Bohm, Krishnamurti also met, and held discussions with, several other members of the scientific community. Their long friendship went through a rocky interval in later years, and although they overcame their differences and remained friends until Krishnamurti's death, the relationship did not reattain its previous intensity. However, one result of Krishnamurti's contact with Bohm and the scientific community was the introduction of greater precision in his vocabulary, and the carefully defined use of terms such as "consciousness".

In the early 1960s, his associates again started noticing deep changes in Krishnamurti. Jayakar wrote that "...He would never be the same again. The Krishnaji who had laughed with us, walked with us ...this Krishnaji would vanish. A new Krishnaji would emerge-stern, impatient, questioning. ...He would be compassionate, but he would also be the teacher, demanding answers to fundamental questions. All great laughter and play had ended." His audience was also changing: reflecting the cultural changes of the 1960s, which included an intensified search for alternative lifestyles and experiences, there was a noticeable influx of young people in his talks and discussions. Krishnamurti’s evolving philosophy apparently proved too austere and rigorous for many of the new young participants; however new regular gatherings, such as the ones at Saanen, Switzerland, eventually became a focus for "...serious ...people concerned with the enormous challenges to humankind".

Along with his changing audience and outlook, Krishnamurti's subject matter had evolved to encompass several new and different concepts: the idea that individuality is an illusion, the notion that true love, beauty, peace, and goodness, had no opposites - such duality being only a construct of thought - and the need for a "radical" mutation. In the early 1970s he mentioned that the new approach represented an "...unfolding ...the teaching is in the same direction" but "...it is holistic rather than an examination of detail". The fundamental teachings remained unchanged. In late 1980, he took the opportunity to reaffirm the basic elements of his message in a written statement that came to be known as the "Core of the Teaching". An excerpt follows:

"The core of Krishnamurti's teaching is contained in the statement he made in 1929 when he said: 'Truth is a pathless land'. Man cannot come to it through any organization, through any creed, through any dogma, priest or ritual, nor 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. Man has built in himself images as a sense of security—religious, political, personal. These manifest as symbols, ideas, beliefs. The burden of these dominates man's thinking, relationships and his daily life. These are the causes of our problems for they divide man from man in every relationship."

In the 1970s, Krishnamurti met several times with then Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi, with whom he had far ranging, and apparently, in some cases very serious discussions. His true impact on Indian political life is unknown; however Jayakar considers his attitude and message on meetings with Indira Gandhi as a possible influence in the lifting of certain emergency measures Mrs. Gandhi had imposed during periods of political turmoil.

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Krishnamurti and his associates re-organized previous institutions into four geographically dispersed non-profit Foundations, designated the Official bodies responsible for disseminating the teachings and sponsoring the schools. Meanwhile, Krishnamurti's once close relationship with the Rajagopals had deteriorated to the point where Krishnamurti took D. Rajagopal to court in order to recover donated property and funds, publication rights for his works, manuscripts, and personal correspondence, that were in Rajagopal's possession. The litigation and ensuing cross complaints, which formally began in 1971, continued for many years. A substantial portion of materials and property was returned to Krishnamurti during his lifetime; the parties to this case finally settled all other matters in 1986, shortly after his death.

From the late 1960s on, and continuing until his death, Krishnamurti and close associates engaged in private discussions - some of which have been at least partially made public - regarding himself, his "discovery", his later development, the meaning of the continuing "process" - and the source of the teaching. It seemed that Krishnamurti "...in later life begun to delve into the mystery of his background in an attempt to come to terms with his own uniqueness." The discussions also broached subjects that Krishnamurti would not usually approach in public, such as the existence of evil, a feeling of "protection" he had, or the nature of the "otherness" – the non-personified "presence" that he, and sometimes others around him, felt.

In 1984 and again in 1985 he spoke to an invited audience at the United Nations in New York, under the auspices of the Pacem in Terris Society chapter at the UN. His remarkable resilience - after life-long, almost constant travel, and despite a lifetime of frail physical health - was finally showing signs of abating. In November 1985 he visited India for the last time, holding a number of what came to be known as "farewell" talks and discussions between then and January 1986. These last talks included the fundamental questions he had been asking through the years, as well as newer concerns related to then recent advances in science, technology, and the way they affected humankind. Krishnamurti had commented to friends that he did not wish to invite death, but was not sure how long his body would last (he had already lost considerable weight), and once he could no longer talk, he would have no further purpose. In his final talk, on January 4, 1986, in Madras, he again invited the audience to examine with him the nature of inquiry, the effect of technology, the nature of life and meditation, and the nature of creation:

"...That computer can do almost anything that man can do. It can make all your gods, all your theories, your rituals; it's even better at it than you will ever be. So, the computer is coming up in the world; it's going to make your brains something different. You've heard of genetic engineering; they're trying, whether you like it or not, to change your whole behaviour. That is genetic engineering. They are trying to change your way of thinking. When genetic engineering and the computer meet, what are you? As a human being what are you? Your brains are going to be altered. Your way of behaviour is going to be changed. They may remove fear altogether, remove sorrow, remove all your gods. They're going to; don't fool yourself. It all ends up either in war or in death. This is what is happening in the world actually. Genetic engineering on the one side and the computer on the other, and when they meet, as they're inevitably going to, what are you as a human being? Actually, your brain now is a machine. You are born in India and say: `I'm an Indian.' You are encased in that. You are a machine. Please don't be insulted. I'm not insulting you. You are a machine which repeats like a computer. Don't imagine there is something divine in you - that would be lovely - something holy that is everlasting. The computer will say that to you too. So, what is becoming of a human being? What's becoming of you?"

"...So, we are enquiring into what makes a bird. What is creation behind all this? Are you waiting for me to describe it, go into it? You want me to go into it? Why (From the audience: To understand what creation is[)]. Why do you ask that? Because I asked? No description can ever describe the origin. The origin is nameless; the origin is absolutely quiet, it's not whirring about making noise. Creation is something that is most holy, that's the most sacred thing in life, and if you have made a mess of your life, change it. Change it today, not tomorrow. If you are uncertain, find out why and be certain. If your thinking is not straight, think straight, logically. Unless all that is prepared, all that is settled, you can't enter into this world, into the world of creation."

Krishnamurti was also concerned about his legacy, about being unwittingly turned into some personage whose teachings had been handed down to special individuals, rather than the world at large. He did not want anybody to pose as an interpreter of the teaching. He warned his associates on several occasions that they were not to present themselves as spokesmen on his behalf, or as his successors after his death.

A few days before his death, in a final statement, he emphatically declared that "nobody" - among his associates, or the general public - had understood what had happened to him (as the conduit of the teaching), nor had they understood the teaching itself. He added that the "immense energy" operating in his lifetime would be gone with his death, again implying the impossibility of successors. However, he offered hope by stating that people could approach that energy and gain a measure of understanding "...if they live the teachings". In prior discussions he had compared himself with Thomas Edison, implying that he did the hard work, and now all was needed by others was a flick of the switch. In another instance he talked of Columbus going through an arduous journey to discover the New World, whereas now, it could easily be reached by jet; the ultimate implication being that even if Krishnamurti was in some way "special", in order to arrive at his level of understanding, others didn't need to be.

J. Krishnamurti died on February 17, 1986, at the age of 90, from pancreatic cancer. His remains were cremated and scattered by friends and former associates in the three countries where he had spent most of his life: India, England, and the United States of America.

Afterword

Interest in Krishnamurti and his work has persisted in the years since his death. Many of his books, as well as audio, video, and computer materials, remain in print and are carried by major online and traditional retailers. The four official Foundations continue with the maintenance of archives, dissemination of the teachings in an increasing number of languages, new conversions to digital and other media, development of websites, sponsoring of television programs, and with organizing meetings and dialogues of interested persons around the world. According to communications and press releases from the Foundations, their mailing lists, and individuals' inquiries, continue to grow. The various schools and educational institutions also continue to grow, with new projects added alongside their declared goal of holistic education. There are also active unofficial Krishnamurti Committees operating in several countries, as well as independent educational institutions based on his ideas. Biographies, reminiscences, research papers, critical examinations, and book-length studies of Krishnamurti and his philosophy have continued to appear. Cursory (and necessarily incomplete) examination of internet search traffic and group discussion forums indicates that among similar topics, interest on Krishnamurti remains high.

Nevertheless, in 1991, the autobiography Lives in the Shadow with J. Krishnamurti by Radha Rajagopal Sloss created negative publicity and controversy. In this instance, it was centered on the author's depiction of Krishnamurti's relationship with her parents, including a secret love affair between Krishnamurti and her mother Rosalind Williams-Rajagopal which had lasted for many years. The public revelation was received with surprise and consternation by many individuals, and was also dealt with in a rebuttal volume of biography by Mary Lutyens (Krishnamurti and the Rajagopals, see Other Biographies). Others, such as Helen Nearing, who had known Krishnamurti in his youth, questioned whether his attitudes were conditioned by privilege, as he was supported, even pampered, by devoted followers starting as far back as his "discovery" by the Theosophists.

The fact that Krishnamurti was, and perhaps still is, looked at by many people as a world teacher or guru is irony not lost on associates, detractors or biographers. In a similar vein, people who knew him in his youth found his eventual transformation hard to fathom, as Lutyens explained a few years before his death: "...I find hard to reconcile the shy gentleness and almost vacant mind of the sixteen-year-old-boy...with the powerful teacher who has evolved a philosophy that cannot be shaken by the most prominent thinkers of the day-particularly hard since there is so much of that boy remaining in the man." This naturally brings up the question of the source of Krishnamurti's inspiration and originality of his teaching, "...the mystery that he preferred not to clarify for fear it might be leapt on in judgement or cheapened by the spiritually ambitious".

Because of his ideas and his era, Krishnamurti has come to be seen as an exemplar of those spiritual teachers who disavow formal rituals and dogma. His conception of truth as a "pathless land", with the possibility of immediate liberation, has been mirrored, or has been claimed as an influence, in the work of diverse movements and personalities. However, his very emphasis on the uselessness - if not detriment - of outside help and guidance, occasionally caused some people to complain about his apparent lack of compassion. Krishnamurti often addressed these concerns, starting as far back as the 1920s: "...A surgeon who sees a disease that is eating up a man, says, in order to cure him I must operate. Another less experienced comes, feeds him and lulls him to sleep. Which would you call the more compassionate? You want comfort, that comfort which is born of decay." His own indication of success remained whether individuals truly understand, and therefore "live and breathe", the teaching. He had remarked in 1929, at the dissolution of the Order of the Star, that he was not interested in numbers, stating: "If there are only five people who will listen, who will live, who have their faces turned towards eternity, it will be sufficient."

Some recurrent themes

Knowledge

Krishnamurti constantly emphasized the right place of thought in daily life. But he also pointed out the dangers of thought when it becomes knowledge that acts as a calcified projection of the past. According to Krishnamurti, such action distorts our perception and full understanding of the world we live in, and more specifically, the relationships that define it.

"...Knowledge is necessary to act in the sense of my going home from here to the place I live; I must have knowledge for this; I must have knowledge to speak English; I must have knowledge to write a letter and so on. Knowledge as function, mechanical function, is necessary. Now if I use that knowledge in my relationship with you, another human being, I am bringing about a barrier, a division between you and me, namely the observer. That is, knowledge, in relationship, in human relationship, is destructive. That is knowledge which is the tradition, the memory, the image, which the mind has built about you, that knowledge is separative and therefore creates conflict in our relationship."

Fear and pleasure

Fear and pleasure were lifelong themes in his public talks. The following is an excerpt from a talk in San Diego in 1970.

"...Fear is always in relation to something; it does not exist by itself. There is fear of what happened yesterday in relation to the possibility of its repetition tomorrow; there is always a fixed point from which relationship takes place. How does fear come into this? I had pain yesterday; there is the memory of it and I do not want it again tomorrow. Thinking about the pain of yesterday, thinking which involves the memory of yesterday’s pain, projects the fear of having pain again tomorrow. So it is thought that brings about fear. Thought breeds fear; thought also cultivates pleasure. To understand fear you must also understand pleasure – they are interrelated; without understanding one you cannot understand the other. This means that one cannot say ‘I must only have pleasure and no fear’; fear is the other side of the coin which is called pleasure. Thinking with the images of yesterday’s pleasure, thought imagines that you may not have that pleasure tomorrow; so thought engenders fear. Thought tries to sustain pleasure and thereby nourishes fear. Thought has separated itself as the analyzer and the thing to be analyzed; they are both parts of thought playing tricks upon itself. In doing all this it is refusing to examine the unconscious fears; it brings in time as a means of escaping fear and yet at the same time sustains fear."

Meditation

Krishnamurti used the term "meditation" to mean something entirely different from the practice of any system or method to control the mind, or to consciously achieve a specific goal or state. He dealt with the subject of meditation in numerous public talks and discussions.

"...Meditation is one of the greatest arts in life-perhaps the greatest, and one cannot possibly learn it from anybody, that is the beauty of it. It has no technique and therefore no authority. When you learn about yourself, watch yourself, watch the way you walk, how you eat, what you say, the gossip, the hate, the jealousy-if you are aware of all that in yourself, without any choice, that is part of meditation."

Education

Krishnamurti founded several schools around the world. When asked, he enumerated the following as his educational aims:

1. Global outlook: A vision of the whole as distinct from the part; there should never be a sectarian outlook, but always a holistic outlook free from all prejudice. 2. Concern for man and the environment: Humanity is part of nature, and if nature is not cared for, it will boomerang on man. Only the right education, and deep affection between people everywhere, will resolve many problems including the environmental challenges. 3. Religious spirit, which includes the scientific temper: The religious mind is alone, not lonely. It is in communion with people and nature.

The world crisis

To Krishnamurti, the world crisis and its solution are the equal responsibility of every individual, everywhere. He often underscored this point by telling his audience, "you are the world", asserting that ultimately there is no escape from the fact that every individual can help in healing the world - by first healing themselves. Some excerpts:

"...And as we are - the world is. That is, if we are greedy, envious, competitive, our society will be competitive, envious, greedy, which brings misery and war. The State is what we are. To bring about order and peace, we must begin with ourselves and not with society, not with the State, for the world is ourselves. ...If we would bring about a sane and happy society we must begin with ourselves and not with another, not outside of ourselves, but with ourselves."

Selected publications

Apart from a few noted exceptions - see subsection below - the majority of Krishnamurti's books are edited transcripts of his talks and discussions, arranged either thematically, chronologically, by location, or in a combination of the above. Unless otherwise specified, the entries have been arranged by the publication date provided. (Format: Title, year of first publication, different editions: ISBN, notes)

Krishnamurti on Krishnamurti

• Krishnamurti's Notebook, 1976, Krishnamurti Publications of America expanded 2004 edition: ISBN 1-888004-63-0. Published journal that Krishnamurti kept between June 1961 and March 1962. [With the publication of this book, for the first time the general public was informed about the so-called "process", a strange condition that having started in the 1920s, intermittently affected Krishnamurti throughout his life].
• Krishnamurti's Journal, 1982, Harper & Row: ISBN 0-06-064841-4, LCC B5134.K765A34 1982. A personal journal, that was started in 1973 and kept intermittently until 1975.
• Krishnamurti to Himself: His Last Journal, 1987, HarperCollins 1993 paperback: ISBN 0-06-250649-8. Transcribed from audio tape recordings made at his home in the Ojai Valley between February 1983 and March 1984.

List of books

As noted previously, various official Krishnamurti-related entities have published, and continue to publish, transcripts of Krishnamurti's talks and discussions. These verbatim reports and transcriptions are not included here. The following listing includes all the books mentioned in the article and/or its footnotes, as well as several others that aroused special interest or concern.

• At the Feet of the Master: Towards Discipleship, 1910, Quest Books 2001 edition: ISBN 0-8356-0803-4. [The author of this book is also listed as "Alcyone". There is considerable scepticism among Krishnamurti's biographers and others about Krishnamurti's true role in the production of this and other works by so-called "Alcyone". Among other objections, a consensus of the sceptics considers such works as Theosophical literature].
• The Immortal Friend, 1928, New York, Boni & Liveright hardcover: no ISBN, Kessinger Publishing 2004 paperback edition: ISBN 1417978554. Poetry.
• The pool of wisdom, Who brings the truth, By what authority, and three poems, 1928, Eerde, Star Publishing Trust: no ISBN.
• Life in Freedom, 1928, New York, H. Liveright: no ISBN, Satori Resources 1986 reprint: ISBN 0-937277-00-2. Compiled from camp-fire addresses given in Benares, Ojai, and Ommen during 1928.
• Education and the Significance of Life, 1953, Victor Gollancz, HarperSanFrancisco 1981 edition: ISBN 0-06-064876-7. Krishnamurti’s educational ideas and concerns. [This was the first Krishnamurti book to be published by a commercial publisher].
• The First and Last Freedom, 1954, HarperSanFrancisco 1975 reprint: ISBN 0-06-064831-7. Includes a comprehensive foreword by Aldus Huxley.
• Commentaries on Living: Series One, 1956, New York, Harper, Quest Books 1994 edition: ISBN 0-8356-0390-3. The first of a three volume series which is subtitled From the notebooks of J. Krishnamurti, D. Rajagopal, editor.
• This Matter of Culture, 1964, Victor Gollancz hardcover: no ISBN. D. Rajagopal, editor. Also published as Think on these Things, 1970, Harper Perennial paperback: ISBN 0060916095.
• Freedom from the Known, 1969, HarperSanFrancisco 1975 reprint: ISBN 0-06-064808-2. M. Lutyens, editor.
• Early Writings: Volume 1, 1969, Chetana, Bombay: no ISBN. Compiles material from 1927 and 1928, originally published by the Star Publishing Trust in the Star Bulletin.
• The Only Revolution, 1970, Gollancz hardcover: ISBN 0-575-00387-1. M. Lutyens, editor.
• The Urgency of Change, 1970, HarperCollins hardcover: ISBN 0060648724. M. Lutyens, editor. Q&A Session with Alain Naude, who was Krishnamurti's personal secretary in the 1960s.
• The Impossible Question, 1972, Harper & Row: ISBN 0-0606-4838-X.
• You Are the World: Authentic Reports of Talks and Discussions in American Universities, 1972, Harper & Row: ISBN 0-06-080303-7, Krishnamurti Foundation India 2001 edition: ISBN 81-87326-02-6.
• The Awakening of Intelligence, 1973, Harper & Row paperback 1987: ISBN 0-06-064834-1. G. & C. Wingfield Digby, editors.
• Beyond Violence, 1973, HarperCollins College Div.: ISBN 0-06-064839-2.
• Krishnamurti on Education, 1974, New Delhi, Orient Longman, Krishnamurti Foundation of America 2001 edition: ISBN 81-87326-00-X. Talks and discussions with students and teachers of Rishi Valley and Rajghat schools in India.
• Beginnings of Learning, 1975, London: Gollancz: ISBN 0-5750-1928-X. Edited transcripts of Krishnamurti's discussions on education with students and staff at the Brockwood Park School, England.
• The Wholeness of Life, 1978, London, Gollancz: ISBN 0-0606-4874-0, HarperCollins 1981 paperback edition: ISBN 0-06-064868-6. Abridgement of discussions held between Krishnamurti, physicist David Bohm, and psychiatrist David Shainbert.
• Meditations, 1979, Harper & Row: ISBN 0-0606-4851-1, Shambhala Publications 2002 edition: ISBN 1-57062-941-2. Compilation of quotes/writings on meditation, Evelyne Blau, editor.
• From Darkness to Light: Poems and Parables: The Collected Works of Krishnamurti Volume One, 1980, Harper & Row: ISBN 0-06-064832-5. This is completely different from the Collected Works Volume 1 listed below.
• The Flame of Attention,1984, Harper & Row paperback: ISBN
• The Ending of Time, 1985, Harper & Row, San Francisco: ISBN 0-06-064796-5. Discussions with the physicist David Bohm.
• The Way of Intelligence, 1985, Krishnamurti Foundation India: ISBN 81-87326-47-6.
• The Future of Humanity: A Conversation, 1986, HarperCollins: ISBN 0-06-064797-3. Further discussions with the physicist David Bohm.
• Last Talks at Saanen, 1985, 1987, HarperCollins: ISBN 0-06-064798-1.
• The Future Is Now: Last Talks in India, 1989, HarperCollins: ISBN 0-06-250484-3. Includes edited versions of Krishnamurti's last public talks.
• A Wholly Different Way of Living: Krishnamurti in Dialogue With Professor Allan W. Anderson, 1991, Victor Gollancz: ISBN 0-575-05166-3. Includes discussions at San Diego State College in 1974.
• Total Freedom: The Essential Krishnamurti, 1996, HarperSanFrancisco: ISBN 0-06-064880-5. Introduction to Krishnamurti and selections from the breadth of his works, M. Cadogan, A. Kishbaugh, M. Lee, and R. McCoy editors.
• Limits of Thought: Discussions, 1999, Routledge, London: ISBN 0-415-19398-2. More discussions with the physicist David Bohm.
• To Be Human, 2000, Shambhala, paperback: ISBN 1-5706-2596-4. David Skitt, editor.
• Can Humanity Change?, 2003, Shambhala, paperback: ISBN 1-5706-2826-2. Subtitled J. Krishnamurti in dialogue with Buddhists, David Skitt, editor.
• The First Step is the Last Step, 2004, Krishnamurti Foundation India: ISBN 8187326565.

The Collected Works of J. Krishnamurti

This series consists of previously published talks, discussions, question and answer sessions, and other writings, covering the period from 1933-1967. Originally published as a stand-alone series, it has become part of The Complete Teachings Project, an effort by the Krishnamurti Foundations to create a cohesively edited collection of the entire body of Krishnamurti's works from 1933 onwards. It is estimated that the Complete Teachings would run to over 80 volumes.

• Volume I (1933–1934): The Art of Listening, 1991, Krishnamurti Foundation of America: ISBN 0-8403-6341-9
• Volume II (1934–1935): What Is the Right Action?, 1991, Krishnamurti Publications of America: ISBN 1-888004-32-0. Edward Weston, editor.
• Volume 3 (1936–1944): The Mirror of Relationship, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company: ISBN 0-8403-6236-6
• Volume 4 (1945–1948): The Observer Is the Observed, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6237-4
• Volume 5 (1948–1949): Choiceless Awareness, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6238-2
• Volume 6 (1949–1952): The Origin of Conflict, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6262-5
• Volume 7 (1952–1953): Tradition and Creativity, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6257-9
• Volume 8 (1953–1955): What Are You Seeking?, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6266-8
• Volume 9 (1955–1956): The Answer is in the Problem, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6260-9
• Volume 10 (1956–1957): A Light to Yourself, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6268-4
• Volume 11 (1958–1960): Crisis in Consciousness, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6272-2
• Volume 12 (1961): There is No Thinker, Only Thought, 1991, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6286-2
• Volume 13 (1962–1963): A Psychological Revolution, 1992, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6287-0
• Volume 14 (1963–1964): The New Mind, 1992, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6288-9
• Volume 15 (1964–1965): The Dignity of Living, 1992, Krishnamurti Foundation of America: ISBN 0-8403-6282-X
• Volume 16 (1965–1966): The Beauty of Death, 1992, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6307-9
• Volume 17 (1966–1967): Perennial Questions, 1992, Kendall/Hunt Publishing: ISBN 0-8403-6314-1

References

Principal biographies

Arranged alphabetically by author, then by publication date.

• Pupul Jayakar, Krishnamurti: A Biography, 1986, San Francisco: Harper & Row: ISBN 0-06-250401-0. Official biographer.
• Mary Lutyens, Krishnamurti: The Years of Awakening, 1975, London: John Murray: ISBN 0-7195-3229-9, Discus reprint, 1983: ISBN 0380007347, Shambhala reprint, 1997: ISBN 1-57062-288-4. Also official biographer. This first volume of a three-volume biography covers years from birth to 1935.
• Mary Lutyens, Krishnamurti: The Years of Fulfilment, 1983, London: John Murray: ISBN 0-7195-3979-X, Farrar, Straus, Giroux paperback: ISBN 0-374-18224-8, Avon Books reprint, 1991: ISBN 0-380-71112-5. Covers years 1935 to 1980.
• Mary Lutyens, The Open Door, 1988, London: John Murray: ISBN 0-7195-4534-X, Krishnamurti Foundation Trust, 2003: ISBN 0-900506-21-0. Covers years 1980 to 1986, the end of Krishnamurti's life.
• Mary Lutyens, The Life and Death of Krishnamurti, 1990, London: John Murray: ISBN 0-7195-4749-0, Nesma Books India, 1999: ISBN 81-87075-44-9, Krishnamurti Foundation Trust, 2003: ISBN 0-900506-22-9. Also published as Krishnamurti: His Life and Death, 1991, St Martins Press: ISBN 0-312-05455-6. An abridgement of her trilogy on Krishnamurti's life.

Other biographies/memoirs/reminiscences

A number of biographical works have been published. Most are by people who knew Krishnamurti at some point in his life, or/and were close associates for varying lengths of time. Others are posthumous scholarly works with or without the co-operation of the people close to him. The works below are listed by publication date.

• Candles in the Sun - Emily Lutyens, 1957, London: R. Hart-Davis, Philadelphia: Lippincott. Interesting memoir by Mary Lutyens' mother, Lady Emily, who had a long and very intimate relationship with Krishnamurti.
• The Boyhood Of J. Krishnamurti - Russell Balfour-Clarke, 1977, Bombay: Chetana. Reminiscences from one of the young Theosophists trusted with the boy Krishnamurti's upbringing.
• One Thousand Moons: Krishnamurti at Eighty-Five - Asit Chandmal, 1985, Harry N Abrams: ISBN 0-8109-1209-0. Also published, with additional material and updates, as One Thousand Suns: Krishnamurti and the Last Walk, 1995, Aperture: ISBN 0893816310. The author was a close friend and longtime associate of Krishnamurti in India.
• Krishnamurti: The Reluctant Messiah - Sidney Field and Peter Hay, 1989, Paragon House Publishers: ISBN 1-55778-180-X. The author originally met Krishnamurti in California in the 1920s.
• Truth Is A Pathless Land: A Journey with Krishnamurti - Ingram Smith, 1989, Theosophical Publishing House: ISBN 0-8356-0643-0. Also published, with additional material and updates, as The Transparent Mind: A Journey with Krishnamurti, 1999, Edwin House: ISBN 0-9649-2473-0.
• Krishnamurti: the man, the mystery & the message - Stuart Holroyd, 1991, Element paperback: ISBN 1-8523-0200-3.
• Lives in the Shadow with J. Krishnamurti - Radha Rajagopal Sloss, 1991, London: Bloomsbury, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley hardcover, 1993: ISBN 0-201-63211-X. A critical look at the private life of Krishnamurti by the daughter of erstwhile close associates D. Rajagopal and R. Williams-Rajagopal.
• Krishnamurti: 100 Years - Evelyne Blau, 1995, Stewart, Tabori and Chang reprint edition: ISBN 1-55670-678-2. Collecting reminiscences by people who knew him, and accounts of others (well-known and not so well-known) influenced by him, this book commemorates the 100th anniversary of Krishnamurti's birth, along with a look at his work and legacy. Blau had been a foundation trustee since the 1970s.
• The Kitchen Chronicles: 1001 Lunches with Krishnamurti - Michael Krohnen, 1996, Edwin House Publishing: ISBN 0-9649247-1-4. Reminiscences by the chef at Arya Vihara, Krishnamurti's residence.
• Krishnamurti and the Rajagopals - Mary Lutyens, Ojai, CA: 1996, Krishnamurti Foundation of America: ISBN 1-888004-08-8. Contains a detailed refutation of the allegations contained in the Sloss book listed above, by one of Krishnamurti's authorized biographers.
• The Light Of Krishnamurti - Gabriele Blackburn, 1996, Idylwild Books: ISBN 0-9613054-4-4. The author had known Krishnamurti since her childhood, and was one of the first students of the Happy Valley School - since renamed Besant Hill School of Happy Valley - that was originally founded by Krishnamurti and associates in Ojai, California.
• A Vision of the Sacred: My Personal Journey with Krishnamurti - Sunanda Patwardhan, South Asia Books 2nd edition, 1999: ISBN 0-14-029447-3. The author had been a long time friend of Krishnamurti and had worked as his private secretary in India.
• As The River Joins The Ocean: Reflections about J. Krishnamurti - Giddu Narayan, 1999, Edwin House Publishing: ISBN 0-9649247-5-7. Chandramouli Narsipur, editor. The author, an educator and principal of a Krishnamurti school in India, had also been an associate of Krishnamurti.
• Krishnamurti: The Taormina seclusion 1912 - Joseph E. Ross, 2000, XLibris: ISBN 0738851981. Focuses on the young Krishnamurti's correspondence with various parties during his retreat to Taormina, Italy, in 1912.
• The Beauty of the Mountain: Memories of Krishnamurti - Friedrich Grohe, 2001, The Krishnamurti Foundation Trust Ltd. The author had originally met Krishnamurti in 1983, and eventually became a trustee of several Krishnamurti Foundations.
• Star In The East: Krishnamurti: The Invention of a Messiah - Roland Vernon, 2001, Palgrave hardcover: ISBN 0-312-23825-8, Sentient Publications, 2002: ISBN 0-9710786-8-8.
• Jiddu Krishnamurti: World Philosopher 1895-1986 - C. V. Williams, 2004, Motilal Banarsidass hardcover: ISBN 8120820320.

Bibliographies and indices

• A bibliography of the life and teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti - Susunaga Weeraperuma, 1974, Brill Archive: ISBN 90-0404007-2
• Jiddu Krishnamurti: a bibliographical guide - Susunaga Weeraperuma, 1996, Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass: ISBN 8-1208-1426-6. Revised edition of work originally published as Supplement to A bibliography of the life and teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti, 1982, Bombay, Chetana: ISBN 0-8618-6717-3.
• The Concise Guide to Krishnamurti: A Study Companion and Index to the Recorded Teachings, 2000, Krishnamurti Publications of America: ISBN 1-888004-09-6.

Other works

A number of books, monographs, research papers in various disciplines etc, have appeared through the years examining different aspects of Krishnamurti. An indicative selection follows, listed by publication date. Krishnamurti himself accepted no interpreters, contemporary or future.

• Krishnamurti and the world crisis - Lilly Heber, 1935, G. Allen & Unwin: no ISBN. Originally published in 1933 by Gyldendal, Oslo, in Norwegian. Part of a series of books on Krishnamurti by the same author.
• Krishnamurti and the Unity of Man - Carlo Suares, 1953, Chetana, Bombay: no ISBN.
• A Note on Krishnamurti - in The New Religions, by Jacob Needleman, 1970, Doubleday, N.Y.: ISBN 0385034490.
• The Mind of J. Krishnamurti - Luis S. R. Vas, 1971, Jaico Publishing House, Bombay: ISBN 8172242131.
• The Quest of the Quiet Mind: The Philosophy of Krishnamurti - Stuart Holroyd, 1980, Aquarian Press paperback: ISBN 0-85030-230-7.
• Insight and religious mind: an analysis of Krishnamurti's thought - Hillary Rodrigues, 1990, P. Lang: ISBN 0820409936.
• J. Krishnamurti and awareness in action - A. D. Dhopeshwarkar, 1993, Popular Prakashan: ISBN 8-1715-4759-1.
• The inner life of Krishnamurti: private passion and perennial wisdom - Aryel Sanat, 1999, Quest: ISBN 0-8356-0781-X. A Theosophical examination of Krishnamurti.
• The joy of creative living - Scaria Thuruthiyil, 1999, LAS: ISBN 8-8213-0410-8.
• The phenomenology of compassion in the teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti - V. Boutte, 2002, Edwin Mellen Press: ISBN 0-7734-7090-5. An examination through the lens of Phenomenological Psychology.
• On Krishnamurti - Raymond Martin, 2003, Wadsworth: ISBN 0-534-25226-5.
• Krishnamurti: a spiritual revolutionary - Henri Methorst, 2003, Edwin House: ISBN 096492479X.

Selected video and audio resources

Listed alphabetically.

• A Wholly Different Way of Living - Produced by Krishnamurti Foundation America. A series of 18 conversations between Krishnamurti and Dr. Allan Anderson recorded on video tape in 1974. Also published in book form.
• Krishnamurti: With A Silent Mind - Michael Mendizza director, produced by Krishnamurti Foundation America, 1990. Quasi-biographical documentary.
• Krishnamurti for You - 219 video clips of Krishnamurti interviews, talks, and discussions.
• Krishnamurti YouTube channel - A project of the official Krishnamurti inter-organizational website (see also External Links section), it includes excerpts from many Krishnamurti videos.
• The Ending of Time [partial] - Produced by Krishnamurti Foundation America and Krishnamurti Foundation Trust. Video and audio recordings of the conversations - published in the book by the same name - between Dr. David Bohm and Krishnamurti in Ojai, California and Brockwood Park, England.
• The Real Revolution - Produced by Krishnamurti Foundation America. The first full length talks of Krishnamurti recorded on video, from a series of talks and discussions in Ojai in 1966. These were edited into 30 minute programs for broadcast by US public television station WNET. Also published in book form.
• The Transformation of Man - Produced by Krishnamurti Foundation America. A series of seven conversations with Prof. David Bohm and Dr. David Shainberg video taped in 1976. Also published in book form.

External links

• Jiddu Krishnamurti Online Official J. Krishnamurti inter-organizational website. An international joint venture of the Krishnamurti foundations.

The following Foundations are listed by date of organization:

• Krishnamurti Foundation Trust (UK)
• Krishnamurti Foundation of America
• Krishnamurti Foundation of India
• Krishnamurti Foundation Latinoamerica