Meditative Self-Inquiry with Mukesh Gupta

Saturday, October 3, 2020

Zoom online

This was the sixth of eight presentations by Mukesh on various aspects of Self-Inquiry, with an emphasis on J. Krishnamurti’s teachings on the same subject. In total there were 23 participants for the online session which was broadcast from Varanasi, India. This presentation was entitled “What is Meditation in Daily Living?”

Mukesh started the meeting with a ten minute guided meditation in which everything was allowed to be just as it is. He then spoke about the emphasis of traditional meditation on concentration and setting aside set times during the day. “Is this all there is to meditation?” he asked. Krishnamurti has a different approach, which stresses the understanding of the meditator, which brings freedom from the “meditator” or “self”. And what is understanding? Is it thinking and gathering knowledge about oneself? Krishnamurti’s approach is, rather, to watch ourselves as we are, to be “choicelessly aware”, which empties the mind of its content and supports the flowering of love and joy. Without love and compassion there is no meditation, and, as Krishnamurti said, “as long as there is a meditator there is no meditation.” Complete attention in daily life is meditation.

The meeting was then opened up to sharing from the group, which inspired a fuller exploration of the themes presented. Some of the issues discussed were the following:

– Dying to the past every day, every moment. The past is images and psychological memory.

– Non-resistance and surrender

– The power of attention to burn away attachments

– Being fully present with “what is” without conditions

– Awakening to our ignorance

– Dealing with memories by giving them full attention. If we do not identify with a memory it loses energy and fades away

Deep appreciation for the presentation was expressed by some of the participants, who reported understanding meditation in a more profound way than ever before.

The meeting ended with some silent sitting during which it was suggested we follow any thoughts from beginning to end.

Self Study Meeting

Sunday, September 6

Zoom online.

The focus of this meeting was the January 1 – 15 entries in The Book of Life: Daily Meditations with Krishnamurti. The subject matter of those readings was Looking, Listening, and Learning, which made their exploration a fitting follow-up to Mukesh Gupta’s presentation of the previous day. How we observe ourselves and our lives is a central component of Krishnamurti’s teachings, so it felt very worthwhile to look as deeply as possible at what he says about it in these chapters. Six of us were present for the session, which was perhaps in competition with a beautiful sunny day in the world outside.

David began with a reading of the January 1 entry, which served as a guided meditation on listening to everything at once. K suggests that such listening initiates a change in ourselves which comes without effort or volition and invites a depth of beauty and insight. Listening to the movement of one’s inner life was included in the meditation as a key aspect of this kind of awareness. Participants were then invited to share what had struck them in reading the selections from the text, and this led to a sensitive exploration of some of the issues touched on by Krishnamurti. In a couple of cases participants had found the material confusing and some time was spent in looking into the apparent contradictions, which then seemed to be resolved.

Those present seemed to have a few differing orientations towards some issues, such as the significance of “belief” in their lives. This stimulated some inquiry into the meaning and importance (or the lack of it) of belief in one’s “spiritual” life and perhaps brought an element of conflicting views into the discussion. This is a not-uncommon component of group dialogue and can be of value in learning about our habits and tendencies of thought. Some participants expressed appreciation of the meeting afterwards.

The Intelligence of the Heart

August 28 – 30, 2020

With Prof. Hilary Rodrigues, online

This was at least the ninth annual retreat with Prof. Hilary Rodrigues sponsored by the Krishnamurti Educational Centre of Canada in Metchosin, BC. This retreat was, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, held online. Hilary is a professor of Eastern religious traditions at the University of Lethbridge and a former teacher and administrator at the Krishnamurti school that once existed at the site of the KECC. He has published books and articles on aspects of Krishnamurti’s thought, including the book Krishnamurti’s Insight, and has given presentations on K’s teachings in New York, New Delhi, Victoria, and Ojai, California.

The Friday evening session was attended by 13 people in all, which continued with some slight variation through the weekend meetings held from 4 to 5:30 pm each of the three days. Hilary made it clear from the beginning that he was not just going to give lectures and answer questions, but was going to encourage an active sharing and inquiry involving all participants. He invited one of the participants, who had asked at the end of the previous retreat for more focus on “the heart”, to open with some comments about what the heart means to her. This then led to further offerings by other group members related to the question “What is the heart?” along with a quote by Krishnamurti emphasizing the importance of the heart in the act of observing and listening with our whole being. The weekend proceeded with guidance from Hilary and contributions by others as we explored such topics as sensitivity, looking and listening vs. thinking and analysis, learning and knowledge, the nature of intelligence, the question of “getting it” and “not getting it”, and many aspects of the inquiry into the awakening of love and wisdom. At the close of each session Hillary responded skillfully to requests to share some final thoughts about what had transpired and what might be said in conclusion. As part of Hilary’s summing up, he pointed to the fact that Krishnamurti does not ask us to come to conclusions but, rather, to stay with open questions and explore them with moment-to-moment attention.

As always, it was a pleasure to be with Hilary, even if only virtually, and we hope to continue the tradition in the future (while at the same time being in the now)

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The Urgency of Change Dialogue Meeting

Sunday, August 9, 2020

Zoom online

Eight of us were present for this online meeting, intending to explore the topic of relationship. We began with a guided meditation exploring what might be arising in the form of self-images and images of others in the group. Does thought filter our experience of relationship through images and ideas from the past, thus veiling the immediacy of the contact and/or the possibility of real communion? It was a question that was further explored in the dialogue that followed. The focus of our sharing was the chapter in The Urgency of Change by J. Krishnamurti entitled “Relationship”, in which K and his inquiry partner ask whether it is possible to break through the barriers that create isolation and separate us from each other and the experience of harmony and unity. We examined a number of aspects of the issue, with group members offering their perspectives and reflections.

During the half-time break in the session, I (David) was feeling a little at a loss for direction and, looking at a passage in the book, was inspired by a few of K’s words in the text. “Don’t explain anything: just feel your way into it”….. I opened to the sense of confusion and uncertainty I was experiencing and immediately felt a shift in my consciousness, a sense of peace and happy enjoyment of simply being present in the moment. It was a living demonstration of what K was pointing to with his suggestion – or at least a version of it. It also seemed like a significant reminder for all dialogues. It sometimes seems easy to get pulled into overly mental discussions of concepts and problems created by thought, and it might be helpful at such times to bring in our feeling capacity. Dialogue provides ongoing opportunities for learning.

The next chapter to be explored is the one entitled “Conflict”.