Krishnamurti Study Session
Sunday, June 2, 2019
At KECC

Ten participants gathered for this Sunday morning exploration of the J. Krishnamurti text The Book of Life. Our first reading was the January 16 meditation entitled “Virtue Has No Authority”, which was discussed in some depth. We questioned what K means by “virtue”, “order”, and “psychological authority”, amongst other terms, and what he is pointing to when he says humility, love, and virtue cannot be cultivated. The necessity to observe ourselves in a non-judgemental way, with “tenderness” and care, was emphasized in the dialogue and we went into some detail about the observation without an observer.
There was time to move on to the January 17 and 18 entries: “The Old Mind in Bound by Authority” and “Free at the Beginning”, which also provided fertile ground for inquiry. There is a freedom at the very beginning when we enter the learning mind which looks and listens to all that arises in consciousness and is open to receiving insight. It was a lively and creative investigation of some core issues in Krishnamurti’s teachings.

The Fiftieth Anniversary May Gathering of the Krishnamurti Foundation of America in Ojai, California
May 4,5 2019

An annual gathering is held in May in Ojai to explore the teachings of J. Krishnamurti. The program each year includes presentations by people who have been immersed in the teachings and dialogues in which participants can deepen their understanding of the teachings and of themselves. The gatherings are also an opportunity to meet friends and colleagues and to be exposed to the beautiful property in Ojai where Krishnamurti spent so much time and had such significant experiences and awakenings. This particular gathering celebrated fifty years of the existence of the KFA organization in Ojai.
This year our program director Ralph Tiller was able to attend the Ojai gathering in person and represent the Krishnamurti Educational Centre of Canada there. Others of us were able to watch the event by livestreaming on the internet while sitting together at the Metchosin Centre. There was a full program for the two days from which we could select certain events to watch from those that were streamed online.
Six people attended the Saturday events at KECC and the same number on Sunday. There were no problems with the online streaming. The program was introduced by Jaap Sluijter and began with a presentation by Michael Mendizza entitled “Unconditionally Free”, which was also the title of the celebration itself. His presentation included some short clips of K in dialogue with David Bohm and some very interesting questions and observations about the real nature of inquiry and what K was pointing to. In the afternoon we chose to view a dialogue between Prof. P. Krishna and David Moody entitled “Freedom from Knowledge and Time” which investigated some of the aspects of K’s teachings that are often found difficult or contradictory. Clear communication from both men helped to shed light on the issues considered. Also offered in this time slot was a talk by Fran Faraz entitled “Freedom from our Conditioning in the Age of Technology and Artificial Intelligence.”
The latter half of the afternoon program offered a choice between a presentation by Michael Kronen called “A Sacred Legacy: How to Keep it Alive?” and “The Biological Underpinnings of Conditioning” with Pathik Wadhwa. We tuned in to the first option briefly and then by consensus decided to use the rest of the lovely sunny afternoon to walk on the property or sit by the ocean and contemplate. The presentations were available to be watched at any time later or at home.
On Sunday morning we visited with Stephen Smith as he spoke on “Unravelling Conditioning”. Mark Lee also probed the question “Why Another Organization?” in a separate presentation. Stephen’s talk was very much appreciated. Spontaneous discussion arose amongst our group throughout the two days and the structure of our participation took its own course to a certain extent. On Sunday afternoon we had some dialogue and then chose again to finish early and to enjoy the rest of the day outdoors. A panel discussion about the Oak Grove School as well as the offerings from Prof. Krishna, “Freedom from Conditioning”, Javier Gomez Rodriguez, “On Dialogue: To See Oneself as One Is”, and Jaap Sluijter, “KFA, Past, Present, and Future”, could be watched at home or at some future time.
It was a fairly casual and enjoyable weekend. Most of the presenters will be coming to our Centre in Metchosin over the course of this year to offer weekend retreats, which will provide an opportunity for direct contact and inquiry with these central figures in the Krishnamurti world.

Krishnamurti Study Session
April 21, 2019
At KECC

The entry for January 10 in J. Krishnamurti’s book entitled The Book of Life was the material for exploration in this Sunday morning session at the Krishnamurti Educational Centre of Canada. The title of the entry was “Learning Is Not Experience.” Six people were in attendance. The session began with a reading of the text, followed by five minutes of silence. Then we went around the circle of participants and each of those who wished had the opportunity to share a perception, insight, question, or other comment. We then opened the sharing up for spontaneous dialogue starting with a more in-depth investigation of the comments. We wondered if, as K suggests, there is actually nothing to learn psychologically in terms of accumulating knowledge. Is what is needed rather a stripping away of beliefs and concepts which creates a space for something of the Unknown to enter? The discussion was quite animated and engaging. There was a sense as we came to the end of the meeting that it might be helpful to move a little more slowly in our conversation. Nevertheless, the session seemed to be enjoyed by all.

Eight of us gathered at UVic recently to consider the challenging question:  Is the World an Illusion?  We looked at this from three diverse perspectives including Rupert Spira, Krishnamurti and Robin Cinmatra. 

Rupert Spira, in a short extract from “The Belief in a World Made of Matter” pointed out some important nuances in how we ‘see’ the world around us… and a flaw in the assumption that the world can exist outside of consciousness.  It was tricky!  We explored his proposal that the science of matter needs to be upgraded to reflect the field of consciousness in which all perceived matter arises, and the possibility that perhaps the observer and the observed are not dividable (K. proposes this as well).  We were left questioning our senses and thoughts about the seemingly solid world around us.

 We also looked at Krishnamuriti’s pointing about how we can know reality or truth… A few of his quotes were examined:

All the things that thought has put together – literature, poetry, painting, illusions, gods and symbols – that is reality for us. But nature is not created by thought.

Can the mind, the network of all the senses, apprehend, see and observe truth?

Psychological time is the invention of thought, which we use as a means of achieving enlightenment. Is such time an illusion? Is truth measurable by words? Truth is timeless, thought is of time, and the two cannot run together.

Without love, without compassion, truth cannot be. I cannot go to truth, I cannot see truth. Truth can only exist when the self is not.  J. Krishnamurti

 It was an interesting notion:  if the self or the mind is trying to look at the world around us as it will always be interpreted through the biases or filters of self.   Thinking of seeing not through the sense of self is something that the group had many perspectives on.  We did some looking…  and had some fun asking the question:  is there a self that can be found when we turn awareness towards our inner world?

 The final video clip was an excerpt from the short film:  Nothingness = E(MC)²  A Film About Nothing and Everything (Non-Duality)

This snapshot explored the mystery of knowing what this world around us is, emphasizing that any perception of the physical world around us must be dualistic given that the seeing establishes a subject/object.  Robin proposes a paradox that objects must also be ‘nothingness’.  It was very interesting and picturesque – but challenging… We discussed oneness, whether the perception of a self is similar to the perception of objects in the world, and admitted that a mind based knowing might need to be surrendered in favour of curious wonder if we are to truly know anything at all! 

 Thanks for a great discussion this month, and thanks to KECC for their support for these meetups!  The April meetup at UVic will be showing:  Eckhart Tolle:  Through the Eyes of Krishnamuriti, exploring evocative passages from Krishnamurti’s journal.  Come out if you can!  Details in the KECC Calendar.

Krishnamurti Study Session
Sunday, April 7, 2019
At KECC

The entry for January 9 in J. Krishnamurti’s book entitled The Book of Life was the material for exploration in this Sunday morning session at the Krishnamurti Educational Centre of Canada. The title of the entry was “To Learn, the Mind Must be Quiet.” Six people were in attendance. The session began with a reading of the text, followed by five minutes of silence. Then we went around the circle of participants and each of those who wished had the opportunity to share a perception, insight, question, or other comment. We then opened the sharing up for spontaneous dialogue starting with a more in-depth investigation of one of the comments. This format seemed to inspire participation by all the group members and it was felt that we went quite deeply into an actual experience of what K was pointing to as he spoke of discovering “the new”. There was inquiry into the possibility of seeing the limitations of thought, which can naturally make thought less predominant in our experience and the sense of freshness of perception and feeling more obvious. There seemed to be a movement “beyond” the known.