October’s Stillness Within Meetup featured a recorded talk by Eckhart Tolle which focused on the challenges and opportunities emerging from our relationships with others.   Eckhart explored how more and more people are beginning to experience a shift from an egoic, thought-based identity to the realization of what Eckhart calls the essential Being nature.  The talk provided a practical look at how this emerging awareness impacts relationships, as well as the steps to welcome the vertical dimension of space and stillness as the source of true connection and harmonious relationships.   The group found the topic a rich one for discussion, and members noted that it is often through our closest relationships that we can be presented with the parts of ’emotional body’ that are constricted or where accumulated pain or trauma has become entrenched.  When these are noticed, we can, with a gentle curiosity, examine them without judgement.  Often, simply the detached noticing will result in a shift in the momentum of an emotion (helping us to shift from unconsciousness to consciousness).  Partners can even support one another by asking the simple question:  I see there is a strong reaction happening – is it possible that your pain body has been triggered?   Krishnamurti also recognises the value of relationships in helping us to shed past conditioning, but the real opportunity falls back to us to inquire within if we are to find true freedom:  “Self-awareness is to know one’s self, one’s attachments, one’s loneliness, one’s sense of isolation and all that, to know the totality of oneself”. And….”it is possible to know oneself completely, then we can approach the world and ourselves as a whole”. Third Public Talk at Brockwood Park September, 1979   The six who took part in the session stayed for a more informal visit over tea as well.  Thanks again to the KECC for supporting these valued gatherings.   Hosted on October 8, 2016  

  Krishnamurti Study Group Saturday, October 15,2016        This session we studied Chapter 20 in The First and Last Freedom by J. Krishnamurti. The topic was “Time and Transformation”. Four of us gathered on a windy Fall day to read and discuss K’s words about the nature of chronological and psychological time. Is there any time at all other than the time we measure by the clock for practical purposes? Is time created by thought, without which it actually doesn’t exist? How do we get caught in the idea of time, with all the conflict it creates in our lives? These and other questions were raised and explored in a way that generated an authentic looking and inquiring. The sharing of insights and questions felt like it had a meaning and value, and the meeting was enjoyed by all. We will continue with the rest of the chapter at our next gathering.

  Krishnamurti Study Group Saturday, October 1, 2016   This week we completed our study of chapter 19 in The First and Last Freedom by J. Krishnamurti. Seven people were present for the session, which focused on the topic of “Self-Centred Activity”. In the text, Krishnamurti points out that the activity of the self creates endless trouble and he puts the question, “Can this activity come to an end?” Psychological thought is the means by which the self is given continuity, therefore it is essential that we understand the structure of our own thinking processes and go beyond the known. Then there is the possibility of knowing love. These issues were explored in group dialogue and penetrated to some depth. Next meeting we will look into Chapter 20, entitled “Time and Transformation.”

Seeing and Listening: A Revolution in Daily Living Beyond Thought and Fear With Richard Waxberg and Deborah Kerner September 23 – 25, 2016 For the third year running Richard and Deborah joined us for a weekend of inquiry into ourselves and the structure of our consciousness. As their outline for the weekend described it, “this explorative journey we take together emphasizes what Krishnamurti referred to as deep “listening and seeing”, the open door through which unexamined beliefs, concepts, and ideas can be revealed beyond the limitation of thought and time, without judgment or resistance. This dimension of seeing and listening is like turning a powerful light on our conditioned responses, the normally hidden unconscious layers of conditioned thinking…. Within an atmosphere of freedom, affection, and mutual support, we are inquiring together into what is preventing us from unburdening ourselves from the past and our feelings of psychological fear and limitation.” A video of Krishnamurti in dialogue with Pupul Jayakar was shown on Saturday night and found by some to be quite a radical departure from the way K had presented his teachings in the past and to demonstrate a different quality of relationship than the usual K dialogues. There were times of rest and opportunity to enjoy the lovely setting of the Centre. Delicious meals were provided by Pearson College. Otherwise, the weekend consisted mostly of group dialogue initiated by short passages which were read at the beginning of each session. Seventeen people participated, including facilitators and staff. The dialogue was skillfully guided by Richard and Deborah and moved along with contributions from the participants. It certainly produced some in depth investigation and sharing, as well as some challenging and intense interactions in the group. By the end of the weekend everyone seemed to feel it had been a very meaningful and rewarding process.

  Krishnamurti Study Group Saturday, September 3, 2016   This session we picked up half way through chapter 18 in The First and Last Freedom and almost made it to the end. The subject was “Self-Deception” and the focus was on looking at how we deceive ourselves as soon as we want to be someone or achieve something psychologically. The six participants read from the text and discussed the challenge of “being nothing” that Krishnamurti raises for our exploration. The group inquired into what it means to be nothing and what some of the impediments are to realizing the quietness and stillness that K is pointing towards. What drives us to seek psychological security and to invest in the attachments of thought which ultimately create suffering? Can the process be seen clearly without conclusions as to what the outcome will be? Some fresh insights arose for participants and there was some penetrating inquiry. Inquiry Sunday Sunday, September 4, 2016 On Sunday morning we showed a video entitled The Holographic Universe, an exploration of what quantum physics has to tell us about how we construct our reality. A number of scientists spoke on different aspects of the issue, pointing to the idea that how we see the world may be dependent on the fact that we are observing it. In other words, what we observe is changed by the very observation. In the discussion shared by six participants, the question arose as to whether we can ever know what is really “out there”. An interesting question that arose concerned how this principle applies to observing ourselves. The idea was presented in the film that the world as we know it may be a sophisticated hologram projected by consciousness which is only real to those inside the hologram. The concepts presented and discussed certainly stretched our minds and created a sense of openness and wondering. The afternoon session was attended by eight people. Participants chose questions of interest from a list compiled from question and answer sessions with Krishnamurti and watched his replies to those questions on video. We then engaged in group discussion and inquiry, exploring further the implications of what was said. The first question was on the topic of breaking habits. K pointed out that breaking any habit requires an attentive watching of the habit in action and the underlying motives driving it. The process is the same for all habits. Can one be totally attentive to the habit without any effort or struggle to overcome it? That attention has its own action not dependent on effort, suppression, or conflict. The second question chosen asked whether sitting quietly looking at one’s thoughts has any value. As he often does, K dismissed the value of mechanical practices like TM. Why is one engaging in such practices – what is the motivation? He did, however, say that a quiet mind is obviously essential for seeing the truth about one’s thoughts and motivations. The mind naturally becomes quiet when there is an intense interest in looking at oneself. Some examination of awareness and thought followed in the group discussion. It was a day of interesting inquiry.