The Poisonous Snake: An Essential Krishnamurti Quote

“Any movement of any kind on the part of the mind only gives strength to the continuance of thought, with its envious, ambitious, acquisitive pursuits. When the mind is totally aware of this fact, as it is totally aware of a poisonous snake, then you will see that the movement of thought comes to an end. Then only is there a total revolution, not the continuance of the old in a different form. This state is not to be described; he who describes it is not aware of it.” J. Krishnamurti, Commentaries On Living Series 3   This is perhaps my favourite quote from Krishnamurti. It’s challenging, but I feel vital to anybody who seriously pursues spiritual inquiry. I say it’s necessary because once we really start to find a “path” that yields meaningful insights, we may find ourselves inadvertently wrapped up in thinking about the meaning and significance of these insights. We may get very excited to finally feel a deep connection to teachings that actually seem rooted in our own experience, and go to our minds for validation and elaboration. Nondual teachings continue to open my eyes in amazing ways, but I’m very aware that my mind loves to claim this all as experience and knowledge, and then integrate it into my old patterns of thinking, which have not always served me well (to say the least). This quote helps me come back to a more open awareness when I’ve let my mind start claiming “my” experiences and insights for itself and turning them into something they aren’t. Whether thought comes to an end may not be our concern, but I find this quote points to a deep truth about the human mind which helps me step back and relate to this whole mechanism of thinking in a less personal way. At the core of this quote, as with the whole of Krishnamurti’s message, there lies this essential question, “Why don’t you learn about yourself? About this mind that currently rules your very existence?”