The Urgency of Change Dialogue Group, April 23, 2020

The Urgency of Change Dialogue Group
Thursday, April 23, 2020

This was the second online meeting for this group. It was organized as a response to those participants seeking further connection beyond the one monthly meeting initially planned. On a Thursday evening seven members of the “Urgency” group logged in for the Zoom gathering at 7 pm and continued until 9:00. The focus was on Chapter 2 in Krishnamurti’s book The Urgency of Change, entitled “Is There a God?” We began with a guided meditation on being fully aware and present in the moment with our thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations. Can this awareness function without naming the experience, or can it at least include being aware of the activity of naming produced by thought? The meditation moved into noticing any split being created by thought between an “observer” and the “observed”. What happens when this duality of thought is seen?
The chapter in the text begins with the questioner asserting that if there is no god then life is meaningless. He asks if he can know God and reports that the advice given is always that one must believe; then one will know. Krishnamurti asks whether belief is necessary at all and suggests that learning is much more important than knowing. As in the previous chapter of the book, he looks closely at the difference between the word and the actual thing. He expresses clearly the effects our beliefs have in conditioning our consciousness and creating division between human beings. As we explored the text participants shared their observations and experiences related to the concepts being discussed, which led to a rich and animated sharing and inquiry. It was emphasized that while inquiring into the ideas in the chapter it was also important to be watching our own reactions and responses. In this watching, the learning that K mentioned at the beginning can be taking place. It was mentioned by several participants that knowledge has a kind of dead quality to it, whereas learning is alive and vital, new, fresh, and direct. This is perhaps what gives meaning to our lives. These insights and observations were mixed with occasional disagreements and challenges which did not cause hitches of any great significance in the flow of the dialogue. We might take note in the future of what happens when opinions are expressed as being truths.

We progressed to about the half-way point in the chapter, with no sense of hurry to travel any particular distance. We will take up the rest of the chapter in the late May meeting. Our next “Urgency” group session will take place on May 10 and will go back to our study of Chapter 1, “Awareness”.