The Urgency of Change Dialogue Group, January 17, 2021
The Urgency of Change Dialogue Group
Sunday, January 17, 2021
Zoom online meeting
This was the first meeting of the year for this group that will meet at least once per month until the end of 2021. The group is expected to remain constant in size in order to support a deepening of the process of inquiry through consistency of participation. One of those who had signed up did not attend for as yet unknown reasons. Including the KECC Programs Director, who will most likely not always attend the meetings, there were thirteen participants.
The meeting began with a guided meditation inviting an attentive awareness and observing of whatever arises in the form of thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations. This attention can create a space for insight and clear seeing of oneself and one’s relationship with one’s inner and outer world. As many of the group were new to each other, we took some time for each one to introduce themselves and to share what self-inquiry or self-exploration means to them and why it is important in their lives. It was recommended that we listen to each other with full attention. This kind of listening is a meditation in itself and may produce a shift in consciousness into a more unified and whole experience. Participants then shared a rich expression of their journeys to this point with self-observation and Krishnamurti’s teachings.
The focus then moved to the question “What is awareness to you?” and “What did you find particularly relevant to the subject of awareness in the first chapter of the Krishnamurti book The Urgency of Change, (which is our study material for the year to come)?”. Participants had spent time with the chapter before coming to the meeting and brought up some interesting questions and observations about what they had read. The meeting was then brought to a close with details about the next meeting and the readings in the text to follow. It felt like an auspicious beginning to the group process and feedback was positive about individuals’ experiences of the session.
