To Be Human, December 11, 2022
To Be Human
With Javier Gomez Rodriguez
Sunday, December 11, 2022
Zoom Online
A total of fourteen people showed up for the last session with Javier in the series entitled “To Be Human: Examining the Core of the Teachings”. Javier had subtitled this presentation “The Way of Negation”. It was focused on the last paragraph of Krishnamurti’s summary of his own teachings as published in the small booklet “the Core of the Teachings”. Javier began with a quote from the booklet: “Total negation is the essence of the positive.” He then delved into the meaning of such a statement, including the apparent paradoxes contained within it and the meaning K gives to the “positive” and the “negative”. In seeing the falseness in the positive expressions of thought, they fall away and the “truth” can emerge.
How is truth attainable? Javier asked. Krishnamurti suggests that it is through the ”mirror of relationship” that we can understand ourselves, through observation and not through analysis. The mind must be in a state of “unknowing”, which is intelligence. Our ideas of freedom must be examined to see which are false and which true. And what price are we willing to pay for our “freedom” and “security”? Our layers of conditioning must be looked into and emptied. Our identity must perhaps be abandoned, which brings compassion.
Thought, which is time, cannot capture freedom, which requires “choiceless awareness” in the present moment or “the now”. Thought must be negated, including the division between “the observer” and “the observed”. “Self, observer, and identity must all be denied. Then insight, intelligence, and love will arise.
Javier spoke for about an hour, at times seeming to become somewhat complicated in his manner of expression but still skillfully challenging the participants to question and explore the ideas shared and the concepts of Krishnamurti’s teachings. The talk was followed by an hour of dialogue which investigated the ideas in a deeper way and which Ralph found difficult to slow down and bring to a close. Participants were interested in how they could pursue such discussions more fully and link with Javier in the future. A number of options were suggested, the main one being to keep in touch with the events posted on the Krishnamurti Educational Centre of Canada website.
Javier’s dedication, wisdom, and humour in sharing his understanding of K’s teachings was much appreciated.
