BIOGRAPHY OF J. KRISHNAMURTI

PDF DOWNLOAD + 300 DPI Photograph of Krishnamurti (Photograph by Mary Zimbalist) For Press Use Only

Krishnamurti, Jiddu (b. May 12, 1895, Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, India, d. February 18, 1986, Ojai, California) born of middle-class Brahmin parents, was recognized at age fourteen by the Theosophists Annie Besant and C.W. Leadbeater as the coming World Teacher and proclaimed to be the vehicle for the reincarnation of Christ in the West and of Buddha in the East. Mrs. Besant adopted the boy and took him to England, where he was educated and prepared for his coming role. He was made head of her newly formed worldwide religious organization, the Order of the Star in the East in 1911, but in 1929 after many years of questioning himself, he dissolved the Order, repudiated its claims and returned all the assets given to him for its purpose. Out of his own spiritual “process” experienced from 1922 onwards, he declared:

Truth is a pathless land and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organized; nor should any organization be formed to lead or to coerce people along any particular path. My only concern is to set humanity absolutely, unconditionally free. Man cannot come to it through any organization, through any creed, through any dogma, priest or ritual, not through any philosophic knowledge or psychological technique. He has to find it through the understanding of the contents of his own mind, through observation and not through intellectual analysis or introspective dissection.

Krishnamurti claimed allegiance to no caste, nationality or religion and was bound by no tradition. He traveled the world and spoke spontaneously to large audiences until the end of his life at age ninety. He said man has to free himself of all fear, conditioning, authority and dogma through self-knowledge and this will bring about order and psychological mutation. The conflict-ridden violent world cannot be transformed into a life of goodness, love and compassion by any political, social or economic strategies, but only through this mutation in individuals brought about through their own observation without any guru or organized religion.

The rejection of all spiritual and psychological authority, including his own, is a fundamental theme. His major concern is the social structure and how it conditions the individual. The emphasis in his talks and writings is on the psychological barriers that prevent clarity of perception. In the mirror of relationship, each of us can come to understand the content of one’s own consciousness, which is common to all humanity. We can do this, not analytically, but directly in a manner Krishnamurti describes at length. In observing this content we discover within ourselves the division of the observer and what is observed. He points out that this division, which prevents direct perception, is the root of human conflict.

Krishnamurti's stature as an original philosopher, attracted non-traditional and traditional thinkers and philosophers alike. Heads of various religious organizations held discussions with him, only to hear him repeat his central theme that authority in whatever form—religious, psychological or political—is a hindrance to seeing the truth; man has to be his own guru to bring about psychological transformation. Attending Krishnamurti's talks in 1961, Aldous Huxley said, "It was like listening to a discourse of the Buddha—such power, such intrinsic authority...." In 1984 he spoke to nuclear scientists at the National Laboratory Research Center at Los Alamos, New Mexico, U.S.A. David Bohm Ph.D., the quantum physicist and friend of Einstein, recognized in Krishnamurti’s teachings parallels with his own revolutionary theories of physics. This led to many years of dialogue between the two men, which helped form a bridge between so-called mysticism and science. Other scientists found his discussions of time, thought and death to be thought provoking.

In establishing the many schools he founded in India, England, and the United States, Krishnamurti envisioned that education should emphasize the integral cultivation of the mind and the heart, not mere academic intelligence. Krishnamurti said, “Surely a school is a place where one learns about the totality, the wholeness of life. Academic excellence is absolutely necessary, but a school includes much more than that. It is a place where both the teacher and the taught explore not only the outer world, the world of knowledge, but also their own thinking, their behavior.” From this they begin to discover their own conditioning and how it distorts their thinking. Freedom from conditioning and its misery begins with this awareness. For decades he engaged in dialogues with teachers and students to emphasize the understanding that it is only in such freedom that true learning can take place.

He established foundations in India, Europe and the United States with the defined role of protecting the teachings from being distorted and of disseminating his work, without the authority to interpret or deify the teachings or the person. There can be no learning where there is authority in any form. He stated tirelessly, “We must be very clear on this matter from the very beginning. There is no belief demanded or asked, there are no followers, there are no cults, there is no persuasion of any kind, in any direction, and therefore only then we can meet on the same platform, on the same ground, at the same level. Then we can together observe the extraordinary phenomena of human existence.”

In 1969 the Krishnamurti Foundation of America (KFA) was created in the Ojai Valley by Krishnamurti and several Trustees. KFA’s mission was, and still is, to protect and disseminate Krishnamurti’s teachings during and after his lifetime. KFA is also responsible for the Oak Grove School, founded by Krishnamurti and the Foundation in 1975. The school was started with the serious intention to create a unique learning environment that would meet the needs of children facing a world in conflict. Krishnamurti took an active interest in the school, from the smallest detail of architecture to the quality of the atmosphere in the classrooms. The school started with three students in 1975 and presently has an enrollment of 175 learners from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade.

In addition to the school and the Foundation, it was Krishnamurti’s wish that the building in which he had lived while in Ojai become a place of study for those interested in his teachings. He described it as "a vessel of comprehension, intelligence, and truth." Today the Krishnamurti Library and Center exists in the spacious turn-of-the-century ranch house known as Arya Vihara, which is beautifully situated among graceful eucalyptus, cypress, and cedar trees. The Center sponsors dialogues, study groups, workshops and gatherings. Arya Vihara contains a comprehensive record of Krishnamurti's teachings, including all of his books and an extensive selection of talks and interviews on audio and video tapes. Next to the Library, a newly constructed Archives Building protects Krishnamurti’s valuable teachings, offering a harmonious place to work, while providing researchers and scholars access to original manuscripts, thousands of audio and video recordings, 7000 photographs, 5000 letters, books in 22 languages, films, newspaper articles and other materials for research.

Some of his popular books are: Commentaries On Living, The Awakening Of Intelligence, The First And Last Freedom, Think On These Things, The Ending Of Time, Krishnamurti on Education and Krishnamurti’s Notebook. For authentic and archival information contact: Krishnamurti Foundation of America, P.O. Box 1560, Ojai, California, 93024, telephone (805) 646-2726, fax (805) 646-6674 or go to our web site www.kfa.org