16th August ‘12
Some of my very best friends have been those that had suggested some great books to me. That way, this book was suggested to me by a friend of mine, Ms.Nirmala Balasubramanian, my computer faculty. And, I had picked this up after more than one-and-a-half decades since she first recommended the writings of J.Krishnamurti to me. And, now, I am feeling more thankful to her than ever before.
‘Freedom From The Known’ is my first look into the wisdom of JK. And, this has left as good an impact in me, as any of the great books that I have ever laid my hands on. The book, as the title rightly suggests, is about freedom of the mind from all those innumerable bonds that keep it enslaved forever.
Some of my very best friends have been those that had suggested some great books to me. That way, this book was suggested to me by a friend of mine, Ms.Nirmala Balasubramanian, my computer faculty. And, I had picked this up after more than one-and-a-half decades since she first recommended the writings of J.Krishnamurti to me. And, now, I am feeling more thankful to her than ever before.
‘Freedom From The Known’ is my first look into the wisdom of JK. And, this has left as good an impact in me, as any of the great books that I have ever laid my hands on. The book, as the title rightly suggests, is about freedom of the mind from all those innumerable bonds that keep it enslaved forever.
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JK starts by elucidating the strength of the trap that the human mind and we humans have got ourselves into, by following society, its traditions, religious tenets, all those innumerable messiahs and so many such traditions and customs that the society presents. He explains how we are afraid of questioning all those facades and facing the shining truth, fearing the repercussions of losing the respect in the society and being branded as a ‘rebel’ or a ‘heretic’ or as an ‘infidel’.
From there he guides us on the path of looking deep into ourselves. One positive thing about JK is that he doesn’t sit at a pedestal and preach, nor does he don a holy cloak and stay at a distance. Rather he says that we should jump into the sea if we are hoping to pick our own pearls. He makes us fold our sleeves and get our hands dirty in paving our own path of spirituality. And, trust me, this method works much better than any of the other ideologies and ideas.
He proceeds by showing how we are bound to our Past by our thoughts and how we are manipulated by Future through our expectations and fears about uncertainty. He wants us to realize what pleasure is and how pain is an inevitable byproduct and a shadow of pleasure. Then he strips our minds and thoughts threadbare and shows us our hidden sides and how we are all violent and egoistic, though on the periphery we love projecting ourselves to be saints and savants. Then about how we form relationships with images of people and thoughts and ideas, rather than with the real people and thoughts and ideas.
But rather than providing you an index of the book this way, it will suffice if I say that this book provides a mirror in which you can see your own reflection and come face to face with the real, naked, ugly and pretty sides of yourselves.
A caveat though is, this is not like a ‘Jonathan Livingston Seagull’ of Richard Bach that teaches you through a simply story or ‘The Prophet’ of Gibran where the basic truths of Life are presented in poetic forms. This is absolute intensity. You can’t take it as a casual read, hoping to pick a few gems of wisdom hither and thither. This is something that you need to feel within and delve deep into. Osho, who is said to have been inspired by the writings of J.Krishnamurti, has known the wavering nature of the human mind better, and had always managed to keep the wandering mind of his disciples in control through the use of parables and Zen stories. But, expect no such sugar-coating with JK!
Overall, a good book to pick, if you believe that books have the capability to change lives, because this one does!
From there he guides us on the path of looking deep into ourselves. One positive thing about JK is that he doesn’t sit at a pedestal and preach, nor does he don a holy cloak and stay at a distance. Rather he says that we should jump into the sea if we are hoping to pick our own pearls. He makes us fold our sleeves and get our hands dirty in paving our own path of spirituality. And, trust me, this method works much better than any of the other ideologies and ideas.
He proceeds by showing how we are bound to our Past by our thoughts and how we are manipulated by Future through our expectations and fears about uncertainty. He wants us to realize what pleasure is and how pain is an inevitable byproduct and a shadow of pleasure. Then he strips our minds and thoughts threadbare and shows us our hidden sides and how we are all violent and egoistic, though on the periphery we love projecting ourselves to be saints and savants. Then about how we form relationships with images of people and thoughts and ideas, rather than with the real people and thoughts and ideas.
But rather than providing you an index of the book this way, it will suffice if I say that this book provides a mirror in which you can see your own reflection and come face to face with the real, naked, ugly and pretty sides of yourselves.
A caveat though is, this is not like a ‘Jonathan Livingston Seagull’ of Richard Bach that teaches you through a simply story or ‘The Prophet’ of Gibran where the basic truths of Life are presented in poetic forms. This is absolute intensity. You can’t take it as a casual read, hoping to pick a few gems of wisdom hither and thither. This is something that you need to feel within and delve deep into. Osho, who is said to have been inspired by the writings of J.Krishnamurti, has known the wavering nature of the human mind better, and had always managed to keep the wandering mind of his disciples in control through the use of parables and Zen stories. But, expect no such sugar-coating with JK!
Overall, a good book to pick, if you believe that books have the capability to change lives, because this one does!
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