Jiddu Krishnamurti’s teachings

a poem by Hiren Shah

Whether on education, freedom or living, if we closely examine and understand K’s teaching
The consequences not only for us but for the whole of mankind could be immense and far reaching

Whether he spoke on discipline, suffering, love or fear
In print or sound, it is always a joy to read and hear

The primary thrust was towards elimination of conflict
One had to be vigilant of tendencies that tend to contradict

To be free from the psychological quagmire
One had to understand the structure of and rise above desire.

K mostly talked of being completely free of past conditioning
He was for direct perception as the word is not the thing.

He was emphatic that to overcome any crisis
One had to be totally free of all machinations of the self and know ‘What is’

He stated that as in the past, mankind would come to grief
If it continued to be bound by outdated knowledge and belief.

To be equanomous in the context of thought and sensation
He was all for being watchful without identification or justification

He favored being as opposed to becoming
As Ambition and power only lead to cunning and scheming.

He was of the view that to go beyond pleasure and pain
One had to be observant of the thought chain, all else was in vain

For transcending the vagaries of the mind, he was all for non verbal observation
For any ‘method’ or ‘force’ he had serious reservation.

He said that self knowledge was the beginning of meditation
To realize the truth we must know ourselves in relation.

Requiring an astute mind and a pliable heart, if one’s self knowledge one wanted to augment,
Arduous it may be, one had to learn to be watchful from moment to moment.

He stated that with respect to things, people and ideas one had to understand profoundly one’s relationship
The unknown emerged and could not be sought by rituals or worship

K talked of transforming the individual consciousness
Beginning with that was the right way of eliminating society’s viciousness

Whether he spoke of Individual or society’s transformation
It was possible only with self knowledge, not with external information.

The essence of his teachings was to be compassionate, loving and kind.
One would be missing the wood for the trees if only obsessed with transcending the mind.

He spoke eloquently on the significance of consciousness in Time
The Eternal is in the present is something that needs to be stressed both in prose and rhyme

If his teachings could be encapsulated in a summary
It would be to be completely free from memory

Whether he spoke of awareness, meditation, transformation or Nature
A man of outstanding intellect, one wonders when the world shall again see someone of Krishnaji’s stature.