Awakening of Intelligence, The

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Summary: Are you ready?
Review: "Some of you believe in the idea of reincarnation. You come and ask me what I believe, whether reincarnation is a fact or not, whether I remember my past lives, and so on. Now, why do you ask me? Why do you want to know what I think about it? You want a further confirmation of your own belief, which you call a fact, a law, because it gives you a hope, a purpose in life. Thus, belief becomes to you a fact, a law, and you go about seeking confirmation of your hope. Even though I may confirm it, it cannot be of vital importance to you. Whatever it may be to me, real or false, what is important for you is that you should discern for yourself these conceptions through action, through living, and not accept any assertions." - krishnamurti

I cannot recommend this book high enough. This book is one of the most comprehensive and accessible of Krishnamurti's work. It is a collection of talks given at various parts of the world. In each series of talk Krishnamurti leads the listener to look into serious topics like Operation of thought, conflict , The art of seeing, freedom, the energy needed for freedom, do we need a teacher, etc. There is a huge difference between looking into an issue and "thinking" about an issue. Thinking involves thought, and simply looking is mere observation. And krishnamurti says that if this observation, the seeing is done with total attention without the interference of thought, then the intelligence operates.

Many a times while reading this book, my mind will come to a complete stop and I would be taken to deep and spontaneous meditation. Krishnamurti is highly skillful in sparking our insights and allows us to see what he sees. He never says "This is right or this is wrong", he doesn't even want us to agree or disagree to what is being said, because he doesn't offer any theories. He just tells us to look without judment, prejudice or opinions. He asks us to listen "completely". He says that people ask questions for two reasons, one is to confirm what they already beleive in, and the other is to "really" find out the truth. The first way of asking will never lead to an answer, because we are unwilling to listen to the "truth"; We only want a confirmation for the false, and only the false needs confirmations. This book is for sincere seekers of truth who really want to know the truth. He says that when we look at the false as false, what remains is truth. Health is the absence of diseases, and so it truth the total negation of false. The ability to discern the true from the false is what intelligence is. I have observed that reading one talk per session in regular periods helps tremondously in awakening "intellingence", not "my" intelligence but just intelligence.

"As I was saying, the importance in asking a question is not to find the answer but to understand the problem because there is only the problem and not the answer. To ask a question is easy; but to go into the problem is extremely difficult because once you know what the problem is, the very seeing of the problem is the understanding of the problem. The moment I can state the problem very clearly, simply, the answer is there, I do not have to look beyond. But most of us do not know what the problem is. We are confused about the problem and so naturally we look, in our confusion, for answers; and that will only produce further confusion. " -krishnamurti


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Summary: Compelling Reading !
Review: "The Awakening of Intelligence" made me contemplate deeply on the common emotions and issues we face everyday. The book uses simple text to convey great depth of thought. Reading the book heightened my awareness of the collective spirit/consciousness that we create. The book throws light on the perils of conditioned /habituated thinking. Aptly titled, this book urges the reader to brush off the weight that we carry in our lives, and embarks the reader into an enlightening journey. I wonder if anyone can keep this book down, without completing it! This book is a must read and it holds a treasure of timeless wisdom!

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Summary: The Most Important Book Ever....
Review: Forget Zen Buddhism, Freud, Psychiatrists, forget everything you think you know. Just read and see what Krishnamurti sees. To see without prejudice to see with a free mind. This book has changed my life forever. I know who I am now, I found this out myself, not by being told what is right or wrong but by seeing with a clear mind. You are the only person who can save yourself. Don't even think about buying this book, just buy it. GENIUS!

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Summary: Tied for the most important book I've ever read
Review: I came to Krishnamurti through studying Joseph Campbell. The ideas presented in this book literally shake the foundations of society and force the individual into an internal dialogue about the nature of time, thought, self, and one's place in society. The end result of Krishnaji's teachings is always silence--vast, and energy filled creativity. This one is a must read.

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Summary: Refer to writer from Yokohama, Japan
Review: I did carefully read your comment ,and humble think that I really understood how you felt. Actually, before anyone starts reading Krishnamurti's work, I recommend he should have some experience in observing his own thought and mind.
It is no wonder for me that most people do not understand what Krishnamurti said. Because what he said could not be understood intellectually, rather it must be experienced by one ownself.
He has his mind, you have your mind. But all of us experience love, anger, hatred, etc. which are the same for all human being. He observed his mind and nature, then expressed his experience in his own word, Could you do what is called non-self observation UNINTENTIONALLY carefully on your mind , and express them in your own language? If you could, then you will understand Krishnamurti by your own heart..This takes long long time to practice. So don't give up.
Men cannot search the meaning of life in books, . Human being cannot determine his own position in this world by looking at where he is standing alone. Imagine you were flying in the space and everywhere you look was nothing but darkness. Can you tell where you were? This also applies to our life.
Finally,Krishnamurti also said that ' we must also renounce him too in order to reach true freedom'. So if one want to study his work, just go ahead but remember to forget what he said, then return to one 's own mind and experience by oneself.

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Summary: One of the most instructive books I've read!
Review: One of the most instructive books I've read. Krishnamurti is different from usual spiritual guides because he does not give you a method to follow. I would say that he is more like Socrates who says "Know yourself". What he is saying is that all the answers are in yourself and you do not have to follow any discipline or method to be able to grow. He even goes further by saying that following a master discipline is another barrier that you are building in your spiritual path. Strict discipline constraints you and goes again freedom that you are seeking. This book is the good overview of Krishnamurti thoughts and I really encourage you to read it because it will surely open your mind!

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Summary: Wake Up
Review: Read this book and wake up to the fears, misery and conflict that prevades your life. Whether you admit it or not it is there, and Jiddu Krishnamurti will not only point it out to you but show you the way to "change". This is not a "self-help" book or for those looking for a step-by-step instruction guide to finding happiness or intelligence. Instead, this book is a wake-up call. He has a simple message that is conveyed in various, entertaining ways.

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Summary: A Must Read for the Intelligent and Sincere
Review: The Awakening of Intelligence is one of the most accessible points of entry into the teachings of J. Krishnamurti, perhaps the most important teacher of humanity in the 20th century. Presented as a series of conversations and talks given in America, Europe and India, this single volume spans an enormous range of topics dealing with the basic groundwork of being human. These topics include: the reasons individual psychological revolution is necessary, the nature of thought in relation to psychological time, the limitations of thought due to its fragmented nature, that conflict is caused by thought, the dangers of attachment, the way images distort reality, the nature of relationship, how seeing or observing clearly without images and thoughts can lead to an awareness beyond the current problems faced by every human being. A must read for all those who are intelligent and sincere.

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Summary: Brilliance from many different angles
Review: Through discussions with people of all walks of life, Krishnamurti and his questioners delve into the problems that all people of the world share. Its time we 'wake up'. This awakening is a continual state of mind that is awareness. "The first step is the last step" -Krishnamurti. "What the world needs now is love sweet love". -B. Bacharach. Now just change the word 'love' for 'awareness' and the love will fall into place. Get awake and stay awake. Reading this book and seeing the truth of that is a good start. Keep in mind the name of this book is not 'The Awakening of Knowledge'. To the aware- truth, love, intellegence unfold in the moment. Knowledge is the past. Be intrigued into a new world that is possible. Read and then be aware.

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Summary: The real owner's manual for the mind, for the spirit
Review: What Krishnamurti offers the reader here are exercises for the mind that will help us re-wire our brains to think in a different way, that will allow us to obtain a new perception of who we are, and what our world is, and the harmony of both, leading to a freedom that can't quite be explained in words, but will be felt by those few who experience it. Have you stopped to think that it really makes no difference what car you drive, the clothes you wear, the place you live, because you still will at times feel sad, troubled, depressed, sick, and happiness is not guaranteed by these material objects?
What is our purpose in life? The author touches on these and other subjects, which we've being conditioned to believe as a universal truth, in today's modern "greed and riches are the only goal" society. He offers his ideas on how we free our minds from learned concepts, ideas, cultural traditions, and other thoughts that tie us into inflexible thinking, that doesn't allow us to understand new experiences, new ideas.

Krishanmurti, explains that in order for us to understand, we must say to ourselves "I don't know" so that we can have a clean slate with which to experience new ideas. Therefore not letting old, inflexible, sometimes narrow-minded, ideas or experiences, which we may have gathered through life, which are the sum of the culture, traditions, and experiences of thousands others who may, or may not be entirely correct in their interpretation either do to lack of knowledge, or a tunneled vision.

He describes how , by us depending on old ideas, acquired knowledge, and experiences,
We are pre conditioned, and bias, to new experiences, making it hard for us to obtain the full effect of any new experience. "Ah here we go again" is something all of us have said at times, and this is exactly what Krishnamurti is telling us not to do. When we think we opened our mental files, draw one from the bunch, and base our emotions, and reactions on that, which is wrong because in general terms, to grow as intelligent beings, we need to learn to clear our minds of the old (ideas, experiences, concepts) to make room for the new. He also says in this book that we should experience these things ourselves, not through gurus, religious leaders, or spiritual guides, as it is only you the one that can experience such a mental broadening, and someone else can't teach it.

His ideas could seem complicated, and hard to grasp in the beginning but if you read carefully, and maybe stop to think about it for a while, you'll find that they make sense.
The mind is like a warehouse where we store our ideas, and experiences, and once we
We have a certain amount of them, we base our behavior on them. Every time we encounter a new situation we draw from that warehouse, and if what's in storage is
In turn based on those ideas and experiences of others, we may not be experiencing life
fully. This is because we haven't really used our very own and personal thought process fully enough to see and understand way beyond those that came before us.
Krishnamurti advocates that we tear down the fences in our minds. He explains that all knowledge has been fragmented, in different areas, yet we as persons are one complete being. And we then behave and think fragmented as well. We talk about "my spirit", "my mind", "my body", as if they were separate from one another, yet they all reside in the same place: you.

If you have thought about the meaning of life, what your purpose in life is, what is this crazy place we call "world", then this book is for you. If you've ever thought about how is it that we follow established patterns of behavior like going to school, to work, getting married, paying bills, following goals, saving for retirement, among others, you should get thisbook. If you've realized that we're all right now living through one of the many stages of our lives (childhood, teenager, young adult, adult, middle age, golden years etc.) this book has many answers to those questions you've thought about but haven't been able to ask someone else.