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Krishnamurti On Intelligence
No better words could be used. To reach
what has no words, these are the words that come closest to it. Following
extract has been taken from This matter of culture, Chapter 2, by J.
Krishnamurti.
Questioner: What is intelligence?
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Krishnamurti:
Let us go into the question very slowly, patiently, and find out. To find
out is not to come to a conclusion. I don't know if you see the
difference. The moment you come to a conclusion as to what intelligence
is, you cease to be intelligent. That is what most of the older people
have done: they have come to conclusions. Therefore they have ceased to be
intelligent. So you have found out one thing right off: that an
intelligent mind is one which is constantly learning, never concluding.
What is
Intelligence? Most people are satisfied with a definition of
what intelligence is. Either they say, "That is a good explanation", or
they prefer their own explanation; and a mind that is satisfied with an
explanation is very superficial, therefore it is not intelligent.
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You have begun to see that an intelligent mind is a mind which is not
satisfied with explanations, with conclusions; nor is it a mind that
believes, because belief is again another form of conclusion. An
intelligent mind is an inquiring mind, a mind that is watching, learning,
studying. Which means what? That there is intelligence only when there is
no fear, when you are willing to rebel, to go against the whole social
structure in order to find out what God is, or to discover the truth of
anything.
Intelligence is not knowledge. If you
could read all the books in the world it would not give you intelligence.
Intelligence is something very subtle; it has no anchorage. it comes into
being only when you understand the total process of the mind - not the
mind according to some philosopher or teacher, but your own mind. Your
mind is the result of all humanity, and when you understand it you don't
have to study a single book, because the mind contains the whole knowledge
of the past. So intelligence comes into being with the understanding of
yourself; and you can understand yourself only in relation to the world of
people, things and ideas. Intelligence is not something that you can
acquire, like learning; it arises with great revolt, that is, when there
is no fear - which means, really, when there is a sense of love. For when
there is no fear, there is love.
If you are only interested in explanations, I am afraid you will feel that
I have not answered your question. To ask what is intelligence is like
asking what is life. Life is study, play, sex, work, quarrel, envy,
ambition, love, beauty, truth - life is everything, is it not? But you
see, most of us have not the patience earnestly and consistently to pursue
this inquiry.
Questioner: Can the crude mind
become sensitive?
Krishnamurti: Listen to the question,
to the meaning behind the words. Can the crude mind become sensitive? If I
say my mind is crude and I try to become sensitive, the very effort to
become sensitive is crudity. Please see this. Don't be intrigued, but
watch it. Whereas, if I recognize that I am crude without wanting to
change, without trying to become sensitive, if I begin to understand what
crudeness is, observe it in my life from day to day - the greedy way I
eat, the roughness with which I treat people, the pride, the arrogance,
the coarseness of my habits and thoughts - then that very observation
transforms what is.
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Similarly, if I am stupid and I say I must become intelligent, the effort
to become intelligent is only a greater form of stupidity; because what is
important is to understand stupidity. However much I may try to become
intelligent, my stupidity will remain. I may acquire the superficial
polish of learning, I may be able to quote books, repeat passages from
great authors, but basically I shall still be stupid. But if I see and
understand stupidity as it expresses itself in my daily life - how I
behave towards my servant, how I regard my neighbour, the poor man, the
rich man, the clerk - then that very awareness brings about a breaking up
of stupidity. You try it.
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Watch yourself talking to
your servant, observe the tremendous respect with which you treat a
governor, and how little respect you show to the man who has nothing to
give you. Then you begin to find out how stupid you are; and in
understanding that stupidity there is intelligence, sensitivity. You do
not have to become sensitive. The man who is trying to become something is
ugly, insensitive; he is a crude person.
About J. Krishnamurti: JIDDU KRISHNAMURTI was born May 12, 1895, in Madanapalle, south India.
From 1929 until his death in 1986 he traveled all over the world speaking
spontaneously to large audiences. He engaged in dialogues with religious
leaders, scientists, professors, authors, psychologists, computer experts,
and people from many different backgrounds deeply questioning their daily
life. His talks and dialogues have been compiled and published in more
than fifty books and translated into as many different languages. His
books include Think on These Things, Education and the Significance of
Life, The Awakening of Intelligence, and The First and Last Freedom.
Krishnamurti’s works can be read online at: http://jiddu-krishnamurti.net/index.php
Contributing Writer:
Ashutosh Ghildiyal is a salaried professional based in Mumbai, India.
He was born in Lucknow in 1984, where he completed his schooling. He
completed his graduate studies in New Delhi and his post-graduate
education in Mumbai. He is the author of To Think or Not to Think
and Other stories (Book), various blogs and short stories. Email:
ashutoshghildiyal@hotmail.com |
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