To know oneself is to study oneself in action, which is relationship.
Interpretation
Understanding oneself comes through observing one's actions and interactions, particularly in relationships.
Jiddu Krishnamurti emphasizes the importance of self-awareness by suggesting that true knowledge of oneself is not found in isolation but in the context of actions and interactions with others. By engaging in relationships, one can gain insights into their behavior, motivations, and the nature of the self, thus facilitating personal growth and understanding.
In practice
In a workshop about personal development, this quote can inspire participants to reflect on their interactions.
The following of authority is the denial of intelligence. [It] may help us temporarily to cover up our difficulties and problems; but to avoid a problem is only to intensify it, and in the process, self-knowledge and freedom are abandoned.
In seeking comfort, we generally find a quiet corner in life where there is a minimum of conflict, and then we are afraid to step out of that seclusion.
If you listen through the screen of your desires, then you obviously listen to your own voice; you are listening to your own desires.
If you have this extraordinary thing going in your life, then it is everything; then you become the teacher, the disciple, the neighbour, the beauty of the cloud - you are all that, and that is love.
Meditation is one of the greatest arts in life - perhaps the greatest, and one cannot possibly learn it from anybody, that is the beauty of it.
All of us have been trained by education and environment to seek personal gain and security and to fight for ourselves. Though we cover it over with pleasant phrases, we have been educated for various professions within a system which is based on exploitation and acquisitive fear.
Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.
So for a good old-gentlemanly vice, I think I must take up with avarice.
I grew up in a tough neighborhood and we used to say you can get further with a kind word and a gun than just a kind word.
Pierre looked into the sky, into the depths of the retreating, twinkling stars. "And all this is mine, and all this is in me, and all this is me!" thought Pierre. "And all this they've caught and put in a shed and boarded it up!
The American Dream may be slipping away. We have overcome such challenges before. To recover the Dream requires knowing where it came from, how it lasted so long and why it matters so much.
People are crying up the rich and variegated plumage of the peacock, and he is himself blushing at the sight of his ugly feet.
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