This remarkable statement dispels the widespread but erroneous notion that Krishnamurti was not a religious teacher but a rational thinker or a modern intellectual. Over the years, in different contexts and in different words, he kept pointing out that man, with his limited intellect, is always making the mistake of trying to measure life - which is limitless, immeasurable, incalculable. Can humanity, therefore, turn in a new direction, which is to 'come upon something which is not man-made, which may be sacred? This urgent demand of Krishnamurti finds novel expression in this book consisting of fifteen dialogues, held from 1977 to 1984 in Madras, Rishi Valley, Bombay, and New Delhi. The great religious teacher's concern and compassion cover the whole field of human existence, summed up in profound questions such as: Why is man still what he is after a million years? What am I? What is relevant in life? What price will you pay to end conflict and sorrow? What is the essence of a religious life?
Jiddu Krishnamurti lived from 1895 to 1986, and is regarded as one of the greatest philosophical and spiritual figures of the twentieth century. Krishnamurti claimed no allegiance to any caste, nationality or religion and was bound by no tradition. His purpose was to set humankind unconditionally free from the destructive limitations of conditioned mind. For nearly sixty years he traveled the world and spoke spontaneously to large audiences until the end of his life in 1986 at the age of ninety. He had no permanent home, but when not traveling, he often stayed in Ojai, California, Brockwood Park, England, and in Chennai, India. In his talks, he pointed out to people the need to transform themselves through self knowledge, by being aware of the subtleties of their thoughts and feelings in daily life, and how this movement can be observed through the mirror of relationship.