Theos-Talk Archives (November 1996 Message tl00297)

                          TRUTH IS A PATHLESS LAND

                  The Dissolution of the Order of the Star

The Order of the Star in the East was founded in 1911 to proclaim the
coming
of the World Teacher. Krishnamurti was made Head of the Order. On August
2,
1929, the opening day of the annual Star Camp at Ommen, Holland,
Krishnamurti dissolved the Order before 3000 members. Below is the full
text
of the talk he gave on that occasion. What he said then is equally valid
today.
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We are going to discuss this morning the dissolution of the Order of the
Star. Many people will be delighted, and others will be rather sad. It
is a
question neither for rejoicing nor for sadness, because it is
inevitable, as
I am going to explain.

You may remember the story of how the devil and a friend of his were
walking
down the street, when they saw ahead of them a man stoop down and pick
up
something from the ground, look at it, and put it away in his pocket.
The
friend said to the devil, "What did that man pick up?" "He picked up a
piece
of Truth," said the devil. "That is a very bad business for you, then,"
said
his friend. "Oh, not at all," the devil replied, "I am going to let him
organize it."

I maintain that Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by
any
path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. That is my point of view,
and
I adhere to that absolutely and unconditionally. Truth, being limitless,
unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be
organized;
nor should any organization be formed to lead or to coerce people along
any
particular path. If you first understand that, then you will see how
impossible it is to organize a belief. A belief is purely an individual
matter, and you cannot and must not organize it. If you do, it becomes
dead,
crystallized; it becomes a creed, a sect, a religion, to be imposed on
others. This is what everyone throughout the world is attempting to do.
Truth is narrowed down and made a plaything for those who are weak, for
those who are only momentarily discontented. Truth cannot be brought
down,
rather the individual must make the effort to ascend to it. You cannot
bring
the mountain-top to the valley. If you would attain to the mountain-top
you
must pass through the valley, climb the steeps, unafraid of the
dangerous
precipices. You must climb towards the Truth, it cannot be "stepped
down" or
organized for you. Interest in ideas is mainly sustained by
organizations,
but organizations only awaken interest from without. Interest, which is
not
born out of love of Truth for its own sake, but aroused by an
organization,
is of no value. The organization becomes a framework into which its
members
can conveniently fit. They no longer strive after Truth or the
mountain-top,
but rather carve for themselves a convenient niche in which they put
themselves, or let the organization place them, and consider that the
organization will thereby lead them to Truth.

So that is the first reason, from my point of view, why the Order of the
Star should be dissolved. In spite of this, you will probably form other
Orders, you will continue to belong to other organizations searching for
Truth. I do not want to belong to any organization of a spiritual kind,
please understand this. I would make use of an organization which would
take
me to London, for example; this is quite a different kind of
organization,
merely mechanical, like the post or the telegraph. I would use a motor
car
or a steamship to travel, these are only physical mechanisms which have
nothing whatever to do with spirituality. Again, I maintain that no
organization can lead man to spirituality.

If an organization be created for this purpose, it becomes a crutch, a
weakness, a bondage, and must cripple the individual, and prevent him
from
growing, from establishing his uniqueness, which lies in the discovery
for
himself of that absolute, unconditioned Truth. So that is another reason
why
I have decided, as I happen to be the Head of the Order, to dissolve it.
No
one has persuaded me to this decision.

This is no magnificent deed, because I do not want followers, and I mean
this. The moment you follow someone you cease to follow Truth. I am not
concerned whether you pay attention to what I say or not. I want to do a
certain thing in the world and I am going to do it with unwavering
concentration. I am concerning myself with only one essential thing: to
set
man free. I desire to free him from all cages, from all fears, and not
to
found religions, new sects, nor to establish new theories and new
philosophies. Then you will naturally ask me why I go the world over,
continually speaking. I will tell you for what reason I do this: not
because
I desire a following, not because I desire a special group of special
disciples. (How men love to be different from their fellow-men, however
ridiculous, absurd and trivial their distinctions may be! I do not want
to
encourage that absurdity.) I have no disciples, no apostles, either on
earth
or in the realm of spirituality.

Nor is it the lure of money, nor the desire to live a comfortable life,
which attracts me. If I wanted to lead a comfortable life I would not
come
to a Camp or live in a damp country! I am speaking frankly because I
want
this settled once and for all. I do not want these childish discussions
year
after year.

One newspaper reporter, who interviewed me, considered it a magnificent
act
to dissolve an organization in which there were thousands and thousands
of
members. To him it was a great act because, he said: "What will you do
afterwards, how will you live? You will have no following, people will
no
longer listen to you." If there are only five people who will listen,
who
will live, who have their faces turned towards eternity, it will be
sufficient. Of what use is it to have thousands who do not understand,
who
are fully embalmed in prejudice, who do not want the new, but would
rather
translate the new to suit their own sterile, stagnant selves? If I speak
strongly, please do not misunderstand me, it is not through lack of
compassion. If you go to a surgeon for an operation, is it not kindness
on
his part to operate even if he cause you pain? So, in like manner, if I
speak straightly, it is not through lack of real affection-on the
contrary.

As I have said, I have only one purpose: to make man free, to urge him
towards freedom, to help him to break away from all limitations, for
that
alone will give him eternal happiness, will give him the unconditioned
realization of the self.

Because I am free, unconditioned, whole-not the part, not the relative,
but
the whole Truth that is eternal-I desire those, who seek to understand
me,
to be free; not to follow me, not to make out of me a cage which will
become
a religion, a sect. Rather should they be free from all fears-from the
fear
of religion, from the fear of salvation, from the fear of spirituality,
from
the fear of love, from the fear of death, from the fear of life itself.
As
an artist paints a picture because he takes delight in that painting,
because it is his self-expression, his glory, his well-being, so I do
this
and not because I want any thing from anyone.

You are accustomed to authority, or to the atmosphere of authority,
which
you think will lead you to spirituality. You think and hope that another
can, by his extraordinary powers-a miracle-transport you to this realm


Keith:  Wow, truth may be a pathless land, but  JK sure gets in his Wordsworth!
For me, I like the part about the artists creates out of joy and love and for no
other strictly SELFISH reason.  Yet, I still think we live on the physical plane
and so we have to COMPETE whether competition is "spiritual" or not it is
definetly PRACTICAL.  I mean look at Roseanne.  She got a lot of mileage from
being funny and ugly, but now that she's rick a little lipo, a little surgery
can help keep her rich and famous, n'est pas?

I mean look at the NUTTY PROFESSOR.  Jerry Lewis can't be a schlimiel all his
life,  he needed to find his alter ego which was just as spiritual, his dark
alchemical brother that creates COMPLETENESS< SYMMETRY like the TYger lying down
with the LAMB - the RAM with a hundred red devouring eyes of St. Johns FEARFUL
SYmmetry of the APocalypSO.  Let's Dand our way into the pathless land, the new
millenium.  It doen't have to be ascetic or monastic or fascist or Maoist.  Who
would want that anyway?

What about MIRACULOUS!  Now, I would buy that with BODY AND SOUL.  Creating
bliss through artistic recreation of ourselves and our reality is only good
JUDGEMENT, ask President CLinton.  WHat a mensch!  What a rauch!  AND Hillary,
what a Shekinah.


Look to PRez, to guide us throught the pathless lies, to a new unfolding
OzZYmanDIAS.

Go figure!  Oy vey, namaste
Keith PRIce