J. Krishnamurti

Teaching

Truth cannot be reached through any organisation, belief, teacher or technique. He asks people to observe their own minds directly, in daily life and relationship, without choosing or judging, and questions the division between the observer and what is observed. ^{1, 2, 4}

Who it is for

For people who want to look into fear, thought and relationship for themselves, without a tradition, method or teacher.

Where to start

• The Core of the Teachings (1980) is a one-page summary he wrote himself, free on the Trust's website. Freedom from the Known (1969), edited from his talks by Mary Lutyens, opens the Trust's list of introductory books. ^{2, 5, 7}

Works

• Freedom from the Known

  Book · 1969 · Rider Books

  A short book edited from his talks by his biographer Mary Lutyens. Its chapters include learning about oneself, the pursuit of pleasure, justification and condemnation, and the energy needed for change.

  store.kfoundation.org

• The First and Last Freedom

  Book · 1954 · Rider Books

  A book drawn from his talks, with themed chapters on seeking, the self, thinking, relationship and the stillness of the mind, followed by questions and answers. Aldous Huxley wrote the foreword.

  store.kfoundation.org

• Commentaries on Living, Series I

  Book · 1956 · Krishnamurti Foundation India

  Short written pieces, each describing a meeting with a person who came to him with a question, often set against a description of landscape. The first of three volumes.

  store.kfoundation.org

• Krishnamurti's Notebook

  Book · 1976 · Krishnamurti Publications of America (KPA)

  A daily record he kept of his perceptions and states of consciousness. The Trust calls it his most personal work.

  store.kfoundation.org

• The Ending of Time

  Book · 1985 · HarperOne

  A series of recorded dialogues with the physicist David Bohm on psychological conflict, time, insight, death and the nature of the mind.

  store.kfoundation.org

The short summaries are ours.

More works of J. Krishnamurti in the library

In their own words

Short passages in the words of J. Krishnamurti, each with its source. Where the quoted text is not in the language of this page, a translation follows and says whose it is.

• I maintain that Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect.

• Freedom is not a reaction; freedom is not a choice. It is man’s pretence that because he has choice he is free. Freedom is pure observation without direction, without fear of punishment and reward.

• In the evening it was there: suddenly it was there, filling the room, a great sense of beauty, power and gentleness. Others noticed it.

Documented teaching relationships

• Personal encounter with U. G. Krishnamurti

  U. G. Krishnamurti says he listened to J. Krishnamurti's talks for some seven years and then met him every day for discussions; his friends' timeline records extended discussions in December 1953.

  Self-reported · ugkrishnamurti.in , ugkrishnamurti.in (2)

• Personal encounter with Anandamayi Ma

  The website of Anandamayi Ma's devotees quotes Atmananda's diaries, Pupul Jayakar's biography of J. Krishnamurti and Anandamayi Ma's own words, recorded in November 1948, on a meeting of the two in Delhi, held in the garden of Kitty Shiva Rao's home, where they spoke about the need for a guru.

  Biographical tradition · anandamayi.org

Teaching relationships are documented statements. They confer no trust and do not attest realisation.

Compiled by us from the sources listed. Last checked 11 Oct 2026.

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This description is factual. It contains no recommendation, ranking or assurance. Statements about effects are those of the respective source.