Jiddu Krishnamurti, a profoundly influential philosophical and spiritual figure of the 20th century, lived a remarkable life spanning from 1895 to 1986. Born on May 11, 1895, in Madanapalle, a small town in south India, Krishnamurti was adopted by Dr. Annie Besant, the then president of the Theosophical Society, along with his brother. As a young man, Krishnamurti was proclaimed to be the world teacher, a prediction made by the Theosophists, and he was made the head of the Order of the Star in the East, a worldwide organization.
However, in 1929, Krishnamurti renounced his role as the world teacher, dissolved the Order, and returned all the donations and properties received for this work. He severed ties with any religious or spiritual organization, and instead, embarked on a journey to find truth through self-discovery, observation, and questioning all assumptions.
Throughout his life, Krishnamurti traveled extensively, delivering talks to large audiences, and shared his insights on the importance of self-knowledge, the need to transform oneself, and the significance of observing one's thoughts and feelings in daily life. He believed that this movement could be observed through the mirror of relationship.
Krishnamurti's work is enormous, with some estimating it to be over 100 million words. His talks and dialogues have been compiled and published in more than 60 books, translated into numerous languages. Some of his notable books include The Ending of Time, Freedom from the Known, Commentaries on Living, Education and the Significance of Life, The Awakening of Intelligence, and The First and Last Freedom.
In his later years, Krishnamurti continued to teach and share his insights, emphasizing the importance of questioning all assumptions and challenging his listeners to do the same. His charge to the Foundations at his death in 1986 was to spread his un-interpreted, authentic body of work around the world.
