The Book of Yourself
“The understanding of yourself, however painful or passing, is the beginning of wisdom”
The Course
The intent of the course is to take Krishnamurti’s teachings as a mirror in which our humanity is compassionately and insightfully reflected in an attempt to see and understand ourselves and thereby become fully responsible for our lives.
‘The Book of Yourself’ is an online course that explores the scope and depth of our human condition through a close study of J. KRISHNAMURTI’s teachings.
The Book of Yourself course consists of a series of 14 thematic chapters.
Chapter 1: Krishnamurti’s biography and teachings.
Chapter 2: The art of living
Chapter 3: Nature and causes of disorder and conflict
Chapter 4: Violence and the quest for peace.
Chapter 5: Life, relationship and action.
Chapter 6: Love, attachment and the search for security.
Chapter 7: You are the world.
Chapter 8: Nature and content of consciousness.
Chapter 9: Thought, time and self.
Chapter 10: Conditioning and freedom.
Chapter 11: Becoming and the ending of time.
Chapter 12: Meditation and the religious mind.
Chapter 13: Beauty, intelligence and compassion.
Chapter 14: Death, creation and the sacred.
In keeping with the self-reflective nature of the course, the chapters are intended to be as interactive as possible. They will consist of an extensive live online presentation, in which a short video clip of K on the theme might also be included, followed by a dialogue or Q & A. As preparation, the participants are expected to read through the set of texts covering the given topics as well as the Power Point summaries. They should also, ideally, access the audio-visual material corresponding to each chapter. The presentations will take place via Zoom link according to the course schedule. All the material provided and the presentations and dialogues will be in English.
What is The Book of Yourself course?
The Book of Yourself Course is an extensive exploration of the core aspects of our human condition. This exploration is based on the perception that as human beings we embody the universal history of mankind and that it is through understanding this history, this conditioning, that we may bring about a profound transformation in our consciousness and in the world.
For whom is this course intended?
This course is intended for anyone who is concerned with the pervasive state of fragmentation in the world, is aware of his/her responsibility in relation to it and, consequently, sees the need for deepening their own self-understanding. As the course centres on self-knowledge, those whose orientation lies along these lines may benefit specially from taking this course.
What does the programme include?
K’s teachings were not intended as a mere system of ideas or as an esoteric import from the East but as a mirror of the truth that each of us must find out for him/herself. That mirroring of ourselves will be the central purpose of our study, the central point being to see and understand ourselves as we actually are and thereby learn to take full responsibility for our lives.
Course curriculum
Krishnamurti’s biography and teachings. The art of living. Nature and causes of disorder and conflict. Violence and the quest for peace. Life, relationship and action. Love, attachment and the search for security. You are the world. Nature and content of consciousness. Thought, time and self. Conditioning and freedom. Becoming and the ending of time. Meditation and the religious mind. Beauty, intelligence and compassion. Death, creation and the sacred.
introduction video
newsletter
Friedrich’s Newsletter 2024
Dear Friends I wonder if you know about the new book published by Watkins titled How To Find Peace. It’s an expanded and re-edited edition of Social Responsibility, one of KFA’s thematic study books. It begins with Krishnamurti’s piercing 1985 speech at the United...
How you can support my work:
Your kind support makes it possible to continue to dedicate myself to the dissemination and study of Krishnamurti’s teachings and to the fundamental inquiry into our universal human condition and its needful transformation. And please subscribe to my YT channel, I will add content regularly.
“For me 2022 began with the exciting news that Javier was running a fourteen-week course. After all the restrictions and fears we have been exposed to during the Covid pandemic this was such a refreshing start to the new year. The course is a serious and comprehensive overview of Krishnamurti’s work and I really enjoyed the lectures and dialogues which followed. It was uplifting for me to spend some time with others interested in K and I recommend the course wholeheartedly.”
Geetha Waters, Flaxton, Queensland, Australia (26 April 2022)
“I want to thank you for your wonderful work in putting together this marvelous seminar. What a piece of work! I hope you will put it into a book form, which it really deserves to be. I marvel at your industry and insight. And I am thankful for your success in putting it all together. I certainly could never have managed to do it. Only a dedicated student of K could have done it, and few so well as you.”
Lloyd Williams, Stuttgart, Germany (18 April 2022)
“I want to thank you for your wonderful work in putting together this marvelous seminar. What a piece of work! I hope you will put it into a book form, which it really deserves to be. I marvel at your industry and insight. And I am thankful for your success in putting it all together. I certainly could never have managed to do it. Only a dedicated student of K could have done it, and few so well as you.”
Lloyd Williams, Stuttgart, Germany (18 April 2022)
“Rich in content, thorough in guidance and unequalled in understanding, The Book of Yourself was delivered with care and compassion by a teacher passionate about enabling others. I have rarely encountered such a fulfilling learning course. It perfectly matched my need for order and understanding. If you are seriously interested in Krishnamurti’s teachings, then I commend Javier’s The Book of Yourself, without reservation.”
Richard Scott, London, UK (19 April 2022)
“The Book of Yourself online course came just at the right time. Even though I had to wake up at 3 am to attend, and later with the change to daylight saving, at 2 am, I would not have missed a single session. I learnt such a lot over the fourteen weeks and enjoyed the good company of serious people from around the world. I recommend this course highly to anyone who would like gain new insights into J. Krishnamurti’s work.”
Christopher Waters, Flaxton, Queensland, Australia (29 April 2022)
“This last visit I have had a most extraordinary time. I found that the dialogues were very challenging, and enjoyed being in a large group where I could observe how we all react and relate. At the end, though, I felt that we were only just approaching the deeper issues, and felt bereft when I had to leave yesterday. Our facilitator, Javier, was brilliant. He was highly attuned to our ever-evolving dynamic, and he was at once knowledgable and sensitive. I appreciated his compassion and kindness.”
Sandi Robertson (on retreat at the Krishnamurti Study Centre, UK, on the theme of loneliness, November 2019)
“A very, very valuable course. Big impact on my thinking and life. The collection of all the material made available to us is a great job. Also the introduction and explanations by Javier were very useful. Leading the course and the interactive discussions were very good. The Power Point slides contained many words and highlights. I found it therefore sometimes hard to keep my attention during the presentation of the slides. Overall value of the course: ‘This is World News’! Great job, well done!”
Klaas van der Kooij, Koog aan de Zaan, The Netherlands (22 April 2022)
“You’ve striven to convey with tremendous clarity the lengths we need to go to in order to bring about direct, time-free maturation by listening with and through ‘self-awareness’. It’s an act of scientific, forensic exposé that you perform to bring this work about. And with such a keen level of deeply felt responsibility! Your hands-on, infectious enthusiasm and intelligent brand of energy hits the frontal lobes in all the right places. After all, this was a long time in the planning! I’m already reviewing the whole fourteen three-hour sessions. Really engaging! The varied style of presentation: videos, illustrated details and dialogues grips and suits me so well! We can, through this level of engagement, touch the elegance of inner development. A good feeling of value, all round!”
Michael Lowe, London, UK (02 May 2022)
“As former participants of Javier’s The Book of Life course on Krishnamurti’s life and work, we felt a strong need to commit ourselves to forming a course group from our own circle of friends. We had to fight for it, but we succeeded. Between the end of May/beginning of June we were able to get to work with 8 participants. And we might do it again this fall. Javier has the flexibility to reduce his program – originally consisting of 10 bi-weekly meetings – to 8 consecutive half-days (including weekends). The intensity of this brought with it special experiences, and it gave Javier wings. As good as he already was, he now showed so much more. This was pure excellence”
Connie & Onno (on The Book of Life Retreat, NL June 2021)
“Rich in content, thorough in guidance and unequaled in understanding, The Book of Yourself was delivered with care and compassion by a teacher passionate about enabling others. I have rarely encountered such a fulfilling learning course. It perfectly matched my need for order and understanding. If you are seriously interested in Krishnamurti’s teachings, then I commend Javier’s The Book of Yourself, without reservation.”
Richard Scott, London, UK (19 April 2022)
“A very, very valuable course. Big impact on my thinking and life. The collection of all the material made available to us is a great job. Also the introduction and explanations by Javier were very useful. Leading the course and the interactive discussions were very good. The Power Point slides contained many words and highlights. I found it therefore sometimes hard to keep my attention during the presentation of the slides. Overall value of the course: ‘This is World News’! Great job, well done!”
Klaas van der Kooij, Koog aan de Zaan, The Netherlands (22 April 2022)
From the Blog
Friedrich’s Newsletter 2024
Dear Friends I wonder if you know about the new book published by Watkins titled How To Find Peace. It’s an expanded and re-edited edition of Social Responsibility, one of KFA’s thematic study books. It begins with Krishnamurti’s piercing 1985 speech at the United...
Friedrich’s Newsletter 2023
Dear Friends I was very interested to hear that the first Summer Gathering for decades at Brockwood Park took place this past year, in August, with 120 participants. Those who commented to me about it were very keen on it, especially that the younger staff members...
The Sound and the Fury
Lelystad, 30 April 2022 "And you all know securityIs mortals’ chiefest enemy.” Macbeth, Act III, Scene V, ln. 32 The witches in Shakespeare’s Macbeth knew a thing or two about human motivation. For the sake of security all kinds of crimes are committed, all kinds of...
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