The Mystique of Enlightenment: The Unrational Ideas of a Man Called U.G.

by U.G. Krishnamurti

An underground spiritual classic distributed widely for the first time in the U.S., this is the story of one of the most unusual figures in contemporary spirituality, U.G. Krishnamurti, in his own words. The Mystique of Enlightenment is a scathing critique of contemporary spirituality. In a world in which spiritual techniques, teachers, concepts, and organizations are legion, U. G. stands nearly alone in his rejection of it all: "I am only interested in describing this state, in clearing away the occultation and mystification in which those people in the 'holy business' have shrouded the whole thing. Maybe I can convince you not to waste a lot of time and energy looking for a state that does not exist except in your imagination... The natural state is acausal: it just happens." The author does not equate the natural state with enlightenment, which he describes as an illusion created by our culture. He states emphatically that one can do nothing to attain the natural state. In fact, any movement towards it separates one from it. U. G. Krishnamurti is an original voice in which much of contemporary spirituality is understood in a new way. For those interested in the full spectrum of modern spiritual thought, this is a "must read." In the well-known history of J. Krishnamurti, few names have been so strongly associated with his message as U. G. Krishnamurti, who shared a close but contentious relationship with him over many years. U.G. was raised to take on the mantle of guru, much like J. Krishnamurti. When the two men eventually met, each had rejected the guru role, and for years they conversed regularly, struggling to uncover the nature of truth, before a falling out led each in a different direction. It is fairly common in reading modern spiritual books to find references to U. G. Krishnamurti's influence on both teachers and their students. His books have been translated into nearly every European language, as well as Chinese and Japanese. Widely regarded in India and Europe, The Mystique of Enlightenment is considered by U.G.'s closest associates to be the best summary of his ideas. The book consists of transcripts of informal talks with those who come to ask him questions. In one of these talks, he relates his life story, including the events leading up to and comprising what he calls his "calamity," or his entry into the natural state. Since his own experience of coming into the natural state at age 49, he has spent his time traveling throughout the world, staying with friends or in rented apartments for a few months at a time. He gives no public talks, but meets with people who come to see him. What he offers is not hope or encouragement, but stark reality: "Of one thing I am certain. I cannot help you solve your basic dilemma or save you from self-deception, and if I can't help you, no one can." His message is simple: he has no message. Nevertheless, his words can inspire you to face your own assumptions and motivations and discover for yourself what is true.

Genres: Philosophy, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Religion, Self Help

100 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2002

About the author

Uppaluri Gopala Krishnamurti also known as U.G. Krishnamurti, was an Indian thinker who said that there is no "enlightenment". Although necessary for day to day functioning of the individual, in terms of the Ultimate Reality or Truth he rejected the very basis of thought and in doing so negated all systems of thought and knowledge in reference to It.

U.G was born on July 9, 1918 in Machilipatnam, a town in coastal Andhra Pradesh, India, and raised in the nearby town of Gudivada. His mother died seven days after he was born, and he was brought up by his maternal grandfather, a wealthy Brahmin lawyer, who was also involved in the Theosophical Society. U.G. also became a member of the Theosophical Society during his teenage years.

During the same period of his life, U.G. reportedly practiced all kinds of austerities and apparently sought moksha or spiritual enlightenment. To that end, between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one, he undertook all kinds of spiritual exercise, determined to find out whether moksha was possible. Wanting to achieve that state, he had also resolved to prove that if there were people who have thus "realized" themselves, they could not be hypocritical.As part of this endeavor, he searched for a person who was an embodiment of such "realization".


U.G. emphasized the impossibility and non-necessity of any human change, radical or mundane. These assertions, he stated, cannot be considered as a "teaching", that is, something intended to be used to bring about a change. He insisted that the body and its actions are already perfect, and he considered attempts to change or mold the body as violations of the peace and the harmony that is already there. The psyche or self or mind, an entity which he denied as having any being, is composed of nothing but the "demand" to bring about change in the world, in itself, or in both. Furthermore, human self-consciousness is not a thing, but a movement, one characterized by "perpetual malcontent" and a "fascist insistence" on its own importance and survival.
U.G. denied the existence of an individual mind. However, he accepted the concept of a world mind, which according to him contained the accumulation of the totality of man's knowledge and experience. He also used 'thought sphere'(atmosphere of thoughts) synonymously with the term 'world mind'. He stated that human beings inhabit this thought realm or thought sphere and that the human brain acts like an antenna, picking and choosing thoughts according to its needs. U.G. held all human experience to be the result of this process of thought. The self-consciousness or 'I' in human beings is born out the need to give oneself continuity through the constant utilization of thought. When this continuity is broken, even for a split second, its hold on the body is broken and the body falls into its natural rhythm. Thought also falls into its natural place – then it can no longer interfere or influence the working of the human body. In the absence of any continuity the arising thoughts combust.He stated that we inhabit a thought realm. When the continuity of thought is broken, even for a split second, its hold on the body is broken and the body falls into its natural rhythm. Thought also falls into its natural place – then it can no longer interfere or influence the working of the human body. In the absence of any continuity the arising thoughts combust.
In its natural state, the senses of the body take on independent existences (uncoordinated by any 'inner self') and the ductless glands (that correspond to the locations of the Hindu chakras) become reactivated. UG described how it is the pineal gland (Ajna Chakra) that takes over the functioning of the body in the natural state, as opposed to thought.
U.G. also maintained that the reason people came to him (and to gurus), was in order to find solutions for their everyday real problems, and/or for solutions to a fabricated problem, namely, the search for spirituality

Reviews

[Eddie Watkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Radical and ornery and barbed with contradictions, this is very stimulating stuff; though he does run on at the mouth.

I looked into him because of my interest in the weird/horror writer Thomas Ligotti, whose bleak cosmic vision of metaphysical terror was heavily influenced by U. G. Krishnamurti.

U. G. gets deep under the skin of the universal notion that so many give lip-service to, though so few actually contemplate the consequences of - that there is no one to be enlightened.

I discovered for myself and by myself that there is no self to realize. That's the realization I am talkng about. It comes as a shattering blow... You have invested everything in one basket, self-realization, and, in the end, suddenly you discover that there is no self to discover... And you say to yourself, "What the hell have I been doing all my life?!" That blasts you.

All kinds of things happened to me. The physical pain was unbearable. That is why I say you really don't want this. I wish I could give you a glimpse of it, a touch of it. Then you wouldn't want to touch this at all. What you are pursuing doesn't exist; it is a myth. You wouldn't want anything to do with this.

[Ebblibs Thekstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for anyone of any persuasion or would be seeker of so-called 'enlightenment' - the spiritual equivalent of 'self-betterment' and other deeply misguided human foibles. Controversial, divisive and infuriatingly funny but above all vital. It could save your mind...with any luck it will destroy it and its illusions completely.

[Arttu · Rating 4 out of 5]

UG makes it very clear, that there is no blissful enlightenment; what happens to some (very few) people is the complete and irreversible loss of the illusion of mind and self.

A recommended read for all people interested in the philosophy of mind and cognition, and a warning for those who are searching for something in the mystical and spiritual.

[Magnus Lidbom · Rating 1 out of 5]

I find no coherent helpful critique of enlightenment or spirituality here. Rather, I find little more than a flat out denial of the existence of enlightenment without the author even defining what he means by enlightenment first nor giving any coherent explanation for his position. Then, of course, he keeps doing an about turn by claiming to be enlightened himself, only he "does not like that term" and prefers "the natural state". Absurdly, the intimation seems to be that because U.G. is supposedly in "the natural state" (enlightened) he can authoritatively state that enlighenment does not exist, or is "acausal", and thus all teachers which claim to help students move towards enlightenment are frauds.

U.G. comes across to me as arrogant, uncaring, condescending, incoherent, aimlessly rambling, and constantly self contradicting. He also explicitly rejects striving to be compassionate, empathetic and kind.

Further, U.G. seems to either intentionally deceive and/or suffer from serious delusions and sensory hallucinations. Among these many delusions is that he believes that he no longer blinks automatically and instinctually. Something which is disproven in seconds by watching a youtube video of him.

Time and time again U.G. describes his state and tranformation as full of suffering. A calamity. This sounds like him being honest about his experience to me.

I could not recommend this book to anyone. Except maybe as an illustration of how easily we humans can be fooled into seeing enlightenment and wisdom in pseudo profundity and/or mental illness.

[Marcel Armstrong · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a compilation of excerpts from conversations in India and Switzerland from 1972 to 1980. U.G.'s is a unique voice - one in the wilderness. He is not for the faint of heart. Clearly a realized individual, U.G. rejects all notions of romanticizing enlightenment, preferring the term "natural state." This book provides 3 major insights into U.G.: his own autobiographical account, his description of the natural state, and his opinions on everything from "disease to divinity." His story is highly unusual and unique. His descriptions are lucidly clear and unmistakably those of one in the natural state. And his opinions will rattle you. Some describe U.G. as a spiritual terrorist. I would rather say he is more of a demolitionist. As with any great teacher, he will shatter any long-held or cherished beliefs, assumptions, or idealized values on spirituality and enlightenment. At the very least, reading U.G. will leave you standing on your own ground, questioning and thinking for yourself. A much-needed voice in an otherwise all too similar genre.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Man. Period.
Kick you right in the ass at every turn philosopher.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

what an interesting chap

[Shivam Gandhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some random thoughts on this book. I give the book 5 stars since it helped me generate some interesting ideas.

Somatic experiencing and Krishnamurti’s “calamity”

After reading what Krishnamurti describes as the “calamity”, I’m convinced that his body was actually letting off a massive amount of stored up trauma. In particular, he talks of his body shaking and feeling pain, speaking of it as an explosion. From my own experiences of EMDR, I can say this is what I feel, though my experience was started by a therapist as opposed to Krishnamurti’s sudden release of this energy. I relate this to the book Waking the Tiger by Peter Levine which discusses somatic experiencing psychotherapy for trauma which involves allowing the body to vibrate and move as it needs to so that trauma is let out.

Here are a few random bullet points based off of this premise:
The natural state is a trauma free state. Enlightenment is to be free of trauma stored in the body. Thus animals are in their natural state since they have a naturally somatic experience and are enlightened. Moo.
Certain classes of thought prevent somatic experiencing. Much of trauma therapy is centered around moving past the cognitive level to the somatic level such that the underlying stored trauma can be discharged. We could relate this class of thoughts to cognitive distortions, though I’d say cognitive distortions are but a subclass of this whole class of thoughts. It is any thought which aims to solve a problem of ego that prevents somatic experiencing.
Krishnamurti mentions the notion of chakra or “ductless glands”. I like to think of this as vital energy (qi) that moves through the body. Perfect movement of qi corresponds to the natural state and enlightenment. Trauma can be thought of as a blockage of qi in the body and so thought is created from blocked qi.

From my experience, I find that I can enter the somatic experiencing state on my own if I’ve done enough breathing techniques to calm my body down. This is typically done by deep diaphragmatic breathing and progressive muscle relaxation. I also practice transcendental meditation during this time to unglue myself from whatever thought loop I am stuck in. After this, I allow the energy stored in my body to discharge through some sort of shaking or running movement (discharging trapped fight or flight energy). I’m not saying I’ve reached enlightenment, but I notice a significant movement towards what Krishnamurti has described as the natural state based on the delta from my severely traumatized state that I was in when I started healing my PTSD versus how I am right now.

Absence of division in the psyche and my second disagreement with Krishnamurti

Krishnamurti talks of the natural state as being one which is fully integrated. This corresponds to the internal family systems model of understanding trauma in that there are different parts of us within the mind that need to be led by a leadership self. Building off of the last point, blockages in qi which cause a certain class of thoughts to perpetuate correspond to built up trauma in the body, or in the IFS model, a part that is not in harmony with the rest of the psyche.

I don’t exactly disagree with Krishnamurti on this point but somewhat dispute it when he says that each person’s concept of enlightenment is different and that there is no real commonality. This is both true and false. It is true in that no two people will have the same natural state unless they have the same exact genetic code, if we’re assuming that enlightenment is based on biological realities as opposed to some grand spiritual idea. However, I do believe that there is a certain innate morality that each enlightened person will have that is intrinsic in biology because altruism is evolutionarily advantageous. This idea is echoed in the Erikson stages of development, which posits that for an individual, each phase of life presents a new challenge and a new virtue to be cultivated. Thus, there is some “skeleton” of moral development that an individual is meant to follow. I believe the primary variables that influence variations in the natural state among individuals is nervous system sensitivity (see highly sensitive people, or HSPs) and concentration in qi through the body (see the Enneagram, a system that describes different personality types).

An ordering principle to reality based on the notion of enlightenment

Let’s piggy back off the last topic and revisit the idea that altruism is evolutionarily advantageous. That won’t be the focus of this section, moreso the idea of why evolutionarily advantageous behaviors even exist.

Krishnamurti describes his natural state as one where the sensations are fully felt and thought is no longer self-inspecting but purely for the purpose of operating within the real world. The fact that these two things are paired together implies that thought focused on introspection and self-examination blocks one off from the senses and disconnects them from reality. It is described as “useless information”. If enlightenment is the ability to come fully into the senses, then the only “useful information” is that which is created purely through sensation that does not pass through the ego. In essence, the ultimate state of man, if that’s what enlightenment is, is a state that minimizes information waste.

Let’s ignore Krishnamurti for a moment. In many schools of thought, this highest form of enlightenment encompasses the creation of something that contributes to society. Many times, this is science, or art, or social change. But in all cases, it leads to the “betterment of humanity”, which we may roughly say as that which frees other humans from suffering or leads to greater compression of information. For more on information compression and why art and science are tied to it, see my essay Compressing God into a .txt File.

If evolution is selecting for this, we may opt to ascribe an animistic principle to the universe that aims for compression of information and self-realization. In vague terms, we may be thought of as fragments of the universe, collectively helping it understand itself. For more on this, I’ve picked my next book to be Jacques Monod’s Chance and Necessity as it tackles an animistic principle to the universe’s workings.

[Jacob Acosta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seek no further. This bleeds of Truth.

[Zaubin Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

My second book by U.G. This book is again in the form of question and answer. What I found interesting in this book was the description of how U.G. became enlightened. It is a fascinated and intricate account. But this in spite of the fact that U.G. regularly states that there is no enlightenment, that it doesn't exist, that there is nothing to achieve. But then again, he also tells you not to listen to what he says, not to adopt any ideas you may find in what he says. Indeed, he embraces self-contradiction whole-heartedly. I admire this. So what's going on U.G.? Is there enlightenment, or isn't there? Maybe this thing that happened to you isn't "enlightenment," but it seems nearly as interesting. Fantastic, in fact. You tell us to be wary of gurus claiming special results, and then turn around and describe the special powers that you received! It is almost as if his entire account is a complete fabrication. Not to call him a liar, but when did he ever claim to tell the truth? But if it is true... then I'll find myself right on the enlightenment bandwagon all over again.

[Sai Teja Rangavajjula · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the honest and sincere books exploring the nature of the Spiritual Hullabaloo. If you are a spiritual seeker then this book will destroy it - so better keep away if you enjoy your practices. If you are tired of the search it may then speak to you.

Most people will find the ideas presented in book as repulsive and has nothing to offer for their individual or society's betterment which is exactly what U.G is saying all throughout. People may also find it distasteful that U.G criticizes everything there is under the spiritual business - be it Gurus or Gods but I see U.G as necessary balance which equalizes the rosy picture presented by the mainstream Gurus.

Bottom Line : Not for faint hearted.

[Steven Atkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

You are probably reading this book because you seek enlightenment, let me save you some time and bother, there is no such thing as enlightenment, you are wasting your time, so please give up now and go be yourself, that is all you can do.
But if being you is to seek enlightenment then please carry on, read this book and enjoy, namaste :-)

[Adrian]

There is nothing to learn here.

[Sidd · Rating 4 out of 5]

confusing, shocking, disrupting, mind altering.

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

UG was a bit of arrogant person but what he said about the enlightenment was nothing sort of enlightenment in itself. He made fun of Ramana Maharshi and others which highlights his arrogance. however I love reading his books, alas he didn't write any book himself. His words hit you like hammer and they go deep inside you to rethink on everything you have known so far. He was straight shooter and didn't give a damn about anything else than speaking what he has realized.

[Wasana Maneesri · Rating 5 out of 5]

U.G. could easily be the protagonist of Jed McKenna's book - it's almost déjà vu! Don't expect a happy, uplifting read here. Seeking mystical enlightenment? U.G. debunks it entirely. And If you love J Krishnamurti's 'Freedom from the Known,' beware: this book may not align with your expectations.

[Adeel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Serves as a good biography to U.G, the questions asked here are pretty redundant and much so annoying and in my view not worth the read, since it is just U.G having to repeatedly repeat himself.

[Anup Shivarkar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Warning!!! This book can lead you to depression. UG is brutally honest and tears down all the institutions we have built in our mind. Leave no hope, nothing to cling to. Be forewarned.

[Mila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing to say. Just speechless

[Shaad · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the only rare books that describes the process that leads to enlightenment.

[Niloy Hasan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greatest Book Ever Written.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very much reminiscent of "Psychology of Man's Evolution". Krishnmurti has an intriguing approach to communicating knowing, being present, or listening. Also speaks to I's as per the philosophy in "The Fourth Way" as well as
"Taming Your Gremlin: A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way."
Neothink: Supperpuzzle most clearly expressed the concept he has uncovered for himself. However, I believe possibly due to the linguistic limitations of the translation or the translator is not fully communicated.
This is a book translated from a series of interviews with Krishnmurti. The questions are posed and the question is re framed in traditional personal growth teaching style to use the question to relens the light of the question to create the answer through an optical shift. Monty would love this fella.

[Brad Goins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like all of U.G.'s books, this one pursues his more or less nihilistic approach to nondualism and advaita yoga. As the title indicates, if the pursuit of enlightenment is idealized, it actually becomes a hindrance to the person involved. U.G.'s books are ideal for anyone who is interested in advaita (nondual) yoga, but wants to steer clear of any suggestion that there is something supernatural or superhuman involved in it. U.G. can read a lot like mid-20th century existentialism. So, this is not a happy happy read. But if you're interested in tearing down your ideas about the importance of your self or ego, this book could very well do the trick. An engaging read. Warning: don't confuse U.G. with the much more famous Krishnamurti (who was U.G.'s teacher.).

[Ashwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for all the seekers wasting their lives, seeking something that does not exist. Krishnamurti's style is pretty brash, yet the content he delivers can't b e missed.
If you're expecting to get motivated, i'd recommend you to not read this, cuz this book is only gonna demotivate you. I also realized where UG differs from his contemporary JK after reading this book.
JK can motivate you, but its just a palliative. UG will shatter you views, but he's honest