“Organized society takes away individual responsibility; it makes him conform. And society, the state, becomes more important than the individual; through bureaucracy, the boredom of office and routine, the individual creative responsibility is destroyed.” — J. Krishnamurti
You work long hours despite knowing that you’re wasting time. You touch your phone when we have a moment to spare though you don’t like doing it. You sit through every new show and movie, however crappy.
Why?
To stop the thoughts running constantly in your head as if they’re Instagram reels. And without knowing, your actions are conditioning you to think the way others want. In all this, we become like cars rolling off an assembly line—no different from the next. Any discussion on thinking for ourselves is either met with resistance or dismissed as philosophical stuff.
How will you gain self-knowledge then, which is the path to self-discovery? Here are a few simple steps to start without changing how you’re living your life:
- Question your assumptions. Rather than ignoring evidence that doesn’t align with your beliefs, actively seek it.
- Be aware about your thoughts and feelings without judging them. They are what they are.
- Embrace solitude so that you can declutter your mind.
Krishnamurti said, “The reformation of society can only come through the regeneration of the individual. . . Your relationship with another is society. . . The state is an outcome of individual thoughts and actions.”
In your evolvement lies the evolvement of society.