October 4th ~ Time means moving from what is to “what should be.” I am afraid, but one day I shall be free of fear- at least, that is what we think. To change from what is to “what should be” involves time. Now, time implies effort in that interval between what is and ”what should be.” I don’t like fear, and I am going to make an effort to understand, to analyze, to dissect it, or I am going to discover the cause of it, or I am going to escape totally from it. All this implies effort – and effort is what we are used to. We are always in conflict between what is and “what should be.” The “what I should be” is an idea, and the idea is fictitious, it is not “what I am,” which is the fact; and the “what I am” can be changed only when I understand the disorder that time creates. So, is it possible for me to be rid of fear totally, completely, on the instant? If I allow fear to continue, I will create disorder all the time; therefore, one sees that time is an element of disorder, not a means to be ultimately free of fear. So there is no gradual process of getting rid of fear. just as there is not gradual process of getting rid of the poison of nationalism. If you have nationalism and you say that eventually there will be the brotherhood of man, in the interval there are wars, there are hatreds, there is misery, there is all this appalling division between man and man; therefore, time is creating disorder.
Effort is quite common in business. We hear it a lot. It is all about hard work. I am glad my hard work is paying off, we often hear. He says we are always in conflict. We don’t like where we are. We should be better. We should always be striving to be better. He talks about ideas vs. facts. Ideas are in our heads. They are words. Facts are reality. Aren’t facts here and now? It is reality. Fear is very common these days. It seems more and more of us are fearful. So many people are on anti-depressants, alcohol, and other substances. Another term I often use is anxiety. I have been told that many employees in Silicon Valley don’t want to get rid of the stress. They just want to be able to focus more while in stressful environments. They want something more. We want more time to improve. Krishnamurti is asking whether we can be rid of fear completely. Can this happen now as opposed to over time. In my experience, it helps to stop what one is doing and focus on our emotions. Observe our thoughts and emotions. Work and business often don’t give people that option. The bottom line is profits and time is money, so they say. We have all tried to change gradually. The concept of time is the problem. Time and thought. This is what gets us in trouble. Can we change our ways right now?Can we bring this view into the business world.