Page 154 - JOURNAL OF THE KRISHNAMURTI SCHOOLS

the journal of the krishnamurti schools no.25

our problems to deal with the kind of fragmented thinking that
causes our problems.
We do have the technologies to transition to a new, sustainable
age. Every week the media report on new ways to align human
systems and natural systems. A large part of the world’s research
efforts is aimed at creating a sustainable civilization. We are not
short of solutions to deal with the unintended failures that devel-
oped during the Industrial Revolution. We are short of leaders who
will take these hard-won solutions to scale. The environmental
movement, (now joyfully bolstered by school students around the
world) is aimed at giving our leaders the courage to go much fur-
ther in dealing with the climate, pollution, population bottleneck.
The question is this—can we deal with the threats to our natu-
ral environment and very survival, without a fundamental change in
consciousness? Our imbedded sense of tribal identity, expressed as
nationalism, prevents us dealing with global problems that require
unprecedented international cooperation. Political leaders at interna-
tional meetings sound like…I was going to say kids, but that’s not cor-
rect; they sound like bigots: “Why should we do anything about our
CO pollution if this country or that country doesn’t act first?” They
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all want to make their country great and exploit whatever advantage
they can. The result is that they are jeopardizing civilization.
Clearly what is needed is practical action to deal with the problems
downstream. But to pull this off we need a radically new, world-wide
approach. But such an approach, Krishnamurti maintains, can come
about only through freeing the mind from a crippling servitude to
self-centeredness, expressed collectively in a destructive adherence
to nationalism and sectarian beliefs. And that is just for starters…
Where it goes wrong, is that the practical action and campaign-
ing gets all the attention. Can one influence a wholistic approach?
As David points out, “…you’ve got to begin with those who can
listen, because everything new started with a few people. At the
time of Newton, for example, there were not a hundred scientists of

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