Customer Reviews
Liberating and empowering - By: S. Ginty, 27 Dec 2008 
Freedom From The Known is my favourite of Krishnamurti's books,in fact, my favourite of any spiritual book. It is brutally honest & invites you to question the world that we livein & the systems that condition us. He does not tell us what to think but instead asks us direct questions & guides usin this way through the book. At times you might find it depressing as nothing is sugar-coated & everything you think "is just the way it is" is broken down but ultimately it is extremely liberating to view the world through these new perspectives. I find it enlightening every time I read it, & I think it is best to pick it up again & again whenever you're feeling low. Anyone & everyone should read this: the religious, the non-religious, the spiritual, the sceptics etc. This is my first book reviewin my 3 years on Amazon so I think that's testament enough of how much I recommend this book out of all the ones I have read!
Invitation to face yourself - By: R. E. Russnak, 11 May 2008 It is easy to get lostin the jugle of words & contradictions of his exploration of the workings of his own mind & emotions. But for me the most salient pointin this book is the invitation to let go of comparisons. As long as we live under the concept that someone somewhere has experienced something which is superior to my own experience i.e.
Buddha or Christ etc. I am creating a limiting belief which seperates me from the potential to experience BEING as totally unique & capable of surpasing any other state of consciousness.
It is the need to be validated by someone else, to have my realisation confirmed & corroboratedin the circle of peers or teachers which creates the duality, creates the separation.
This little book is an invitation to examine our own conditioning & levels of consciousness & once realised to let go of them & step into the realm of total unknowing, of seeing & experiencing conscious livingin a way which is beyond concepts & the limitations of our own mind.
But as he states himself, he is not here to give you the answers.
A truthful observation about the human thinking machine - By: Mr. J. Parker, 24 Apr 2007 This book may be mistaken as an attack on humanity but it is not. It is a very truthful & objective observation of the many egoic expressions that lie within human consiousness. Krishnamurti just exposes all the falsities & contradictions within. The book may appear as condemnation to those who fear the truth about their inner conflict & egoic thinking. However it is not condemnation out of reaction but an honest look at human thinking. To those who can face the truth about their illusory selves it will actually bring greater awareness to that which is unconsious within...
Over-rated and unenlightened - By: Marc John, 13 Apr 2007 
Krishnamurti was obviously a very troubled, bitter man, & this 'rant' against humanity & the quest for individual enlightenment does nothing more than vent his frustrations over the great universal challenge faced by all: that of the transient human mind seeking its inherent, eternal consciousness rather than languishingin its projected, impermanent pains & pleasures. This was a problem the author clearly had no real understanding about or answer for; his terse, dense writing displaying absolutely none of the clarity or insight of the likes of Sri Ramana Maharshi or Paramahansa Yogananda, two genuine spiritual guides. The fact that this book & its author has attracted so many followers can only be because so many aspiring 'seekers' must have failed to 'find themselves' & consequently descended into the same angry, resentful mentality that regrettably gripped the author. What this book does show is that the spiritual path is indeed fraught, not least with pseudo-gurus like these, who will bog you down if you're not careful. Unless you are a miserable defeatist & ex-seeker who hates life, & need to read something supporting your merciless self-loathing, you really should stay away from this unenlightened pulp.
Excellent but brutal - By: Jonathan Schwartz, 12 Jul 2006 One of the few books I've read that I recommend time & time again to my students - an excellent but brutal analysis of the human condition.
It is certainly not light reading & I found it to be quite pessimisticin terms of its overall outlook. The analysis however is clinical & cuts to the bone. This book would probably bode better with intellectuals than those inclined to read the standard self-help motivational pulp.. definitely a book to stimulate thought & reflection.
