On Jiddu Krishnamurti: Happiness and self-knowledge

“We seek happiness through things, through relationship, through thoughts, ideas and do not realise their impermanence. To find out the true meaning of happiness, we must explore the river of self-knowledge. Self-knowledge is not an end in itself. Is there a source to stream?”

~ Jiddu Krishnamurti

What Krishnamurti is referring to here is — Joy, not happiness. That is linked to pleasure. So, not your usual meaning of ‘happiness’ is to be applied to Krishnamurti’s words here. I would have loved it, had he been a little more precise with his choice of words. Joy is what he is talking of.

As far as worldly happiness is concerned, it is available at all points in the river. In fact, the river is flowing just for the sake of happiness. Otherwise, why would the river flow at all? Source would have been sufficient.

So it is not really happiness that is to be found through self-knowledge. In fact, self-knowledge often is a danger to happiness.

Self-knowledge dissolves both happiness and sadness, and you are left with nothing but a naked and silent Joy.