"It is neither physical nor psychological transformation" ~ UG

JK and UGK -The Anarchist Duo

    The current audio clip has been sourced from two separate recordings of UG's conversations. Here, UG is on a mission to set the record straight about some of his statements in the book, 'The Mystique of Enlightenment'. 

    Post the 'calamity' (death and resurrection) on his 49th birthday, 'UG' (or 'the personal identity') lost all the moorings, the physiology shifted gears to the 'neutral' or the 'declutched state' falling into its own natural rhythm. Heightened sensitivity, awareness and vitality became the default mode of functioning. 

    For lack of a better description, UG labelled the 'new normal' as the 'Natural State'.  This entire happening was later captured in his own words and published in the book, 'The Mystique of Enlightenment'. 

    The 'calamity' happened in Saanen in Switzerland. It was a sheer coincidence that his namesake, Jiddu Krishnamurti (JK), the world-renowned philosopher happened to be in Saanen at the same time. He was there on a lecture tour. There happened to be some common friends between the two Krishnamurtis  who shuttled between the two camps. For them, UG having gone through 'calamity' was the 'new kid on the block', a new philosopher of sorts, singing an altogether different song about the fascinating Natural State.

    For common friends, the 'JK lingo' was part of their daily diet. UG found it difficult to express his 'calamity' to such minds drunk high on JK's intellectually intoxicating stock phrases and expressions. UG decided to go the other way, avoiding all platforms and discussions, he started describing the physiological changes seen in the Natural State. For the limited audience, this was an entirely new dimension into reality. This was in total contrast to JK's intellectual 'armchair trips' or 'journeys' or 'voyages on uncharted seas' to inquire into the 'unknown'. 

    JK, to his credit, was the first ever thinker to completely brush aside all kinds of religious or spiritual overtones in any inquiry into reality. He encouraged fearless, independent inquiry. He debunked churches or crutches of all kinds, discouraging recourse to a beaten path or technique or teacher. 

    JK's was a commendable feat, a tremendous achievement given the vicious grip of tradition or culture over the human mind for centuries upon centuries. He, for the first time, in modern times, singularly dismantled the deep religious or cultural structures, nay, their very foundations, loosening their vicious grip over our minds. Many tasted their 'first freedom' and savoured the power in JK's enchanting words to inquire into reality beyond the boundaries of any known religion or tradition. 

    JK's approach was refreshingly different and intellectually invigorating. JK had managed to brilliantly put together one of the finest and the most refined vocabulary to date to facilitate probing or inquiry. His audiences were mainly those who were fed up with the status quo. Revolting, daring and intellectual minds from all walks of life eagerly welcomed and embraced JK's new lingo. His talks were appealing, seductive and intellectually stimulating.  

    Dissection and analysis were the essential ingredients of a regular JK diet. With JK on the dais, there was always the magical element of anticipation in the audience of some great adventure. It was the feeling of being on an airplane about to take-off. The engines roared and the airplane gathered enormous speed, rolling on and on... but for some strange reason, the plane failed to lift off. In aviation parlance, this is known as an RTO (rejected take off) when the plane returns to the gate. This happened time and time again. 

    JK's overemphasis on analysis, verbosity and generalisation brought home intellectual weariness and exhaustion. Also, his catchy abstractions - 'the flight of the eagle', 'first and the last freedom', 'the mind will come upon that which is 'sacred' and 'nameless' - all bordered on the poetical and mystical. In fact, these odysseys and discussions added more and more layers of intellectual and mystical baggage running contrary to JK's own idea of 'freedom from the 'known'. 

    After listening to JK for years and his umpteen references to the mystical - like the 'unknown', the 'sacred', the 'religious', the 'nameless' etc., the intellectually exhausted sought a new kind of freedom," the freedom from JK's 'unknowns'." 

   (An aside: I too was a die-hard JK freak, 'haunted' by JK every waking moment of my life for years that completely wrecked my academic life. In a strange climactic moment, one fine morning, as I stood alone on a terrace, JK simply got flushed out of my system, once and for all, leaving no trace behind, I tasted 'last(ing) freedom' from an extraordinary man who had 'possessed' me during the most youthful years of my life.)

    UG too had his share of 'one on one' exchanges with JK. They had a similar background; both were part of the Theosophical Society of India. UG pushed back and revolted against all those mystical 'abstractions' and demanded clarity. Between them they had many heated exchanges but for some reason, JK was not very forthcoming. 

    Many followers of JK (UG began to refer to them as JK's widows), after listening to JK for years, realised they were stuck on square one. 

    In this audio clip, UG accepts that it was JK's overemphasis on the 'psychological' or the 'intellectual' that had initially pushed him to revolt with his own counter narrative with emphasis on the 'physiological'. He gracefully acknowledges that while doing so, he may, in fact, have gone overboard. And offers this necessary correction.

    In the clip, UG rubbishes the very idea of 'transformation', either physical or psychological. And maintains that it is only a concept or notion, with no basis or reality,

    " Any time anybody throws a sentence at me from the book, I tear that book even at the risk of people calling me you are inconsistent. I don't want to talk about the mistake (mystique) of enlightenment, the description, it is (actually) neither physical nor psychological transformation. 

    That book gives the impression that it is more physiological than a psychological one. 

    At that time, I was surrounded by these (Jiddu) Krishnamurti freaks in Saanen. They were throwing all those phrases at me, the 'Krishnamurtian lingo'. So, I had to answer that way. 

    But even that, it is neither physiological nor psychological because there is nothing there to be transformed, so, this (physiological transformation) is also misleading, that has to be corrected by me."

Natural State or 'unconditioned consciousness'

    UG has remained largely ambivalent about the loaded term, 'consciousness', sometimes using it as a synonym for 'life', sometimes denying or debunking it, treating it as a pure mental construct.

    But here is UG's rare take on 'consciousness':  

    " This consciousness which is functioning in me, in you, in the garden slug and earthworm outside, is the same.

    You have no way at all of finding out for yourself the seat of human consciousness (brain etc.), because it is all over, and you are not separate from that consciousness.

    All the experiences - not necessarily just your experiences during your span of thirty, forty or fifty years, but the animal consciousness, the plant consciousness, the bird consciousness -- all that is part of this consciousness. " 

                                                                      ~ UG (The Mystique of Enlightenment) 

    In this light, 'primordial consciousness' means 'life' or 'essence', beyond the bounds of all experience - animal, plant, bird or human. It remains untouched or uncontaminated by any 'conditioning'. Nothing, no thought or knowledge or experience can ever taint its pristine purity. 

    Compare that definition of 'primordial consciousness' with UG's description of the Natural State: 

 " Then thought cannot link up. The linking gets broken, and once it is broken it is finished. Then it is not once that thought explodes; every time a thought arises, it explodes. So, this continuity comes to an end and thought falls into its natural rhythm." 

                                                                     ~UG (The Mystique of Enlightenment)

    UG's descriptions of the Natural State and the 'primordial consciousness' provide us a tiny little glimpse into what he refers to as 'calamity'. 

    'Calamity' or whatever happened to him and so many others perhaps was just the restoration of the 'primordial consciousness' or the 'unconditioned consciousness ' that always exists including in each and every one of us.

    " This kind of a thing 'must have happened' to so many people. " ~ UG

    " Hundreds of people - 'probably something happened' to so many hundreds of people. This is part of history -- so many rishis, some Westerners, monks, so many women, and sometimes very strange things..." ~ UG

    Natural State or the state of original 'unconditioned consciousness' presupposes no 'linking of thoughts', no 'continuity of thought' and therefore, the absence of any 'psychological identity' or 'thinker' or the 'I' or the 'self'. 

Conditioned Consciousness - the ' self ' and 'psychological time'

    It is important to remember that conditioning is very essential for our functioning or survival in the environment. Conditioning involves experience and learning and is all about memorisation and sensitisation. All life forms undergo conditioning or adaptation to survive and avoid natural threats or hazards like fire or predators etc. 

    Like the animals, humans too are conditioned and sensitised to various threats in the natural environment. But apart from 'physical conditioning', humans undergo the 'cultural conditioning' for functioning in a social or cultural setting. Yes, humans face not only the physical threats but also psychological threats in the form of enmity, fear, uncertainty, anxiety, hatred, war etc. 

   Cultural conditioning, therefore, is essential but there are many undesirable consequences including psychological distortions, illusions and delusions that wreak havoc.

    One of the outcomes of cultural conditioning is the solidification and stratification of thought or the 'buildup of human knowledge'. This is passed on from generation to generation. UG suggests that this collective human knowledge creates a powerful 'field of thought' that always surrounds us and envelops us. He calls it the 'thought sphere'.  

    Whenever there is 'thinking', there is the 'movement of knowledge' or some mental activity like fetching, sorting, recalling, reasoning or recognising etc. This 'movement of knowledge', according to UG, is behind the illusion of the 'self' or the 'I'. 

    'I' is akin to the illusion of a 'shadow' that has no basis or independent existence. As long as there is light, there is shadow and as long as there is thinking, there is the 'I'. 

    Sages like Sri Ramana, UG, Nisargadutta summarily dismiss psychological identity as an illusion, a mere simulation born of cultural conditioning. 'I' is a virtual reality, like a 'character' in a videogame that takes on a life of its own, distinct and separate from physical or biological reality. 

    Apart from the illusion of a psychological identity, conditioning fabricates yet another powerful illusion, the idea of 'psychological time'.

    Thought is memory. When an event occurs, it gets memorised giving rise to the notion of 'cause' and 'effect' (as in 'smoke and fire'). UG explains that this notion of 'cause and effect' projects the virtual reality of time, the 'psychological time'.  

    The notion of time (or the timeline) runs as a common thread through all of the memorised events. We can't think of event without time, the time of occurrence. Time helps to 'mark' or 'link' or 'connect' independent or isolated events to create a running commentary or autobiography. This is the mechanism behind all rumination or 'talking to oneself' about yesterdays and tomorrows. 

   The more we cling to society, the more we invest in society, the more we participate in society, the deeper is the 'cultural conditioning', the more entrenched and stubborn the 'self'. 

    The powerful illusion of the 'I', the 'time' and the 'autobiography' is the tyranny of the 'conditioned consciousness'.   

                                                                ****  

 Death' of steel is the 'rebirth' of iron

    The most debilitating symptom of cultural conditioning is a deep sense of restlessness, a nagging discontent, a constant disturbance in the psycho-physical complex that eats into our vitals. This is because our true reality, as per UG and many other sages, is the original 'unconditioned nature' or the 'Natural State'. 

    UG describes cultural conditioning as a superimposed reality, an artificial imposition, a tyranny that distorts our original nature by forcing us to embrace unnatural ways of living through the dictates of its value-system. 

    The Natural State, our original reality never stops goading us or beckoning to us. This is a call from the depths of one's being to 'return to the source' or to return to one's true or essential nature. 

    As long as we chase after non-existing psychological goals like happiness, fulfilment etc. or spiritual pursuits like God, enlightenment etc. we remain 'conditioned' or enslaved under the tyranny or dictates of culture. The goals lure us away from the 'source' leaving us conflicted, restless and frustrated. 

     Our story is not very different from the 'conditioning' of iron into steel. 

    Natural iron is abundant in nature. And steel is a 'conditioned' form of iron, an alloy of iron and carbon fused at very high temperatures. 

    If steel is out in the open, it is subject to weather conditions or natural elements, it then begins to rust. Rusting is the 'reversion' of steel back to its original form of iron, a completely natural process. 

    In other words, death of steel is the rebirth or the resurrection of iron. This is the magic of nature. Perhaps herein lies the golden key - going back to nature, going back to the source is to recover one's true nature. 

   Calamity or death, as in the case of UG, perhaps is akin to the death of steel. And like the rusting away of steel, the withering away of the 'conditioned mind' (the 'withering away of the will' ~UG) seems to be the rebirth of the natural or the original or the real human. 

Audio Clip

Audio Transcription

UG: I am telling you that I made the biggest mistake in that book, the Mystique of Enlightenment to emphasize and overemphasize the physical side of it in contradistinction to what ( Jiddu ) Krishnamurti was talking about.

Only Krishnamurti freaks visited me in those days, they were throwing all the garbage at me, psychological garbage.

So, I had to emphasize this, overemphasize that this is only a physical thing.

But it is neither a physical transformation nor a psychological transformation.

It is useless to talk of it as a physical transformation or a psychological transformation because there is nothing there to be transformed.

So, what is left? What is left here is the physical functioning of this body, that is what I am describing.

~ ~ ~ ~

UG: My mission is to tear apart, that is what I am doing. Any time anybody throws a sentence at me from the book, I tear that apart even at the risk of people calling me you are inconsistent.

I don't want to talk about the mystique of enlightenment, the description. It is neither physical nor psychological transformation. 

So that book gives the impression that it is more physiological than a psychological one.

At that time, I was surrounded by these (Jiddu) Krishnamurti freaks in Saanen.

They were throwing all those phrases at me - the Krishnamurtian lingo. So, I had to answer that way. But even that, it is neither physiological nor psychological because there is nothing there to be transformed. 

So, this is also misleading, that has to be corrected by me, not for pristine purity or anything. I am not interested.

But I have been doing great injustice to myself and to the people who hang around me by allowing that at all, no!

Q: But what do you say about the physiological changes that occurred then?

UG: That is a side effect, is the shifting of balance, that's all.

" It is not in your interest to be around this man. It will destroy the mind " ~ UG

    More fraud or con happens in the name of 'love' or 'god' than any other commodity on the planet. Legions of suffering, frustrated souls are willing to pay any price for a joyride to the 'promised land' and are sitting ducks for predatory forces. Everyone wanting to escape the harsh realities of life becomes a likely prey.

    The devil quoting the scripture is very common in the marketplace. 'Love', 'kindness', 'compassion', 'sacrifice', or ' love thy neighbour as thyself '; ' be good and do good ' are all shibboleths, empty words and phrases. They are generously thrown at people in religious or spiritual circles, temples, churches, congregations. Also used in political campaigns to rope in voters. 

  

    Yes, market gurus and politicians are kissing cousins. Many times, you see them hobnobbing with each other and also deeply vested in each other to pursue narrow goals and agendas. Many of them are hypocrites and frightened chicken. They gather people, surround themselves with followers and flunkies, to artificially experience security, strength and power.

 

Real human or the sage

    A 'real human' or sage, on the other hand, is a total departure from all charlatans and claimants in the public square. 

    What stands out in the sage is the lack of personal identity and a deep connection with primordial life. And the accompanying qualities of audacity, wisdom and energy.

    Yes, the sage displays the audacity to walk alone and speak truth to power, the wisdom to guide the actions and destinies of people, and humungous energy to overcome all odds and opposition in the chosen path. 

    'Gentle Jesus' or the 'Raging Sage'? 

    " Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves."

(Matthew 21:13 Isaiah 56:7)

    The revulsion of Jesus at the Temple could only be the response of a 'real human'. Like the eruption of a volcano, it was explosion of righteous anger upon seeing inequity - sheer display of audacity, wisdom and energy.

     A 'real human' rooted in life, functioning in the natural, primordial state, untouched and uncontaminated by society, certainly does not come as a gentle Jesus. No, he is a real danger or serious threat to status quo, all that is phony or hypocritical. 

    Here is UG to Mahesh Bhatt in Italy (pointing to the heavily guarded Vatican),

    "If Jesus had all this security, there would be no Christianity at all. "  

                                                                    

    Unlike market gurus who dearly hold on to you and refuse to let go, and do everything to pamper you, please you, or even threaten you to stay put, UG comes out as the opposite - the antiguru. He does not indulge in playing god or guru. Rather, he shoos away anyone who tries to hang around him. 

     "Don't follow me, I am lost!"  

     He is keen on destroying the 'you'. He ruthlessly punctures all duplicity or fakery with a pointed question,

    " Does it operate in your life? " 

    In this audio clip, UG warns about the 'dangers' of associating with real gurus or Real McCoys. Association with a sage is an existential threat to the false identity, it is like seeking refuge at the foothills of an active, breathing and belching volcano,

    "It is not in your interest to be around this man. Because it will destroy the 'identity'. It will destroy the 'mind'." ~ UG

   All of us, without exception, want to play it safe. We strive hard to build a fat bank balance, insure our non-existent future with surplus insurance cover, invest in physical and psychological assets like relationships etc. This is our way of allaying the gnawing fear, uncertainty and insecurity that eat into our vitals.

   UG gleefully lobs grenades at everything that we hold close to our chest - our beliefs, values, relationships, rank or status, name or fame, position or power, and shallow and shadow identities. 

    Living with 'fire' is how it is with UG. At times, sagely intervention could be overwhelming or even frustrating. 

    The following anecdote is from someone who got singed in such fire. 

"President should bow to you"

   We all know UG's role in the life of Mahesh Bhatt, the famous Bollywood filmmaker. 

    UG did everything to push Mahesh to unleash his phenomenal talent. He triggered and ignited him in so many ways to chase after stardom. To his credit, Mahesh heeded the sagely advice and enjoyed a successful trail blazing career. He dared to do things differently, breaking the stereotype, and carving out a niche for himself in the 'dog eat dog' world of Bollywood. And received several national and international awards.

    Once, I remember Robert Carr (Bob also acted in some Bollywood films) asking Mahesh, 

    " Why don't you cast superstars in your movies? ", 

    Mahesh: " I don't need superstars, I make superstars." 

    Strangely, the same UG who pushed Mahesh to chase after name and fame, to secure a place in the sun, once did a complete U-turn on him, and blocked him from attending the Award Ceremony to receive a prestigious award. 

    When I reached out to Mahesh about this episode, he offered some startling details, 

    " UG stopped me from going to receive the President’s Award for (my film) 'Tamanna'. “Why should you bow your head to the President?” he said. “If you’re being honored, he should bow to you.” 

    That set me ablaze.

    But years earlier, when I was struggling and out of work, I received an invitation from an American Consul to meet Robert Wise, the legendary director of The Sound of Music, who was visiting Mumbai. I turned it down. UG fought with me. “You must go,” he insisted. “You need work. Doors only open where people like this meet.”

    I’m glad I listened. That night, I met the great Hrishikesh Mukherjee (famous Bollywood Director), who pushed me to enter (my film) 'Arth' for the National Awards. It won three. The film shot into prominence.

    The rest is history."

  The ways of the sage are inscrutable. 

UG Krishnamurti: A Dangerous Friend

    Yet another close associate, Larry Morris, the 'pastor', penned a touching biography on UG with a strange title, " UG Krishnamurti: Dangerous Friend". 

    Larry describes UG as Siva, the dissolver (the dissolver of Saṃsāra, the baggage of worldly associations and relationships). 

    " Seeing how we were still clinging to things, he (UG) would say, "Are you ready?" Who was ready to let go completely and not be whatever you were or thought you were? 

    How many of us wanted to be a 'walking death'...

    U.G. was the dissolver (Shiva) of so much in my life that I finally realized these connections were burdens, not benefits. He freed me in so many ways, I can still only begin to see. 

    He dissolved the connections with people I thought were friends forever, and there was nothing left between us. And we would connect to people from his life, friends, family members, but those connections too he would eventually dissolve, and we were left on our own. 

    Of all the hundreds of people from the U.G. days, there are few that I'm still related to. They came and they went, like waves on the shoreline."    

    Yes, UG was a raging fire fed by the fuel of life. He was fiercely independent in every sense of the word.  This gave him enormous courage and strength not to allow any relationship or cult to grow around him. He would ruthlessly burn down all that was shallow and false in people. 

    UG never spared anyone, however closely associated or connected, denounced all forms of hypocrisy, however subtle or camouflaged. His brutal honesty, utter clarity and fierce intensity exposed all our hidden motives, greed, ambition, pussy-footedness, weaknesses, attachments etc.    

    To a close friend who needed some advice about a tricky issue, he said, 

    " Look, I will tell you what I need to tell you, even if that hurts you, even if I were to lose your friendship. You may not want to see me ever again." 

    His intervention in our lives was like that of a surgeon who lances the tumour that hurts or bleeds but rids you of cancer. 

    UG was anathema to all sweet talkers and fake gurus who sell cheap icepacks to relive the pain temporarily but keep the tumour going and growing. 

    ~~~~

Audio Clip

Audio Transcription

Q: All these people, how do they feel at home?

Why do they feel at home? When they come to you.

UG: Chandrasekhar, you forget one basic thing.

All these years you have been made to believe, and you accept that assumption that you become better spiritually, morally. That's the one area, this individual will not help you.

Because all ethical codes of conduct are false. False.

Value system is false.

So, you think the benefit of being around this man will help you in that area.

It will not. It will destroy that. 

It will destroy the mind.

So, it is not in your interest to be around this man. Because it will destroy the identity. It will destroy the mind. And what is left is the physical. 

Any talent that you have. It will surface. Any potential you have. It will surface.

That mad bitch (referring to Bollywood actress) will become mad and mad and mad.

Mahesh had a tremendous talent in him. And he is on the top of the world.

And Dr. Lin I knew that he would make plenty of money. And not hang around these spiritual people. He is a multi-millionaire today.

All those people who have come into this orbit (UG's influence) have been benefited.

If there is no talent like this bitch. It is too bad. She will remain a bitch. All her life. Throwing some empty phrases on J Krishnamurti.

There is no talent in this bitch. Nothing will happen.

Enlightenment you just forget.

If there is any talent.

The talent is not the spiritual thing.

****

" Communication with yourself has to STOP" ~ UG

 Threats of the cultural kind 

    Constantly communicating with oneself or talking to oneself is the way we spend our waking hours. Apparently, there is more to this self-talk. After all, it could be part of a survival instinct, a tactic to navigate or negotiate the complex, conflict-ridden 'cultural environment', 

"Culture is the superimposed reality, that is the 'only reality' we have" ~UG. 

    Physical hazards galore in the natural environment. Thankfully, nature has endowed us with a biological 'survival kit' that is efficient and sufficient to handle the myriad physical threats.

    But the fact is we also face serious existential threats from an unlikely source, the cultural environment. The deadly demons of race, region (nationalism or tribalism), religion, colour, language etc., do pose a serious challenge to our survival. 

    The question is, are we equipped to handle these cultural threats? 

Culture as 'the force of good' 

    Culture, as we know, has a brief history of only a few thousand years. It is of the order of a few microseconds on the planetary timescale of around five billion years. Nevertheless, culture is a dominant force that impacts the lives and fates of billions of people.

    Culture, in its simplest form, is considered 'the force of good'. Culture assimilates local folklore, tradition or religion. It also appropriates the sayings and doings of wise men and women (UG called them 'human flowers') from the bygone ages. Culture, in its true sense, is universal and catholic (with a small 'c') in scope and approach with 'unity of life' and 'humanity' as its core values.

    History tells us that in every region, every geography where humanity appeared, there appeared some fine human flowers. These worthies led simple, natural and benevolent lives leaving behind a vast body of beneficial knowledge and ethos that has been passed on to us from generation to generation.

    The human potential is infinite, and it flowers or blooms when one gets tethered to the source of life. How it happens, is still a mystery. But it has happened to individuals in the past, and the possibility of such happening lurks in each and every one of us. This is the same Natural State (Sahaja Sthiti) that UG described as his own way of functioning after the 'calamity' (his death and resurrection on his 49th birthday). 

    "Go back' (to the source)" ~ UG

    Simple, natural living is 'life expressing itself'. It is the unleashing of human potential, the blooming of human possibility and creativity. 

     No wonder, the ancient cultures of the world, all the way from Greece to Egypt, Middle East to India and China were rich and vibrant civilizations. They gave us all the major religions of the world. Also, they introduced humanities and sciences, medicine and agriculture, astronomy and metallurgy, prose and poetry, music and dance, art and theatre etc. 

    The awe-inspiring architecture and monuments of the ancient past stand as relics to this day and give us a glimpse into the lofty levels of enlightenment, refinement and creativity of these ancient worthies.

    But what about culture today?  

'Culture' has calcified into a 'cult' 

    Yes, we could wax eloquent about the great human heritage, but where are we today? 

    Culture seems to have taken an about-turn, going back to the dark, pre-culture days of animalism and barbarism. Today's cultural environment, to say the least, is toxic. Culture is now a misnomer. 

    The dehumanizing cry of 'us versus them' is the cultish outgrowth of the bygone culture. It has turned into a handy tool for ambitious leaders, politicians and profit seekers eager to divide communities, to grab power and plunder.

    Culture has calcified into a cult due to narrow or parochial ways of 'thinking'. 

    All social or cultural evils are rooted in thought. 

  " Thought is your enemy."~ UG 

   Thought is a powerful double-edged sword. It can cut both ways. When employed for technical or functional or transactional purposes, thought is a boon, a highly beneficial instrument.

    But when driven by profit or motive, thinking turns into a self-centered activity. The thought of 'me' and 'mine'; 'us' and 'them' harbours the deadly evils of division and conflict, hatred and enmity. Such thinking is a clear path to danger and self-destruction. 

    Here is a deep dive by UG about the psychology of threat resolution and its possible fallout,

 " The demand to be prepared for 'all future actions and all situations' is the cause of our problems. Every situation is so different; and our attempt to be prepared for all those situations is the one that is responsible for our not being able to deal with situations as they arise. " 

                                                                                            ~ UG (Thought Is Your Enemy)

    This is the reason why we keep talking to ourselves all the time. We keep strategizing and planning for the non-existent threat or situation in the future. This is typical of 'crossing the bridge before reaching there', a tremendous drain on energy, a wasteful form of daydreaming.

    When one encounters a physical threat, say, a deadly cobra, the biology responds with a pre-programmed 'fight or flight or freeze' response. There is no thinking, only immediate action to avoid the danger, thought elopes!

    Upon encountering threats of a social or cultural or psychological kind, there is no such biological or pre-programmed instantaneous response. To resolve a psychological threat, say fear or loss, born of thinking or imagination, ironically, we fall back upon more thinking or imagination. The one casting the shadow is also the one trying to catch the shadow.

    Talking to oneself is such a defensive manoeuvre we indulge in when we are confronted with a cultural or social threat. 

Mental 'Cud chewing ' or 'clarification of thoughts' 

    Remember the 'cud chewing' phenomenon in cattle? Cows or bovines are either grazing or lazing. While lazing, they spend a lot of time re-chewing or regurgitating their 'cud'. Cud refers to the semi-digested form of food or hay. 

    When we are talking to ourselves, we too indulge in mental 'cud chewing.' We engage in rumination or mulling over of thoughts. 

    We keep chewing on thoughts of fear, loss, competition, comparison that haunt us. We keep hashing and rehashing, ordering and reordering thoughts till we get some clarity on the situation. We are trying to 'understand' the problem.

    UG explained that 'understanding is nothing but clarification of thoughts'. Understanding is our kind of 'cud chewing' wherein we look for patterns, meanings and desperately seek the 'familiar'. 

    Talking to ourselves is a form of our battle-readiness, a way of reassuring ourselves or insuring ourselves against future threats or situations. Observing this maniacal obsession with future or security, UG quips,

     " You are nothing but fear".

 'There is no need for us to talk "~UG    

    In this audio clip, UG clears the air by explaining to us the mechanics of self-communication,

" You communicate with yourself and then you use those words and try to communicate with me. But the communication with yourself has to stop there."                                                                                                                                         ~UG

    Unfortunately, self-communication doesn't stop there. We do not see the utter futility or the danger of self-talk or rumination. Not only it is an extravagant activity that burns up our psychic energy, but it is also one of the most distracting forms of preoccupation. It completely hijacks natural awareness and blindsides us to any current threats.  

    A person busy pushing the thread through the eye of the needle does not see a huge elephant passing by.

     "Stop thinking and start living" ~UG 

     Intelligence is to see the many dangers and limitations of thought. This is to junk wants and stick to needs. This unleashes the life energy otherwise bound or shackled by needless thinking. 

    Unleashed energy can handle a myriad affairs or deal with a myriad threats. This is the energy (mojo) behind all successful human undertakings, all great accomplishments and achievements. 

    Intelligent way of living is to drop all needless wants, goals and pursuits, to rid oneself of all forms of futile activities, relationships and engagements, to junk all psychological dependencies or crutches. This takes the oxygen out of the room, putting the brakes on neurotic forms of overthinking or self-communication,  

"Then there is no need for us to talk (to ourselves) or for you to talk to me, or to anybody." ~UG

    Living at ease, attending to things as they come, neither seeking nor rejecting affairs, nor abandoning the din and dust of society, one lives naturally.  

Here is a takeaway from the great Tao Master Guangcheng Zi on effortless living,

"Being a busybody will destroy you..."

~~~~~

Audio Clip

( Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoALZJDD_Rw )

Audio Transcript:

UG: Why I do what I'm doing is, to make you see that, it is not really necessary to talk.

It's not necessary for me to say anything, it's not necessary for you to say anything.

Not that there is another level of communication, or a mysterious way of communicating something, but this we know.

We are trying to tell something to somebody, and that gives you a feeling that you have said whatever you want to say.

It is not in your saying or in my saying that the solution is. The answer to the question is.

Q: Yes, you're right.

UG: I know that many people are hurt because, first of all, I can't follow, you see.

We are making statements. You are making a statement, I am making a counter statement, you see. Then it goes on and on and on and on.

Q: Oh no, I didn't want to. I was coming here, and I was ringing to ask if I may come, because I had two questions.

And I want to know your meaning about that, because there are two problems, by me and I want to ask.

I don't want to debunk your arguments; I don't want to draw a whole evening between them.

No, no, no.

UG: You know, you see, no, no, you don't have to say anything, just stop there, that's all.

Yes, it's not that I am blocking, or I don't want to listen, you see.

You see, the flow of that has to stop there in you.

You don't have to tell me or tell yourself, first of all, you see.

You communicate with yourself and then you use those words and try to communicate with me.

But the communication with yourself has to stop there.

Then there is no need for us to talk or for you to talk to me or to anybody.

~~~~~