What is God?

"What is God?"

"...the first question is, are you going to accept what another says about God? It does not matter who it is, Krishna, Buddha or Christ, because they may all be mistaken - and so may your own particular guru be mistaken. Surely, to find out what is true your mind must be free to enquire, which means that it cannot merely accept or believe. I can give you a description of the truth, but it will not be the same thing as your experiencing the truth for yourself. All the sacred books describe what God is, but that description is not God. The word 'God' is not God, is it? ...So, your mind must be completely free, and only then can you find out what is true... Only when you have this freedom, this real freedom from external influences as well as from your own desires and longings so that your mind is very clear - only then is it possible to find out what God is."

- Jiddu Krishnamurti, answering a young student's question during a talk at an Indian school.

Reference: Krishnamurti, J. 1963. Life Ahead (pp. 45-46). New York (etc): Harper & Row.

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