It is very important for human beings to communicate with each other. To communicate implies we must both be interested in the same thing, at the same level, with the same intensity, otherwise you can’t communicate. If you are not interested in this question of self, and the relationship of that self with another, which is very important — of sociological as well as psychological importance — I don’t think any talking about it becomes clear. Unless one wants to go into these things very carefully I think we had better stop talking to each other.
Can there be love if there is no total comprehension or self knowledge? The love that exists between man and woman, the love of a mother with her baby, the love of one’s country and so on and so on. What is the relationship between human beings who have self-knowledge, or who are understanding themselves?
Self-knowledge, knowing oneself, must begin knowing the world outside, knowing what is happening in the world — politically, religiously, economically, socially, racially, the class differences, the totalitarian states, leftist, right and centre, all that one must observe. It is not possible to observe if one is prejudiced. That is very simple and very clear. If I stick to my nationality, to my belief, to my race, I cannot possibly investigate, explore, observe the world. So through the observation of what is taking place outside of each human being (noise of train)
Without observing what is going on around us, socially, morally, religiously and so on, merely to investigate oneself leads to insanity, because there is the object very clearly to be observed, what is going on. Move from the outer to the inner, not the inner and then the outer. You can deceive yourself enormously if you begin with yourself. Whereas if one begins from the outer, then goes deeply within oneself, then you will see there is no difference between the outer and the inner. It may be like the sea, the ebb and flow, going out and coming in all the time.
Relationship implies, the meaning of the word is to be related, actually to be related, to be in contact, to have empathy, sympathy, a sense of sensitivity that understands each other completely, not partially. So as most human beings have not that relationship at all, their relationship is based on conflict, how does this conflict arise? What the future life may be, it doesn’t matter, we have only onw life. what we are now, if we don’t change what we are, we will continue in a different form and go on.