A while back I had the opportunity to read “the Future of Humanity.” A short book on humanity, particularly its psychological reality, and predictions on what will become of it. The book is actually a transcript of a dialog between Jiddu Krishnamurti and David Bohm, which was done in the early 1980s. Krishnamurti is a well-known philosopher, while Bohm is one of the most influential theoretical physicists of the 20th century. 

The dialog (which contains much skepticism) between them seemed to be a bit incoherent and all over the place. This is most likely because I am slow in processing what these amazing minds were discussing throughout the dialog. However, I managed to grasp a couple of important key concepts from the dialog. Hopefully, I can convey them properly in this post.

The first key concept I noticed is that according to Krishnamurti, humanity is heading toward a downward spiral. Humanity is slowly but surely destroying itself, and it will continuously do so until there is nothing left of it. The reasons for this are many and scattered throughout the discourse. However, another key concept connected to humanity’s self-destruction is how dominant the ego has become.

Krishnamurti defines humanity as having a superconsciousness. That all of our consciousnesses are supposed to be in unison. But because of the ego, we have forgotten our true selves, and become separate individuals. The growth of the ego has pulled humanity in different directions causing it to break at one point. Thus, according to Krishnamurti, humanity’s demise is inevitable.

Bohm didn’t reject or approve of Krishnamurti’s ideas, and let the discussions organically flow. But in the end, there is a reluctant acceptance that humanity’s future looks dim.

As a person of religion, which Krishnamurti mentioned to be one of the causes of humanity’s demise, to some extent, I agree with Krishnamurti’s prediction. Humanity’s future is indeed dim, but it doesn’t mean that there is no hope. 

In the Islamic tradition, we are taught to know the potential of human beings for destruction and havoc. In the Quran, even the angels contested God’s decision to create a creation that will shed blood and spread destruction. But God replied that there are secrets about humanity that only God knows. Among them is the ability of human beings to master and utilize their intellect. That it can be used as a vehicle to understand truth, contrary to Krishnamurti’s verdict that it (the intellect) is only a vehicle for destruction.

The human being is a complex creature. Yes, you and I have the potential for destruction. But we also have the potential to be agents of goodness, and only God knows what else we can achieve. 

Even though there are key concepts that I like from Krishnamurti, which are also aligned with the Creed that I believe in, many of them are not. In the end, at a personal level, the takeaway from the dialog in “the Future of Humanity” is that no matter how dire the condition of humanity is, we should take it lightly as it is inevitable, and just enjoy the ride. On the other hand, I also believe that there is also a lot of good in humanity that we can look forward to seeing.

But God knows best

Reflections from the Future of Humanity and Quran surah Al Baqarah ayat 30

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