The ending is tremendously important.
The ending of a habit
smoking or whatever habit one has, to end it.
So one must understand what it means to end something
without effort, without will
without asking, 'If I end this will I get that?'
then you are in the market.
When you are in the market place you say
'I will give you this, give me that'
which most of us consciously or unconsciously do.
That is not ending.
To end and find out what happens.
So in the same way, death.
Please hold on to it for a minute
don't say, 'Is there life after death?'
'Do you believe in reincarnation?'
As I said, I don't believe in anything.
Full stop. Including reincarnation.
But I want to find out
one must find out what it means to die.
It must be an extraordinary state.
That is freedom from the known
you understand this?
I know my life, your life.
You know your life very well, if you have gone into it
observed it, carefully watched all the reactions
and your behaviour, your lack of sensitivity
or being sensitive escape into insensitivity
and so on and so on, so on.
You know your life very well, if you have watched it.
And all that is going to end.
Right?
Your attachment is going to end when you die.
You can't carry it with you
but you may like to have it till the last moment.
Right?
So can you end your habit, one habit
without arguing, rationalising, fighting it
you know, say finit terminat, finished, over?
Then what happens.
You will find out only if you don't exercise will.
Right?
'I will give up'
whatever your particular habit is.
Then you are struggling with it
you are battling with it, you are running away from it
suppressing it and all the rest of it goes on.
But if you say
'Yes, I'll end it, it doesn't matter, I'll end it'
see what happens.
In the same way death implies the ending.
The ending of everything that one has collected during this life:
the furniture, the name, the form
your experiences, your opinions, your judgements
your jealousies, your gods, your worship, your prayers
your rituals, everything comes to an end.
The brain, which has carried immemorial memories
and tradition and thoughts
that brain lacking oxygen peters out.
That is, the 'me' which has collected so much
the 'me' is the collection of all this.
Right? That is obvious. No?
The 'me' is my fear, the 'me' is my attachment
my anger, my jealousy, my fears, pleasure
my attachment, my bitterness, my aggression
that is the 'me'.
And that 'me' is going to come to an end.
That 'me' is projected by thought
which is the outcome of knowledge
the knowledge of my 50, 60, or 30 or 20 or 80 or 100 years
that is the fact, the knowledge, the known.
The ending of the known
which is the freedom from the known, is death, isn't it?
No?
And so one must find out
whether the mind can be free from the known.
Not at the end of 30 years later but now.
The end of the known
which is 'me', the world I live in, all that.
The 'me' is memories - please listen to all this
the 'me' is memories, experiences
the knowledge which I have acquired
through forty, sixty, thirty, twenty, or a hundred years
the 'me' that has struggled
the 'me' that is attached to this house, to this woman
to this man, to this child, to this furniture, to this carpet
the 'me' that is the experience
that I have gathered through a number of years
the knowledge, the pain, and the anxiety, the fears
the jealousies, the hurts, the beliefs being a Christian
love of Jesus, love of Christ, all that is 'me'.
And that 'me' is just a lot of words - no?
A lot of memories.
So can I be free from the known
end the known now
not when death comes and says
'Get out old boy, it is your time'.
Now.
But we cling to the known because we don't know anything else.
We cling to our sorrows, that's our we cling to our life
the life which is pain, anxiety
you know all that, you know all this
that is our daily, miserable life.
And if the mind doesn't cling to it at all
there is an ending to all that.
But unfortunately we never end.
We are always saying
'Yes, all right, I'll end it but what is going to happen?'
So we want comfort in the ending
do you understand sirs?
So somebody comes along and says
'Old boy, believe in this
that will give you tremendous comfort'
All the priests throughout the world come
and pat your shoulder or hold your hand when you are crying
they give you comfort, the love of Jesus
or he will save you, do this and do that.
Do you understand?
We are saying, the ending in which there is no time
the ending of time, which is death - you understand?