cover image A STAR IN THE EAST: Krishnamurti—The Invention of a Messiah

A STAR IN THE EAST: Krishnamurti—The Invention of a Messiah

Roland Vernon, A STAR IN THE EAST: Krishnamurti—The Invention of a . , $29.95 (336pp) ISBN 978-0-312-23825-4

Vernon, a professional writer educated at King's College, Cambridge, offers the most comprehensive Krishnamurti biography to date, promising "water-tight impartiality." He presents detailed accounts of the New Age teacher's life (1895–1986) and career in chronological order, using primary and secondary sources—scrupulously quoted—as well as unattributed interviews with students, friends and colleagues. However, Vernon's objectivity is a fairly unreflective one that often fails to systematically interpret and connect the details of Krishnamurti's life and career to important trends of his time. Vernon fails to recognize, for example, that Krishnamurti's story does not so much herald the arrival of Eastern mysticism in the West as it clearly describes and anticipates the construction of a unique Eastern mysticism by the West. Also, Vernon does not detect the apparent influence of Victorian notions of sexuality and hygiene on Krishnamurti's early trance inductions and later physically punishing purification experiences (known collectively as the "Process"). The custody and training of young Krishnamurti by the Theosophist Charles Leadbeater clearly involved what would today be viewed as child sexual abuse, and the author's reluctance to acknowledge it as such precludes a more comprehensive and accurate psychological interpretation of Krishnamurti's important religious experiences. However, this biography is still the best available, providing a wealth of detail that will be appreciated by followers of Krishnamurti. (Apr.)