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Universe

PooskyPoosky
edited March 2006 in Buddhism Basics
According to Buddhism, what is the universe made of?

Comments

  • federicafederica Seeker of the clear blue sky... Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt Moderator
    edited March 2006
    Hello Poosky... well, could you clarify....

    which one?
  • ajani_mgoajani_mgo Veteran
    edited March 2006
    Good question...

    But shouldn't it be the same as the version thought up by physicists? Matter, antimatter, gravity etc.

    Or could you clarify... Of what aspect are you asking about?
  • zenmonk_genryuzenmonk_genryu
    edited March 2006
    According to Buddhism, asking what the universe is made of doesn't contain the reality of what the universe is. And then, as Federica pointed to, there is the question of which universe you mean - there are many.
  • ajani_mgoajani_mgo Veteran
    edited March 2006
    "Asking what the universe is made of doesn't contain the reality of what the universe is. " - Zenmonk

    Ah, nice.
  • PooskyPoosky
    edited March 2006
    For example, according to the Sankhya philosophy, the material cause of the universe is prakriti or pradhaana i.e. the universe is made of prakriti / pradhaana. Similarly, according to Buddhism, what is the universe made of?
  • BrianBrian Detroit, MI Moderator
    edited March 2006
    according to buddhism, the universe is made of what it is made of - stuff.

    I'm not being facetious. There's generally no more than a purely scientific explanation for what a universe is. Currently, M theory and brane theory hold that there are very likely multiple universes. Made of? What is chicken stew made of? A whole bunch of stuff.
  • zenmonk_genryuzenmonk_genryu
    edited March 2006
    And that 'stuff' is empty too.
  • federicafederica Seeker of the clear blue sky... Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt Moderator
    edited March 2006
    But the Emptiness is full, not void....

    or is this getting just a leeeeetle too deep....? ;)
  • KnitwitchKnitwitch
    edited March 2006
    Of course not ... I understand it all ..... no really I do, it is obvious ... isn't it.
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    edited March 2006
    Poosky,

    In Buddhism, such a question is actually unskillful, and ultimately left unanswered. Why? Because it does not deal with the Buddha's Path. The Buddha once said:
    "Both formerly & now, it is only stress that I describe, and the cessation of stress." - SN XXII.86

    All of his teachings revolve around just this one principle. If it doesn't have some part in the understanding and cessation stress, then it just isn't that important.

    :)

    Jason
  • wolfscalissiwolfscalissi
    edited March 2006
    Well said elohim,
    there are certain questions the Buddha left unanswered and it wasn't by accident. we can be easily led far astray "seeking". when there is nothing more than this...just this

    ^gassho^
    mike
  • JasonJason God Emperor Arrakis Moderator
    edited March 2006
    Mike,

    Good to see you again!

    _/|\_

    Jason
  • angulimalaangulimala Veteran
    edited March 2006
    i second elohim's post.
    buddhism is a religion/art/science/whatever specializing in how to reach happiness or to end dukkha.the questions like how is the beginning of the universe or how life started have no/little correlation with the goal of buddhism.just my theory:)
  • federicafederica Seeker of the clear blue sky... Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt Moderator
    edited March 2006
    Darn! And I had the answer right on the tip of my tongue.... Wolf's return distracted me... it's gone now!! :grin:
  • ajani_mgoajani_mgo Veteran
    edited March 2006
    Need a living example? Always here am I. I spent about one year of my life searching for what is the true nature of Life - now I don't care so much, realising the profound Truth the Dharma holds on a deeper level as always - although I'd still study physics and stuff for these answers, but they no longer hold great significance as before.

    If you would search for the reality in every religion of the world unbiasedly, you would realize that there isn't - because reality isn't reality.
  • PalzangPalzang Veteran
    edited March 2006
    Actually it's made of strings (and no, this is not a joke).

    Palzang
  • bgnbgn
    edited March 2006
    Poosky wrote:
    According to Buddhism, what is the universe made of?

    I have found this on the net... pretty interesting
    http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Courtyard/1652/Creation.html

    I think they just analised from this sutta

    agreed with elohim though
  • SimonthepilgrimSimonthepilgrim Veteran
    edited March 2006
    Palzang wrote:
    Actually it's made of strings (and no, this is not a joke).

    Palzang


    The strings only subtend the true nature of all that is: sound. The universes are a vast symphony composing itself and we are the notes on the stave called life.
  • zenmonk_genryuzenmonk_genryu
    edited March 2006
    It's beyond sound or silence.
  • buddhafootbuddhafoot Veteran
    edited March 2006
    Simon and Garfunkel had it and didn't even know it.

    -bf
  • ajani_mgoajani_mgo Veteran
    edited March 2006
    This sounds so LOTR Creation story... Hehe... String Theory rocks!
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