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Emptiness. Bring it on.
taiyaki
Veteran
Emptiness is the main idea of Buddhism. If one understands this notion of emptiness then one understands the heart of Buddhism. What is emptiness and why is emptiness important?
Buddhism is not a philosophy. It is anti-philosophy. Buddhism explains how the world is. So with Buddhist ideas it is important to understand that one isn't taking a philosophical stance but rather an experienced based observation.
Emptiness has always been a hard notion to understand. When I first learned about the word emptiness I instantly associated with Nihilism. I even assumed that Buddhism was a Nihilistic religion. Over time I gained an understanding of what emptiness is. Emptiness is not something. Emptiness is not nothing. Emptiness is the lack of something. The Buddhists use a concept of not-self (anatta). This idea basically says that everything lacks an essence. An essence being a permanent, single, inherent, unchanging quality. Because things are changing constantly, objects cannot have essences. If they had essences they would never change.
So when we say something is empty, we are saying that something lacks an essence. The Buddha wanted us to examine our lives thoroughly and search for this essence. Within ourselves, within others, and everywhere. What this idea of emptiness is saying is that things cannot just exist on their own. Things only exist in relation to the mind. We are here because of our parents. Things just don't come from nothingness. Things exist relationally.
An irritating person isn't inherently an irritating person. You view them as an irritating person. If this person had the essence of an irritating person then they would never change. But we know they... can change an be pleasant to you. People have infinite potential. What it all comes down is how you perceive things. So when one understands the emptiness of people, one can understand how things function. You make the choice to view them as an irritating person. or you can view them as a pleasant person. Either way they are not inherently pleasant nor inherently irritating. They are empty! THIS implies that everything is in your hands because it all depends on your own perception of things.
Also!
Through experience I've learned that we as humans imprint a conceptual framework over our reality. We use words like, "This is a tree" to describe the tree. Because things are empty, they only exist in this conventional way. Words are ...functional but anything beyond this is a wrong view.
The moral implications. If things are empty they can change. If one understands emptiness then compassion will automatically arise. The only way for me to want you to suffer is through negative thinking. There's really three ways you can go... from here. You can be angry (I want you to suffer), jealous (your suffering makes me happy), or ignorant (your suffering has nothing to do with me). These three things will prevent you from being compassionate (I want the causes and conditions of your suffering to end). All of your understanding of emptiness will automatically arise compassion. Suffering is empty. Suffering is dependent on causes and conditions. If one understands the causes and conditions one can change the suffering. Basically if one reduces their negative thinking (anger, jealously, and ignorance) and understands emptiness then compassion will automatically arise.
Be in the world (compassion) but not of the world (emptiness).
Am I doing this wrong?
Buddhism is not a philosophy. It is anti-philosophy. Buddhism explains how the world is. So with Buddhist ideas it is important to understand that one isn't taking a philosophical stance but rather an experienced based observation.
Emptiness has always been a hard notion to understand. When I first learned about the word emptiness I instantly associated with Nihilism. I even assumed that Buddhism was a Nihilistic religion. Over time I gained an understanding of what emptiness is. Emptiness is not something. Emptiness is not nothing. Emptiness is the lack of something. The Buddhists use a concept of not-self (anatta). This idea basically says that everything lacks an essence. An essence being a permanent, single, inherent, unchanging quality. Because things are changing constantly, objects cannot have essences. If they had essences they would never change.
So when we say something is empty, we are saying that something lacks an essence. The Buddha wanted us to examine our lives thoroughly and search for this essence. Within ourselves, within others, and everywhere. What this idea of emptiness is saying is that things cannot just exist on their own. Things only exist in relation to the mind. We are here because of our parents. Things just don't come from nothingness. Things exist relationally.
An irritating person isn't inherently an irritating person. You view them as an irritating person. If this person had the essence of an irritating person then they would never change. But we know they... can change an be pleasant to you. People have infinite potential. What it all comes down is how you perceive things. So when one understands the emptiness of people, one can understand how things function. You make the choice to view them as an irritating person. or you can view them as a pleasant person. Either way they are not inherently pleasant nor inherently irritating. They are empty! THIS implies that everything is in your hands because it all depends on your own perception of things.
Also!
Through experience I've learned that we as humans imprint a conceptual framework over our reality. We use words like, "This is a tree" to describe the tree. Because things are empty, they only exist in this conventional way. Words are ...functional but anything beyond this is a wrong view.
The moral implications. If things are empty they can change. If one understands emptiness then compassion will automatically arise. The only way for me to want you to suffer is through negative thinking. There's really three ways you can go... from here. You can be angry (I want you to suffer), jealous (your suffering makes me happy), or ignorant (your suffering has nothing to do with me). These three things will prevent you from being compassionate (I want the causes and conditions of your suffering to end). All of your understanding of emptiness will automatically arise compassion. Suffering is empty. Suffering is dependent on causes and conditions. If one understands the causes and conditions one can change the suffering. Basically if one reduces their negative thinking (anger, jealously, and ignorance) and understands emptiness then compassion will automatically arise.
Be in the world (compassion) but not of the world (emptiness).
Am I doing this wrong?
0
Comments
The Four Noble Truths, or the simple fact that it is our thirst/craving (Tanha) in opposition to reality (emptiness) that causes our suffering/frustration/pain, would more likely be the main idea of Buddhism.
Ah I agree. Such bold statements about religion shouldn't be said. How about one idea of Buddhism.
Nagajurna - Mahaprajnaparamita Sastra (via Thich Nhat Hanh)
Don't forget that there are irritating people in a conventional sense. Though emptiness allows you to not grasp to that idea and also see that they are also not irritating. Emptiness does not get you off the hook of having an awareness and appropriate action. Realization of emptiness that does not lead to compassion is fake, because when you truly realize emptiness you see that suffering is unnecessary and also that all beings can be liberated.
Meow.