tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8476507095312264072.post3687866620229880522..comments2022-11-16T05:20:55.044-08:00Comments on Illusions of a Noetic Monk: EmptinessLee Jensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03454866285973693175noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8476507095312264072.post-68860123577389614112010-10-03T11:42:33.155-07:002010-10-03T11:42:33.155-07:00Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (18...Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (1868-1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.<br /><br />Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor's cup full, and then kept on pouring.<br /><br />The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. "It is overfull. No more will go in!"<br /><br />"Like this cup," Nan-in said, "you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?"Lee Jensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03454866285973693175noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8476507095312264072.post-50533792575222826282010-07-26T16:51:15.552-07:002010-07-26T16:51:15.552-07:00"Emptiness the starting point. — In order to ..."Emptiness the starting point. — In order to taste my cup of water you must first empty your cup. My friend, drop all your preconceived and fixed ideas and be neutral. Do you know why this cup is useful? Because it is empty. " Bruce LeeLee Jensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03454866285973693175noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8476507095312264072.post-84347056555211401652009-08-22T07:54:23.140-07:002009-08-22T07:54:23.140-07:00The Dali Lama, probably a higher authority on the ...The Dali Lama, probably a higher authority on the topic, described it this way: "One of the most important philosophical insights in Buddhism comes from what is known as the theory of emptiness. At its heart is the deep recognition that there is a fundamental disparity between the way we perceive the world, including our own experience in it, and the way things actually are. In our day-to-day experience, we tend to relate to the world and to ourselves as if these entities possessed self-enclosed, definable, discrete and enduring reality. For instance, if we examine our own conception of selfhood, we will find that we tend to believe in the presence of an essential core to our being, which characterises our individuality and identity as a discrete ego, independent of the physical and mental elements that constitute our existence. The philosophy of emptiness reveals that this is not only a fundamental error but also the basis for attachment, clinging and the development of our numerous prejudices. According to the theory of emptiness, any belief in an objective reality grounded in the assumption of intrinsic, independent existence is simply untenable. All things and events, whether ‘material’, mental or even abstract concepts like time, are devoid of objective, independent existence. To intrinsically possess such independent existence would imply that all things and events are somehow complete unto themselves and are therefore entirely self-contained. This would mean that nothing has the capacity to interact with or exert influence on any other phenomena. But we know that there is cause and effect – turn a key in a car, the starter motor turns the engine over, spark plugs ignite and fuel begins to burn… Yet in a universe of self-contained, inherently existing things, these events could never occur! So effectively, the notion of intrinsic existence is incompatible with causation; this is because causation implies contingency and dependence, while anything that inherently existed would be immutable and self-enclosed. In the theory of emptiness, everything is argued as merely being composed of dependently related events; of continuously interacting phenomena with no fixed, immutable essence, which are themselves in dynamic and constantly changing relations. Thus, things and events are 'empty' in that they can never possess any immutable essence, intrinsic reality or absolute ‘being’ that affords independence." (ref: Dalai Lama (2005). "The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality")Lee Jensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03454866285973693175noreply@blogger.com