Emptiness: Buddhism, Dualism, and the Philosophy of Existence

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Dualism, ignorance, and clinging
Buddhism, Emptiness, and Awareness
Conclusion

Introduction

Buddhism is not a religion, it is rather a philosophical thought which speaks for the objective of living: realization of the essence of existence. Buddhism writers have produced an intensive number of works on life values, human values, and feelings. Dualism, as the essential part of Buddhism philosophy, is found in the writings on ignorance, fixed feelings, and clinging, with the emphasis made on the notion of emptiness.

Dualism, ignorance, and clinging

“Heaven and earth are set apart; if you wish to see it before your own eyes, have no fixed thoughts either for or against it” (Seng-t’san’s, “On Believing in Mind”). These words carry symbolic meaning and underline the key principle of Buddhism – having no fixed thoughts. If the person has a fixed perception of something, gives labels to everything around him, he is not able to see the essence of these things. To understand the truth of life, the essence of objects, and the meaning of existence, it is necessary to set yourself aside from fixed thoughts.

Seng-t’san’s encouraged us to avoid pursuing dualism, and as soon as the person has a clear perception of right and wrong, the Way is lost. Reality can be seen only by ignorant people, those who do not try to seek after the true and those who cease to cherish the opinions of others. Clinging has no boundaries, and all things follow the order they should. Essence cannot depart as well as cannot abide (Seng-t’san’s, “On Believing in Mind”). He further notes that ignorant cherish the ideas of dualism (rest-unrest, likes-dislikes, right-wrong), and to understand the essence, the Way, the person has to leave dualism aside.

Buddhism, Emptiness, and Awareness

Emptiness contains nothing and everything at the same time. Two opposite objects cannot be distinguished in one emptiness, and when the person draws a distinction between the two, he has an understanding of neither. “The wisdom of emptiness refers to a lack of something” (Zen Master Seung Sahn). Existence means that things appear and exist independently, while at the case time, they exist in dependence upon cause and condition. The understanding of emptiness is about understanding that nothing exists separately from the rest of the things, everything depends on some events and things. All humans depend on other humans; dying depends on birth, birth depends on becoming, becoming depends on attachment, and attachment depends on thinking. The sequence of causes and conditions is unlimited, and when something appears, something else has to disappear.

Bare awareness is the realization that emptiness is not anything; emptiness is everything. “Men come and go with empty hands” (Zen Master Seung Sahn). For example, people do not understand the emptiness and interdependence of all things because it is directly related to human perception. When people perceive something as outside, when they are able to separate something from their own self, they gain the awareness of this object’s essence.

Conclusion

Fixed thoughts, labels, and perceptions are obstacles on the way to understanding the world, the essence of everything, and the realization of the Way. Emptiness is everything because all objects appear as the result of other object’s disappearance. Thus everything appears out of nothing.

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Emptiness: Buddhism, Dualism, and the Philosophy of Existence

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