Emptiness of time and others
Posted: Thu Sep 08, 2011 12:47 pm
There are some ideas, which I want to share with you about emptiness. Long time ago, I am asking myself about the emptiness of time. In our normal life, we all know that time exist. To be exact, actually the concept of time exists. Whether the time itself exist or not, according to Buddhism, it doesn't exist. I keep asking myself, why it doesn't exist. Finally, I realize that it cannot exist. The concept of time can exist, but it doesn't mean time exist.
I realize that the concept of time can exist because we human beings have a believe of existance, real, or permanent. When we believe existance, the concept of time becomes real. Beauty becomes real. Ugly becomes real. Molecule becomes real. Electrone becomes real. Proton becomes real. Anything can become real.
However, nothing is permanent. Everything keeps changing. Nothing can ever standstill forever. There is nothing! My body keeps changing. My current body and my body 1 second ago are completely different. My body keeps changing. My body which is permanent NEVER exist, simply because it cannot exist due to impermanent.
If something exists, it must have production, duration, and extinction. It must have these 3 things.
Now, let's look at duration. I have a iPhone. I can see my iPhone. It is real. Is it true?
If we use our normal eyes, we can see that it is real. But, suppose we have a super sensitive eyes, we can see that actually it keeps changing. I cannot see it in naked eyes. But, I am absolutely sure it is changing. The battery component is changing. The battery is not as powerful as before. THe cover is not as smooth as before. This is the prove that m iPhone is changing. If my handphone is permanent, then it cannot change. Something which is permanent cannot change. It is illogical to say something permanent can change! If it can change, it is impermanent!
Now, I can prove that my iPhone is impermanent. It changes every second. My iPhone now and my iphone 0.0000001 second ago are already different. It NEVER be the same. It means its duration is ZERO. There is no duration that this handphone is the same at very microscopic level. NEVER be the same.
If something has no duration, it means it can only have production (birth) and extinction (death). It means when the things exist (birth), and the same time as well it extinct (death). This definition is conflicting each other. Birth and death cannot exist together because according to definition, they are conflicting each other.
Therefore, it is concluded that production (birth), duration (living), extinction (death) cannot exist if we accept the reality of impermanent.
The question is how come people think there is production (birth), duration (living), extinction (death)? THis is because people have a SENSE of permanent. This wrong idea is simply the shadow of permanent. That is the consequence of accepting the idea of permanent.
If nothing exists, then what is iPhone 4? I remember there is 1 zen master say that when you realize that there is no boundary between you and me, you will enlighten straight away. This is very true. We have a sense that me is me, you is you. Your boundary and my boundary is clear, which is this human skin, human body. But do we realize that although this is skin seems like a boundary, actually it is affected by many things. When everything is affecting each other, where is the ACTUAL boundary? This concept of boundary is also totally WRONG.
People can argue that if I eat, you won't feel full. So, it is clear that what I do, it doesn't affect you. So, it must have a boundary. This is not true. Whatever, you are eating is processed by your body. Because of your body function, I cannot feel I am full. But this body function is not a boundary. It seems like a boundary, but it is not. This body collection is collected due to karmic energy, which makes it looks like 1. But, actually it is not 1. the body functions simply stop the effect of your fullness to affect my body. It is simply a stopping function. It is not a boundary. Stopping function means everything is interconnected. Everything is govern by nature function which is also called karmic laws. Due to some reason, it is possible that when you eat, I can feel full. As long as I can understand that function, it will work. This is not impossible because everything in nature is interconnected. There is no boundary.
There is a monk in Tibet who practice boddhicitta. I forget the name already. One time people throw a rock to the dog while this buddhist master is giving a teaching. Suddenly, he say ouchhhh. The dog feels nothing. This connection is possible because in nature everything is interconnected. Some of us cannot unlock it because we think everything is fix, has boundary. But, when we realize there is no boundary, nothing is fixed, everything becomes possible. Only few people can realize this and when they show this connection, we say "WOW, they can do magic". Actually, that is nothing. It is just the existance of connection in nature.
Come back to the iPhone 4. What is this iPhone 4, if it is not real. It is simply a collection of "energy", which is temporary there. Well, reality is unexpressible, but I just call it "energy" for the sake of conservation. It is just a collection that temporarily collect together due to some karmic laws. It is like a cloud. It looks so real, but we know it is just a collection of what we called "water". iPhone 4 is simply a collection of impermanent thing, which appear as if it is real, so solid. But in reality, it is not there. It doesn't have duration. Does it have? It always changing, how can it have a duration? Therefore, it cannot exist.
Once again, it is normal if we feel it exists, because our mind has been habituated to the concept of permanence. Time will come when you will realize this. It looks real, in reality it is not real. The union of appearance and emptiness.
In the heart sutra, it is said "Form is empty. Emptiness is form". This is what is referring to.
Regarding time. It is also no real. How to prove it? Let's look at present time. Present time means now. It always pin point to now. It can NEVER have a duration. If it cannot have a duration, how can we say it is real? We are simply crazy people. Contradicting ourself, isn't it? But, it is normal, because we have a concept of permanence, which is although wrong, we still believe it is true.
It is the same thing with body, mind, and anything you can mention. You won't be able to find any duration in anything which is impermanent. NEVER EVER.
We have a tendency that if we cannot find something or define something, we have a feeling of getting lost. Nothing anchor us. We feel not secure. It is really illusion. We also have a feeling that when we cannot define something, we cannot understand it. This is absolutely wrong.
Let's see when you eat orange. When you eat the orange, do you define it is orange? I think no. At least for me, I don't label it as orange. I simply eat without thinking. As long as I mindful, I know EXACTLY what is orange taste. Can I define the orange taste? EVEN BUDDHA CANNOT DEFINE IT!
Although I cannot define it, I know exactly what it is. This unexpressible can be fully understood if you don't destroy it with your concept. CONCEPT IS ALWAYS WRONG.
Everything can only exist due to label. Because of label it appears. You change the definition of that label, you get different object. But that object is simply not permanent, not real. Reality cannot be define partially. Reality can only be describe fully as a whole, together with its smell, taste, visual, etc. But how to define reality in such a way? Even Buddha cannot define it.
But, Buddha can realize it. You can also realize it.
Everything is simply 1. Yet that 1 simply doesn't exist.
I realize that the concept of time can exist because we human beings have a believe of existance, real, or permanent. When we believe existance, the concept of time becomes real. Beauty becomes real. Ugly becomes real. Molecule becomes real. Electrone becomes real. Proton becomes real. Anything can become real.
However, nothing is permanent. Everything keeps changing. Nothing can ever standstill forever. There is nothing! My body keeps changing. My current body and my body 1 second ago are completely different. My body keeps changing. My body which is permanent NEVER exist, simply because it cannot exist due to impermanent.
If something exists, it must have production, duration, and extinction. It must have these 3 things.
Now, let's look at duration. I have a iPhone. I can see my iPhone. It is real. Is it true?
If we use our normal eyes, we can see that it is real. But, suppose we have a super sensitive eyes, we can see that actually it keeps changing. I cannot see it in naked eyes. But, I am absolutely sure it is changing. The battery component is changing. The battery is not as powerful as before. THe cover is not as smooth as before. This is the prove that m iPhone is changing. If my handphone is permanent, then it cannot change. Something which is permanent cannot change. It is illogical to say something permanent can change! If it can change, it is impermanent!
Now, I can prove that my iPhone is impermanent. It changes every second. My iPhone now and my iphone 0.0000001 second ago are already different. It NEVER be the same. It means its duration is ZERO. There is no duration that this handphone is the same at very microscopic level. NEVER be the same.
If something has no duration, it means it can only have production (birth) and extinction (death). It means when the things exist (birth), and the same time as well it extinct (death). This definition is conflicting each other. Birth and death cannot exist together because according to definition, they are conflicting each other.
Therefore, it is concluded that production (birth), duration (living), extinction (death) cannot exist if we accept the reality of impermanent.
The question is how come people think there is production (birth), duration (living), extinction (death)? THis is because people have a SENSE of permanent. This wrong idea is simply the shadow of permanent. That is the consequence of accepting the idea of permanent.
If nothing exists, then what is iPhone 4? I remember there is 1 zen master say that when you realize that there is no boundary between you and me, you will enlighten straight away. This is very true. We have a sense that me is me, you is you. Your boundary and my boundary is clear, which is this human skin, human body. But do we realize that although this is skin seems like a boundary, actually it is affected by many things. When everything is affecting each other, where is the ACTUAL boundary? This concept of boundary is also totally WRONG.
People can argue that if I eat, you won't feel full. So, it is clear that what I do, it doesn't affect you. So, it must have a boundary. This is not true. Whatever, you are eating is processed by your body. Because of your body function, I cannot feel I am full. But this body function is not a boundary. It seems like a boundary, but it is not. This body collection is collected due to karmic energy, which makes it looks like 1. But, actually it is not 1. the body functions simply stop the effect of your fullness to affect my body. It is simply a stopping function. It is not a boundary. Stopping function means everything is interconnected. Everything is govern by nature function which is also called karmic laws. Due to some reason, it is possible that when you eat, I can feel full. As long as I can understand that function, it will work. This is not impossible because everything in nature is interconnected. There is no boundary.
There is a monk in Tibet who practice boddhicitta. I forget the name already. One time people throw a rock to the dog while this buddhist master is giving a teaching. Suddenly, he say ouchhhh. The dog feels nothing. This connection is possible because in nature everything is interconnected. Some of us cannot unlock it because we think everything is fix, has boundary. But, when we realize there is no boundary, nothing is fixed, everything becomes possible. Only few people can realize this and when they show this connection, we say "WOW, they can do magic". Actually, that is nothing. It is just the existance of connection in nature.
Come back to the iPhone 4. What is this iPhone 4, if it is not real. It is simply a collection of "energy", which is temporary there. Well, reality is unexpressible, but I just call it "energy" for the sake of conservation. It is just a collection that temporarily collect together due to some karmic laws. It is like a cloud. It looks so real, but we know it is just a collection of what we called "water". iPhone 4 is simply a collection of impermanent thing, which appear as if it is real, so solid. But in reality, it is not there. It doesn't have duration. Does it have? It always changing, how can it have a duration? Therefore, it cannot exist.
Once again, it is normal if we feel it exists, because our mind has been habituated to the concept of permanence. Time will come when you will realize this. It looks real, in reality it is not real. The union of appearance and emptiness.
In the heart sutra, it is said "Form is empty. Emptiness is form". This is what is referring to.
Regarding time. It is also no real. How to prove it? Let's look at present time. Present time means now. It always pin point to now. It can NEVER have a duration. If it cannot have a duration, how can we say it is real? We are simply crazy people. Contradicting ourself, isn't it? But, it is normal, because we have a concept of permanence, which is although wrong, we still believe it is true.
It is the same thing with body, mind, and anything you can mention. You won't be able to find any duration in anything which is impermanent. NEVER EVER.
We have a tendency that if we cannot find something or define something, we have a feeling of getting lost. Nothing anchor us. We feel not secure. It is really illusion. We also have a feeling that when we cannot define something, we cannot understand it. This is absolutely wrong.
Let's see when you eat orange. When you eat the orange, do you define it is orange? I think no. At least for me, I don't label it as orange. I simply eat without thinking. As long as I mindful, I know EXACTLY what is orange taste. Can I define the orange taste? EVEN BUDDHA CANNOT DEFINE IT!
Although I cannot define it, I know exactly what it is. This unexpressible can be fully understood if you don't destroy it with your concept. CONCEPT IS ALWAYS WRONG.
Everything can only exist due to label. Because of label it appears. You change the definition of that label, you get different object. But that object is simply not permanent, not real. Reality cannot be define partially. Reality can only be describe fully as a whole, together with its smell, taste, visual, etc. But how to define reality in such a way? Even Buddha cannot define it.
But, Buddha can realize it. You can also realize it.
Everything is simply 1. Yet that 1 simply doesn't exist.