The Rev

Mind-blowing.



The Rev

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Roach

I watched it, and felt nothing.

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לזיין את הקופים

SageTree

Nothingness/Void = Alan Watts own expounding of Emptiness via a Buddhist understanding, in your opinion, Rev?

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The Rev

I think that's what he's getting at. That and duality. What compels me in this is the suggestion that it is nothing that conceives something, and that it is unconscious which conceives consciousness. If nothing is the other side of the coin of existence, then so are YOU, in the sense of awareness. In light of my idea that consciousness is an aspect of things, rather than a product of them, and that there is only one, rather than many, it's a mind blowing way of looking at it.



The Rev

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SageTree

Watts uses the words 'That which is void is completely form and that which is completely form is void' and that are a bit of a paraphrase of this:



Specifically... is from the Heart Sutra. (text)


Emptiness is typically how the Sanskrit word Śūnyatā is trasnlated

On that note its nearly synonymous with 'Dependent origination or dependent arising', another foundational concept in Buddhist thought in all sects and branches.

Sometimes it's called the 'Chain of dependent arising' as well.

It's important to understand and meditate on/via this concept because it's where the 'chain' link is broken, which frees us, in the Buddha's teaching.

This is a great video, and I know I've posted in no less than a million times




What I like about his word 'inter-being' is that it's a more active way to say 'interconnected'.

Empty doesn't mean nothing is there....

Empty in a Buddhist explanation is to say that it's absolutely full of everything. indistinguishable on the Ultimate plane.

That is 'form' doesn't exist inherently/ultimately, and the way that it's explained is even 'form' itself.

Emptiness, the explanation, is form as well, a conventional term until we experience it.

The Two Truths Doctrine, I think, is helping in understanding Conventional Reality and Ultimate Reality, that is, the skillful expression and understanding of Ultimate Truth with Conventional means.


tl;dr:

I don't mind how Watts expresses it, but I think it's more complicated and heady sounding that it needs to be

I'm glad that it can help you though, and it's good to get 'blow away' by a thought/explanation regardless of it's source.

In loving kindness,
SageTre

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The Rev

Very cool talk. That's a perspective on the subject of Emptiness I hadn't thought about before. I like Thich Nhat Hahn very much. Thanks.



The Rev

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SageTree

That is excellent then Rev. I never want to share to seem 'right', I only mean to help, so it's great when it actually happens

Thich Nhat Hahn, which you already may know, is a Vietnamese Zen Monk, who has been active is 'Engaged Buddhism' (a philosophy not so much a sect) since the Vietnam years.

MLK Jr. nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize even.

Not sure how well you know his writing, but I have to add for anyone who is interested, that I LOVE this man's talk/teaching style.

It's like an embrace of a good friend. Even the challenging things he says, leaves me feeling like there is someone who believes I can do it, if no one else.

Profound amazing stuff.... such a simple kind delivery.

Truly, it's easy to experience the buddha-nature of this man.

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The Rev

I have a book of his on my Kindle which I have yet to read (still getting through a few others so it's in the queue).



The Rev

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SageTree

Good stuff. Which one is it out of curiosity?

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