“If the doors of perception are cleansed, everything will appear as it is—infinite”

(William Blake)

  Escaping from the clatter of cyber land for a few moments to discover how we may proceed with our innermost thoughts and dreams, not agreeing or disagreeing, asking, what is it we desire our lives to be, to become?

  The Great Enlightened One, the Buddha, “in him there is no defilement, no contamination, no attachment. His moral breeze and virtuous fragrance deeply permeate all.” Always a new beginning, “attaining that which has never been before.”

  No need to make resounding proclamations; no need to engage in disputes. Reach instinctively beyond discriminations and dichotomous thinking, manifesting our buddha-nature. Become so instilled with the Buddha’s teachings that in moment-to-moment experiences and communication, ignorance is overcome—compassion, a heart-beat away.

  When mind has been emptied and light has been called upon to purify the consciousness, freed from its attachments, self-serving discriminations—this is true liberation from suffering. When allowing the infinite potential of Buddha-mind to operate in unconstrained spontaneity, the common, rational ego is no longer in control, nor controlling factor. When the true nature of self is realized, the ego becomes a “lens of pure crystal” focusing all pervasive cosmic light. No shadows of pride, possessiveness cloud its purity. Conscious mind learns to be silent and attentive, attuned to transcendental knowledge, Mind Only.

  There is only One Mind, the substance of which cannot be differentiated. Accepting the miracle of existence—comprehending the governing force of primordial energy, the universal force which causes everything to live, we may return each moment to the realization of the archetypical essence of being and become more attentive to the world and people in our world, here and now.

  Human suffering is brought about by the accumulation of self-serving, ego-centric desire and the illusion that our ego-self is in control. All living beings, all phenomena come into being from emptiness, one substance with universal energy, therefore equal in the value of their existence. To devote one's self to the great life force of the universe and attain a spiritual unity with it; to obey reason and live in accordance with the greater life of the universe, is to discover “the great compassionate heart”—buddhahood itself, the karmic necessity of our existence.

  We are told by cosmologists and quantum physicists that the universe began breaking perfect symmetry into a huge, hot cauldron of energy governed by forces we do not understand completely. These forces exist today in our world. Without them the very fabric of existence bound together by these forces would not exist. Nothing has an independent existence. We are all part of one inseparable web of relationships.

  “Implied in new theories of physics (Timothy Ferris in “Beyond Newton and Einstein” – N.Y. Times, 9/26/82) “all the known forces in nature are manifestations of one basic interaction and that once, long ago, were part of a single, universal process.”

  Humanity continues as part of that “universal process.” Disagreeing or agreeing—contending rather than intending in realms of conditioned existence (dharma), inhibits the perfect symmetry of Mind which is neither created nor annihilated, but simply is. In the teachings of the Buddha, particularly in “great vehicle” Mahayana sutras, as the Lotus Sutra, “Original Mind” is called tathata, or ultimate nature of Mind without any attributes, the same as the mind of pure self—buddha-nature, vesture of pure, unqualified reality (dharmakaya), the soul of nirvana.

  May not the One mind of pure self, buddha-nature, be in itself, perfect symmetry? All dharmas, “laws” or elements of conditioned existence depend on Mind for their being and have Mind as their substance. From this standpoint, all conditioned existence is illusory and imaginary, and their being is in reality non-being. By contrast with these unreal existences, One Mind, tathata,  is the only real thing existing  in this world.

  Yet even though these conditioned existences (dharmas) have no being in reality because they originate in illusion and fancy, they nevertheless appear to be created and annihilated. But when such unreal existences are created, One Mind is not brought into existence, and when they are annihilated, One Mind does not perish. Uncreated, One Mind is never augmented; imperishable, it is never diminished. And as it never increases or decreases, One Mind is called tathata, ultimate nature, without attributes.

  Concentration means knowing that all dharmas, conditioned existences, have from the beginning no tathata of their own, are never created or annihilated by themselves, but are created and arise as productions of illusion and imagination. Created dharmas are in truth, non-existent. They are only the One Mind, the substance of which cannot be differentiated. If one seizes this standpoint, then in total mental calm one can stop the flow of false ideas. This is concentration.

  Insight means knowing that dharmas are neither created nor annihilated, but originate in and arise out of One Mind to serve an illusory and fanciful worldly purpose. They are like the illusions of dreams, seeming to exist when they do not exist. To know this is to attain insight, to aspire to the mind of  non-existence.

  When concentration is achieved, Pure Mind is merged through insight with non-dual nature and is harmoniously united with all beings. Calmness, tranquility and purity, depth, stability and quietude emerge. Inner silence is pure and pellucid, appearing without the appearance of movement, acting without the appearance of action.

  Thus it is, all conditions of existence are originally the same everywhere without differentiation and the nature of One Mind is existence. This is the root of the most profound dharma nature.

  When insight is attained, the root of Pure Mind and the activity of the phenomenal world are manifest without obstacle, spontaneously showing forth the capability of all things pure and impure.

  When there is concentration, our mind is everywhere the same. When there is concentration, one dwells ever in nirvana. When there is concentration one is not polluted by the world. When there is concentration, one attains eternal silence in the process of acting.

  This “truth of One Reality” is at the core of the Buddha’s teachings in the Lotus Sutra–the fundamental oneness of energy, non-differentiation at the heart of things, the one law that calls all things into being and moves them. This is called the real aspect of things. We are all one substance with this law and caused to live by it.  One’s own mind is intrinsically one with primordial energy, the imperishable life-force of the universe.

  “I also see bodhisattvas, persons of great compassion, who  observe that the nature of all existence is not in two opposing forms, but like space.” – Lotus Sutra

  How then shall we proceed? Releasing the personal ego is perhaps the first step, enabling us to find the imperishable life-force which exists in all things, in all beings. Serving this life-force is the great true compassion.

  From the Sutra of Meditation on the Bodhisattva Universal Virtue, the closing sutra of The Threefold Lotus Sutra: “The Buddha said to Ananda, Do you listen to me attentively! Do you listen to me attentively, ponder, and remember it! Of yore on Mount Gridhrakutha and in other places the Tathagata has already extensively explained the way of one reality.

The Buddha Wisdom is pure and minute,
 faultless and unhindered,
penetrating through infinite kalpas.

Like a meteor, like darkness, as a flickering lamp,
An illusion, like hoar-frost or a bubble,
Like clouds, a flash of lightning, or a dream,
So is all conditioned existence to be seen. – Diamond Sutra

Taken and edited from the writings of Nikkyo Niwano, Buddhism for Today, a Modern Interpretation of The Threefold Lotus Sutra, and Niwano’s other writings; the Kosei/Weatherhill English translation of The Threefold Lotus Sutra; and Hui-ssu in Taisbo Daiskyo, in The Diamond Sutra, from final teachings of the Buddha, with supplemental texts. General Editor, Raghavan Iyer. August 12, 1983; Concord Grove Press, London, Santa Barbara, New York. Copyright 1983, The Pythagorean Sangha.

“ego, a pure crystal” taken from symbol for 1°  Leo in An Astrological Mandala, The Cycle of Transformations and Its 360 Symbolic Phases, by Dane Rudhyar, published by Random House, 1973 [hardcover and paperback].

Celebrating the Vernal Equinox in Mexico

The Final Commission

”to give the Buddha-wisdom

the Self-existent wisdom

to all living beings”

  Again to say one need not be a “Buddhist” to practice the teachings of the Buddha. There is fundamentally no need to seek “identities” as this or that. Practicing these teachings is in essence celebrating life.

  AT THAT TIME Shakyamuni Buddha rose from his Law seat, manifesting supernatural powers, laid his right hand on the heads of the innumerable bodhi­sattva-mahasattvas, and spoke thus: “I, for incalculable hundreds of thousands of myriads of countless nayutas of kalpas, have practiced this rare Law of Perfect Enlightenment. Now I entrust it to you. Do you wholeheartedly promulgate this Law and make it increase and prosper far and wide.” . . .

  ".  .  .  The Tathagata is most benevolent and compassionate, not mean and stingy, and is able fearlessly to give the Buddha-wisdom, the Tathagata-wisdom, and the Self-existent wisdom to all living beings. The Tathagata is the great lord of giving to all living beings. Do you also follow and learn the Tathagata's example, not being mean and stingy.

  If good sons or good daughters in ages to come believe in the Tathagata-wisdom, do you proclaim this Law-flower Sutra to them that they may hear and know it, in order that they may obtain the Buddha-wisdom. If there be living beings who do not believe in it, do you show, teach, benefit, and rejoice them with the other profound laws of the Tathagata. If you are able thus to act, then you will have repaid the grace of the Buddhas.

  . . . Thereupon Shakyamuni Buddha caused all the emanated buddhas who had come from all directions, each to return to his own land, saying: “Buddhas! Peace be unto you. Let the stupa of the Buddha Abundant Treasures be restored as before.”

  As these words were spoken, the innumerable emanated buddhas from all directions, who were seated on lion thrones under the jewel trees, as well as the Buddha Abundant Treasures, the host of infinite asankhyeyas of bodhisattvas, Eminent Conduct and others, also the four groups of hearers, Shariputra and others, and all the worlds, gods, men, asuras, and so on, hearing the preaching of the Buddha, rejoiced greatly. /////

  This is a portion of the Lotus Sutra, the 22^nd chapter, I was able to relive this morning, in celebration of life, bringing an important event back to life and into today’s world, here and now, with you. Also celebrating a joyous, humorous, touching video with friends at Fanvids, ”I Think I Do” and post from Jerry Gordon in Japan, among other celebrations.

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens

Living in the Moment

We walk on frosted ground
praising chrysanthemums bordering the fields
sit on the edge of the woods
waiting for the moon to rise
not having to be alone
is happiness
we do not talk
of failure or success – Chia Tao, “When I Find You Again It Will be in The Mountains”

You must habit yourself to the dazzle of the light
in every moment of your life.

This minute that comes to me over the past decillions,
there is no greater than it and now.

All forces have been steadily employ’d
to complete and delight me.
Now on this spot I stand
with my robust soul.

Welcome is every organ and attribute of me,
Not an inch or a particle of an inch is vile,
and none shall be less familiar than the rest.
I am satisfied—I see, dance, laugh, sing;
As the hugging and loving bed fellow sleeps at my side through the night,
and withdraws at the peep of the day with stealthy tread,
Leaving me baskets cover’d with white towels swelling the house with their plenty

– Walt Whitman, “Leaves of Grass – Song of Myself”

Butchart Gardens, British Columbia

Inspirations

derived from the Buddha’s ageless teaching

of wisdom, compassion, and liberation

The Threefold Lotus Sutra

  Constant progress is the natural course of living beings. It is the right and true way for us to live. To strive in the midst of suffering humanity for the well being of all, is to live a truly human life, the bodhisattva toil.

  Thus if in life’s journey we strive always after our nature, talent, and occupation to create those things that make for the happiness and well being of others, then that creation and resulting harmony are the ultimate human ideal, a treasure of the highest order.

  We are all one substance with the great, all pervading life-force of the universe. The enlightenment of the Buddha—our own enlightenment—perceives this reality, the way in which always and everywhere the will of this universal energy appears in unlimited operation in both inanimate and living things.

  Shakyamuni Buddha lived in this world, and desired after he had “gone beyond” those still living would make themselves the light, continuing to practice and spread his ageless teachings of compassion and liberation. His “appearance” in future worlds would manifest in teachers who would follow, as indeed many teachers have – “in thousands of countless lands I  will  appear to preach the Law . . .”

  In the Buddha’s teachings there is no “above and below” – universal energy (“Buddha,” to give it a name) which causes us to live, surrounds us, dwells within us. We reach toward enlightenment in this life to enrich every moment of this life, not to find reward after we have gone beyond this life, but here  and now.

  “Further, bodhisattva-mahasattvas (persons of great compassion), contemplate all existences as void—appear­­ances as they reality, duly established as they are in reality, neither upside down, nor moving, nor receding, nor turning, just like space, of the nature of nothing­ness, cut off from the course of all words and expressions, unborn, not coming forth, not arising, nameless, formless, really without existence, unim­peded, infinite, boundless, unrestrained, only existing by causation, and pro­duced through distortion of thought.”–Sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law – A Happy Life

Beyond all pairs of opposites . . .

  Beyond all pairs of opposites and all dichotomous thinking, one realizes the truth because one becomes it. Self-motivation is the key—the intent to weld a liberating spiritual endeavor into one’s daily life; the desire to learn, reach a state of self-attained enligh­tenment leading to the greatest gift of all, living in a state of universal benevolence and compas­sion; living in the same world as those great Bodhisattvas who “rise up from the earth” in the Lotus Sutra.

  The true life and soul of the Buddha’s teachings is knowing wholeheartedly all sentient beings have the buddha-nature (or enlightened nature) innately. To become aware of one’s own enlightened nature, bringing it to light from the depths of the mind, nurturing it and devel­oping it vigorously, sponta­neously realizing others possess it equally, is to “go beyond all pairs of opposites.”

  “What is the final, profound truth? It is finding the infinite life of humankind within the eternal life-force of the universe. The true nature of humankind, in its union with the eternal life-force of the universe which causes us to live, is called the “buddha” or enlightened nature. The Buddha in the Lotus Sutra teaches that all beings possess the buddha-nature (or potential for enligh­tenment) equally and that we should respect this potential in one another and encourage one another to develop and fulfill this potential. The noblest form of practicing the teachings of the Buddha is the way of bodhi­sattvas who devote themselves to attaining enlightenment not only for them­selves, but for all sentient beings.” – Nikkyo Niwano (edited)

  Identifying one’s self as a “Buddhist” is not required if one practices the teachings of the Buddha, as it suggests “different than—other than.” The Buddha’s teachings inform all enlightened think­ing, and all enlight­ened thinking resonates with the teachings of the Buddha, beyond all pairs of opposites and dichotomous thinking.

Redwoods

Shakyamuni’s Mission

as told in The Threefold Lotus Sutra

”To give peace to all creatures, I appear in the world”

  With all its grand “other-worldly” tales of treasure towers and Great Bodhisattvas rising from the earth, magic cities, stories of fabulous, larger-than-life enlightened beings (buddhas), as well as stories of extraordinary deeds of ordinary living beings, including persons of learning and those of self-attained enlightenment, it’s clear nevertheless that the Buddha’s supreme intent described in the sutra is to “cause all the living to enter the way supreme and speedily accomplish enlightenment.”

  The Threefold Lotus Sutra is one of the world’s great religious classics representing the culmination of the Buddha’s ageless teaching of wisdom, compassion and liberation, a significant resource for all those today whose hearts are longing to discover peace of mind and their place in the world.

  Also, the Sutra contains many “threads” following the Buddha’s life, and the dynamic, sometimes dramatic tale of a how he became motivated to go out into the world revealing his experience of attaining enlightenment to men and women of all classes and religions, so that all could attain the same enlightenment as he “long sitting” under the Bodhi tree in the City of Gaya.

To give peace to all creatures I appear in the world,
and for the hosts of the living
preach the Law pure as sweet dew,
the one and only Law of emancipation and nirvana.
With one transcendent voice I proclaim this meaning,
constantly taking the Great-vehicle as my subject.
I look upon all everywhere with equal eyes,
without distinction of persons, or mind of love or hate.
I have no predilections nor limitations or partiality;
ever to all I preach the Law equally;
as to one person, so to all.

Half Dome and the Milky Way

Thomas Jefferson

Religion and Science

Church and State

. . . that they will find their interest in acquiescing in the liberty and science of their country, and that the Christian religion, when divested of the rags in which they have enveloped it, and brought to the original purity and simplicity of its benevolent institutor, is a religion of all others most friendly to liberty, science, and the freer expansion of the human mind.

  Wisdom and Patriotism – To Moses Robinson – Washington, March 21, 1801 – “I entertain real hope that the whole body of  your fellow citizens will shortly be consolidated in the same sentiments. When they examine the real principles of both parties, I think they will find little to differ about. I know, indeed, that there are some of their leaders who have so committed themselves, that pride, if no other passion, will prevent their coalescing. We must be easy with them.

  The eastern States will be the last to come over, on account of the dominion of the clergy, who had a smell of union between Church and State, and began to indulge reveries which can never be realized in the present state of science. If indeed they could have prevailed on us to view all advances in science as dangerous innovations, and to look back to the opinions and practices of our forefathers, instead of looking forward, for  improvement, a promising groundwork would have been laid. But I am in hope their good sense will dictate to them, that since the mountain will not come to them, they had better go to the mountain; that they will find their interest in acquiescing in the liberty and science of their country, and that the Christian religion, when divested of the rags in which they have enveloped it, and brought to the original purity and simplicity of its benevolent institutor, is a religion of all others most friendly to liberty, science, and the freer expansion of the human mind.

  I sincerely wish with you, we could see our government so secured as to depend less  on the character of the person in whose hands it is trusted. Bad men will sometimes get in, and with such an immense patronage, may make great progress in corrupting the public mind and principles. This is a subject with which wisdom and patriotism should be occupied.

An Albatross

feeding from the hand of a sailor

(Full  Moon 2:25 am GMT, Thursday, 7/2}

capricorn 10° - an albatross feeding from the hand of a sailor.

keynote: The overcoming of fear and its rewards

  Those who radiate perfect harmlessness can call the wildest creatures to them and establish with them a partnership based on mutual respect and understanding. Every living entity plays a role in the worlds ritual of existence. Beyond these specific roles, which too often separate one entity from another, the communion of love and compassion can bring together the most disparate lives.

  The power of such a culture of harmlessness and compassion generates trust everywhere.

     – Dane Rudhyar’s Astrological Mandala

  The full moon shines on the earth this night, illuminating all living beings, everywhere. Here Rudhyar through the symbol originated by psychic Elsie Wheeler reveals “universal truths” available to all humanity. A worthy reminder for this extraordinary week of rainbows and wonders (Episcopalians, please note, will perform same-sex marriages nationwide), illuminating the world.

  On a personal level, this symbol came into my life on December 5, 1977 after hours of meditation and discovering that 10° Capricorn was the point of “Original Intent” in a Full Moon, 22 hours after I was born. I recall when I read the above, I burst into tears realizing, “This is what I have always wanted in my life. . .” communion of love and  compassion bringing together the most disparate lives.

  This morning, waking from sleep and as so often unable to quell the rush of memories, the year 1938 persisted. In the ephemeris, on January 2, 1938, I find there was a New  Moon at 10° Capricorn, “An albatross feeding from  the hand of a sailor.”  Well it’s been some 77 years since that New Moon, and quite a journey . . . One never knows, but certainly some connection with the universe endures, and most assuredly available for all of us today, here and now.

  In the lunar cycle, a Full Moon is a moment of fulfillment – future oriented toward disseminating to others what we have learned in previous cycles.

  The north  node of the  Moon (a point of integrating personal and “beyond the personal” energies) is at this time at 5° Libra – “Revealing to students the foundation of an inner knowledge upon which a new world could be built.”

Milky Way over Half-Dome

(Niwano – 4}

last of this series

It is in these pages I read words that forever changed my way of thinking and view life: Nichiren’s, life at each moment permeates the universe and is revealed in all phenomena, while traveling on a bus to a temp job in downtown L.A. in 1976;  Niwano’s cause to live, sitting on the terrace surrounded by geraniums in a friend’s apartment in San Francisco in 1982.

Mind – Desire to Live

Buddhism for Today, A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Nikkyo Niwano; John Weatherhill, Inc., New York and Tokyo; and Kosei Publishing Company, Tokyo. Copyright 1961, 1976 by Kosei Publishing Company.  [Kojiro Miyasaka’s English translation very slightly amended] – from Chapter 16, The Life of the Tathagata:

  Shakyamuni Buddha expounded the doctrine of dependent origination, meaning that all phenomena are produced by causation – a thing arises from or is produced through a cause. A thing does not take form unless there is an appropriate condition. This truth applies to all existence and phenomena in the universe. The Buddha perceived this so profoundly that even modern science cannot probe further.

  Thinking this, our lives may seem to be capricious. . . to  indicate that all things are  products of mere chance. But this is not so. When we look carefully at things around us, we find that water, stone, and human beings are produced each according to a certain pattern with its own individual character.

  Through what power or direction are the conditions that  produce various things in perfect order from such an amorphous energy? When we consider this regularity and order, we cannot help admitting that some rule exists. It is the rule that causes all things to exist. This is indeed the Law taught by the Buddha.

  We do not exist accidentally, but exist and live by means of this Law. As soon as we realize this fact, we become aware of our firm foundation and can set our minds at ease. Far from being capricious, this foundation rests on the Law with which nothing can compare. This assurance is the source of the great peace of mind that is not agitated by anything. It is the Law that imparts life to us all. The Law is not something cold but is full of  vigor and vivid with life.

  Just consider that billions of years ago, the earth had no life . . . when the earth cooled about two billion years ago, microscopic one-celled living creatures were produced through the working of the Law. They were born when the energy forming the foundation of lava, gas, and vapor came into contact with appropriate conditions—the Law providing the conditions for the generation of life. From this we realize the Law is  not cold, a mere abstract rule, but full of vivid power causing everything to exist and live.

  Conversely everything has the power of desiring to exist and live. Two billion years ago, even lava, gas, and vapor possessed the urge to live. That’s why one-celled creatures were generated from them when conditions became right. These infinitesimal creatures endured all kinds of trials . . . extreme heat and cold, tremendous floods, terrestrial rains, for about two billion years, and continued to live, gradually evolving into more  sophisticated forms, culminating in human beings.

  This evolution was caused by the will to live. . . Life had mind through which it desired to live even before it existed on earth. Such a will still exists in everything in the universe. This will exists in humans today.

  From the scientific point of view, humans are formed by a combination of elementary particles; and if we analyze this still more deeply, we see that humans are an accumulation of energy.

  Therefore the  mind desiring to live must surely exist in humans.

  However, this is a mind so deep that we cannot grasp, isolate, or control it. It is the mind existing in the origin of life, even deeper than the subconscious mind. What is the  mind that desires to live? We cannot isolate it by means of science or explain it by some theory. . . Philosophers have  attempted to explain it as “the blind will toward life.” We can call it, “the universal will” or “universal life.” We can also describe it as “the power that makes everything live” or “the rule that makes everything exist.”

  Shakyamuni Buddha  taught this point in the following way: all things in the universe are emptiness—void, and they are produced and annihilated by a cause. Nothing exists in a fixed eternal form.

  Only the Law permeating them—Mind, “Buddha,” the power that makes everything live is eternal. When we realize the truth and power that makes all of us live, we “see the Buddha.”  ////

  “Life at each moment encompasses both body and spirit and both self and environment of all sentient beings in every condition of life, as well as insentient beings—plants, sky and earth, on down to the most minute particles of dust. Life at each moment permeates the universe and is revealed in all phenomena. Those awakened to this truth, themselves embody this relationship.” – Nichiren in a letter to Toki Jonin, 1255.

  for the transitory and eternal can only be seen in each other.

Milky Way Over Half-Dome

(Niwano – 4}

last of this series

It is in these pages I read words that forever changed my way of thinking and view life: Nichiren’s, life at each moment permeates the universe and is revealed in all phenomena, while traveling on a bus to a temp job in downtown L.A. in 1976;  Niwano’s cause to live, sitting on the terrace surrounded by geraniums in a friend’s apartment in San Francisco in 1982.

Es en estas páginas que leí las palabras que cambiaron para siempre mi forma de pensar y visión de la vida: de Nichiren, la vida en cada momento impregna el universo y se revela en todos los fenómenos, mientras viajaba en un autobús a un trabajo temporal en el centro de Los Ángeles en 1976; La causa de Niwano para vivir, sentado en la terraza rodeada de geranios en el apartamento de un amigo en San Francisco en 1982.

Mind – Desire to Live

Mente – deseo de vivir

Buddhism for Today, A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Nikkyo Niwano; John Weatherhill, Inc., New York and Tokyo; and Kosei Publishing Company, Tokyo. Copyright 1961, 1976 by Kosei Publishing Company.  [Kojiro Miyasaka’s English translation very slightly amended] – from Chapter 16, The Life of the Tathagata:

Shakyamuni Buddha expounded the doctrine of dependent origination, meaning that all phenomena are produced by causation – a thing arises from or is produced through a cause. A thing does not take form unless there is an appropriate condition. This truth applies to all existence and phenomena in the universe. The Buddha perceived this so profoundly that even modern science cannot probe further.

Buda Shakyamuni expuso la doctrina del origen dependiente, lo que significa que todos los fenómenos son producidos por causalidad - una cosa surge o se produce a través de una causa. Una cosa no toma forma a menos que haya una condición adecuada. Esta verdad se aplica a toda la existencia y fenómenos en el universo. El Buda percibe esta tan profundamente que incluso la ciencia moderna no puede investigar más.

Thinking this, our lives may seem to be capricious. . . to  indicate that all things are  products of mere chance. But this is not so. When we look carefully at things around us, we find that water, stone, and human beings are produced each according to a certain pattern with its own individual character.

Pensando en esto, nuestras vidas pueden parecer caprichosa. . . para indicar que todas las cosas son producto de la casualidad. Pero esto no es así. Cuando miramos con atención las cosas que nos rodean, nos encontramos con que el agua, piedra, y los seres humanos se producen cada de acuerdo con un cierto patrón con su propio carácter individual

Through what power or direction are the conditions that  produce various things in perfect order from such an amorphous energy? When we consider this regularity and order, we cannot help admitting that some rule exists. It is the rule that causes all things to exist. This is indeed the Law taught by the Buddha.

A través de lo que el poder o la dirección son las condiciones que producen varias cosas en perfecto orden de una energía tan amorfo? Cuando consideramos esta regularidad y el orden, no podemos dejar de admitir que existe alguna regla. Es la regla que hace que todas las cosas existen. Este es de hecho la Ley enseñada por el Buda.

We do not exist accidentally, but exist and live by means of this Law. As soon as we realize this fact, we become aware of our firm foundation and can set our minds at ease. Far from being capricious, this foundation rests on the Law with which nothing can compare. This assurance is the source of the great peace of mind that is not agitated by anything. It is the Law that imparts life to us all. The Law is not something cold but is full of  vigor and vivid with life.

No existimos por casualidad, pero existimos y vivimos por medio de la presente Ley. Tan pronto como nos damos cuenta de este hecho, nos damos cuenta de nuestra fundación firme y podemos poner nuestras mentes en la facilidad. Lejos de ser caprichosa, esta fundación se basa en la Ley con la que nada se puede comparar. Esta seguridad es la fuente de la gran paz de la mente que no está agitado por nada. Es la Ley que imparte vida para todos nosotros. La Ley no es algo frío, pero está llena de vigor y vivo con la vida.

Just consider that billions of years ago, the earth had no life . . . when the earth cooled about two billion years ago, microscopic one-celled living creatures were produced through the working of the Law. They were born when the energy forming the foundation of lava, gas, and vapor came into contact with appropriate conditions—the Law providing the conditions for the generation of life. From this we realize the Law is  not cold, a mere abstract rule, but full of vivid power causing everything to exist and live.

Sólo considere que, hace miles de millones de años, la tierra no tenía vida. . . cuando la tierra se enfrió hace unos dos millones de años, los seres vivos microscópicos unicelulares fueron producidos por el funcionamiento de la Ley. Nacieron cuando la energía que forma la base de la lava, gases y vapor entró en contacto con las condiciones adecuadas, la Ley proporciona las condiciones para la generación de la vida. De esto podemos darnos cuenta de la Ley no es frío, una mera regla abstracta, pero lleno de fuerza viva que causa todo lo que existe y vive.

Conversely everything has the power of desiring to exist and live. Two billion years ago, even lava, gas, and vapor possessed the urge to live. That’s why one-celled creatures were generated from them when conditions became right. These infinitesimal creatures endured all kinds of trials . . . extreme heat and cold, tremendous floods, terrestrial rains, for about two billion years, and continued to live, gradually evolving into more  sophisticated forms, culminating in human beings.

Por el contrario todo tiene el poder de desear a existir y vivir. Hace dos millones de años, incluso de lava, gases y vapor poseían las ganas de vivir. Es por eso que las criaturas unicelulares fueron generados a partir de ellos cuando las condiciones se hicieron bien. Estas criaturas infinitesimales soportaron todo tipo de ensayos. . . calor y frío extremos, tremendas inundaciones, las lluvias terrestres, por cerca de dos millones de años, y continuaron viviendo, evolucionando gradualmente hacia formas más sofisticadas, que culminó en los seres humanos.

This evolution was caused by the will to live. . . Life had mind through which it desired to live even before it existed on earth. Such a will still exists in everything in the universe. This will exists in humans today.

Esta evolución se debe a la voluntad de vivir. . . La vida tenía la mente a través del cual desea vivir incluso antes de que existiera en la tierra. Tal voluntad todavía existe en todo el universo. Esta voluntad existe en los seres humanos en la actualidad.

From the scientific point of view, humans are formed by a combination of elementary particles; and if we analyze this still more deeply, we see that humans are an accumulation of energy.

Desde el punto de vista científico, los seres humanos están formados por una combinación de partículas elementales; y si analizamos esto aún más profundamente, vemos que los seres humanos son una acumulación de energía.

Therefore the  mind desiring to live must surely exist in humans.

Por lo tanto la mente el deseo de vivir debe existir duda en los seres humanos.

However, this is a mind so deep that we cannot grasp, isolate, or control it. It is the mind existing in the origin of life, even deeper than the subconscious mind. What is the  mind that desires to live? We cannot isolate it by means of science or explain it by some theory. . . Philosophers have  attempted to explain it as “the blind will toward life.” We can call it, “the universal will” or “universal life.” We can also describe it as “the power that makes everything live” or “the rule that makes everything exit.”

Sin embargo, esta es una mente tan profunda que no podemos comprender, aislar, o controlarlo. Es la mente la que existe en el origen de la vida, incluso más allá de la mente subconsciente. ¿Qué es la mente la que desea vivir? No podemos aislarlo por medio de la ciencia o explicarlo por alguna teoría. . . Los filósofos han tratado de explicarlo como "la voluntad ciega hacia la vida." Podemos llamarlo, "la voluntad universal" o "la vida universal." También podemos describirlo como "el poder que hace que todo sea en vivo" o "la regla de que hace que todo salga ".

Shakyamuni Buddha  taught this point in the following way: all things in the universe are emptiness—void, and they are produced and annihilated by a cause. Nothing exists in a fixed eternal form.

Shakyamuni Buda enseñó este punto de la siguiente manera: todas las cosas en el universo son el vacío nulo, y que se producen y aniquilados por una causa. Nada existe en una forma eterna fijo.

Only the Law permeating them—Mind, “Buddha,” the power that makes everything live is eternal. When we realize the truth and power that makes all of us live, we “see the Buddha.”  ////

Sólo la Ley impregnarlas a-Mente, "Buda", el poder que hace que todo lo vivo es eterna. Cuando nos damos cuenta de la verdad y el poder que hace que todos nosotros vivimos, "vemos que el Buda." ////

“Life at each moment encompasses both body and spirit and both self and environment of all sentient beings in every condition of life, as well as insentient beings—plants, sky and earth, on down to the most minute particles of dust. Life at each moment permeates the universe and is revealed in all phenomena. Those awakened to this truth, themselves embody this relationship.” – Nichiren in a letter to Toki Jonin, 1255.

"La vida a cada momento abarca el cuerpo y el espíritu y tanto uno mismo y el medio ambiente de todos los seres sensibles en todas las condiciones de la vida, así como los seres insensibles-plantas, el cielo y la tierra, hacia abajo a las partículas más diminutas de polvo. La vida a cada momento impregna el universo y se revela en todos los fenómenos. Aquellos despertado a esta verdad, ellos encarnan esta relación. "- Nichiren en una carta a Toki Jonin, 1255.

for the transitory and eternal can only be seen in each other – de lo transitorio y eterno sólo puede ser visto en el otro.

Aurora Borealis

(Niwano – 3)

All things are equal

produced from the same energy or force.

Buddhism for Today, A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Nikkyo Niwano; John Weatherhill, Inc., New York and Tokyo; and Kosei Publishing Company, Tokyo. Copyright 1961, 1976 by Kosei Publishing Company.  [Kojiro Miyasaka’s English translation very slightly amended] – from Chapter 16, The Life of the Tathagata:

  [Most people today] are apt to doubt such concepts as the Law and “that which causes everything to live” as mere ideas produced by religious leaders. But they should think of the composition of  all physical substances as elucidated by nuclear physics: all substances in this universe are composed of electrons, protons, neutrons, and other subatomic particles, and the differences between various substances are caused by different combinations of these basic particles.

  Granted that subatomic particles are regarded as the minimum units of matter, so long as such particles exist as matter, as things, they should be still further divisible. However, modern science cannot do this, so scientists say that these elemental particles are produced by “energy.”

  Energy is generally considered as “the force through which matter functions.” But before matter can function there must already exist the energy that produces matter. . . .

  We cannot see energy with our naked eyes or otherwise discern it as a physical entity. Energy seems at first to be “nothingness,” but it does exist and it is a kind of matter. The accumulation of this “kind of matter” produces such particles as electrons, protons, and neutrons. The accumulation of these particles produces various kinds of atoms. The accumulation of these atoms produces such elements as hydrogen, oxygen and carbon. The accumulation of these elements produces air, water, minerals, plants, and the human body. Thus, matter is originally produced from a kind of energy, or force.

. . . [paragraph about time . . .]

  Shakyamuni Buddha however taught about matter correctly more than two thousand years ago. He proclaimed it as “emptiness” or “void.” This does not mean “nothingness” but “equality”- [even as] “phenomenon”  indicating the idea that all things, including matter, the human mind, and events, originate from the same foundation. Though these things seem to be different from one another in the eyes of humans, their real state is equal.

  When analyzed to the utmost possible limit, all things are equal because they are energy (force) of some kind. . . In short all  phenomena are produced from an equal kind of energy or force.

Next – Evolution caused by the urge to live – life had mind through which it desired to live.

Aurora Borealis -Norway

(Niwano – 3)

All things are equal

produced from the same energy or force.

Todas las cosas son iguales

producido a partir de la misma energía o fuerza.

Buddhism for Today, A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Nikkyo Niwano; John Weatherhill, Inc., New York and Tokyo; and Kosei Publishing Company, Tokyo. Copyright 1961, 1976 by Kosei Publishing Company.  [Kojiro Miyasaka’s English translation very slightly amended] – from Chapter 16, The Life of the Tathagata:

  [Most people today] are apt to doubt such concepts as the Law and “that which causes everything to live” as mere ideas produced by religious leaders. But they should think of the composition of  all physical substances as elucidated by nuclear physics: all substances in this universe are composed of electrons, protons, neutrons, and other subatomic particles, and the differences between various substances are caused by different combinations of these basic particles.

  [La mayoría de las personas hoy en día] tienden a dudar de conceptos tales como la Ley y "lo que hace que todo lo que vivir" como meras ideas producidas por los líderes religiosos. Pero deben pensar en la composición de todas las sustancias físicas como dilucidado por la física nuclear: todas las sustancias de este universo están compuestos de electrones, protones, neutrones y otras partículas subatómicas, y las diferencias entre diversas sustancias son causados por diferentes combinaciones de éstos básica partículas.

  Granted that subatomic particles are regarded as the minimum units of matter, so long as such particles exist as matter, as things, they should be still further divisible. However, modern science cannot do this, so scientists say that these elemental particles are produced by “energy.” Energy is generally considered as “the force through which matter functions.” But before matter can function there must already exist the energy that produces matter. . .

  Concedido que las partículas subatómicas son considerados como las unidades mínimas de la materia, siempre y cuando existan tales partículas como materia, como las cosas, deben ser aún más divisible. Sin embargo, la ciencia moderna no puede hacer esto, por lo que los científicos dicen que estas partículas elementales son producidos por "energía." La energía es generalmente considerado como "la fuerza a través del cual importa funciones." Pero antes de que la materia puede funcionar no debe existir la energía que produce la materia . . .

  We cannot see energy with our naked eyes or otherwise discern it as a physical entity. Energy seems at first to be “nothingness,” but it does exist and it is a kind of matter. The accumulation of this “kind of matter” produces such particles as electrons, protons, and neutrons. The accumulation of these particles produces various kinds of atoms. The accumulation of these atoms produces such elements as hydrogen, oxygen and carbon. The accumulation of these elements produces air, water, minerals, plants, and the human body. Thus, matter is originally produced from a kind of energy, or force. [paragraph about time . . .]

  No podemos ver la energía con nuestros ojos desnudos o de otra manera discernirlo como una entidad física. Energía parece al principio ser "nada", pero existe y es un tipo de materia. La acumulación de este "tipo de materia" produce partículas tales como electrones, protones y neutrones. La acumulación de estas partículas produce varios tipos de átomos. La acumulación de estos átomos produce elementos tales como hidrógeno, oxígeno y carbono. La acumulación de estos elementos produce aire, agua, minerales, plantas, y el cuerpo humano. Por lo tanto, la materia se produce originalmente de un tipo de energía o fuerza. [párrafo sobre el tiempo. . .]

  Shakyamuni Buddha however taught about matter correctly more than two thousand years ago. He proclaimed it as “emptiness” or “void.” This does not mean “nothingness” but “equality”- [even as] “phenomenon”  indicating the idea that all things, including matter, the human mind, and events, originate from the same foundation. Though these things seem to be different from one another in the eyes of humans, their real state is equal.

  Buda Shakyamuni embargo enseñó acerca de la materia correctamente hace más de dos mil años. Él proclamó como "vacío" o Esto no significa "nada," pero "la igualdad" "vacío” - [Incluso] "fenómeno" que indica la idea de que todas las cosas, incluyendo la materia, la mente humana, y los acontecimientos, se originan de la misma fundación. Aunque estas cosas parecen ser diferentes uno de otro en los ojos de los seres humanos, su estado real es igual.

  When analyzed to the utmost possible limit, all things are equal because they are energy (force) of some kind. . . In short all  phenomena are produced from an equal kind of energy or force.

  Cuando se analizó el límite máximo posible, todas las cosas son iguales, ya que son la energía (fuerza) de algún tipo. . . En resumen todos los fenómenos son producidos a partir de un tipo igual de energía o fuerza.

Next – Evolution caused by the urge to live – life had mind through which it desired to live.

Siguiente - Evolución causada por las ganas de vivir - la vida tenía la mente a través del cual desea vivir.

(Niwano – 2)

The Highest Form of Religion

absolute devotion to the truth that imparts life to us

Buddhism for Today, A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Nikkyo Niwano; John Weatherhill, Inc., New York and Tokyo; and Kosei Publishing Company, Tokyo. Copyright 1961, 1976 by Kosei Publishing Company.  [Kojiro Miyasaka’s English translation very slightly amended] – from Chapter 16, The Life of the Tathagata:

  In what way can we gain such consciousness [the true mental peace that is not disturbed by anything?] Needless to say, the way is to study the teachings of the Buddha repeatedly and to root them deeply in our minds by meditating on them, keeping firmly in mind the realization that our lives should be unified with the universal life (the Buddha). This indeed is meditation from the religious point of view. Through this kind of meditation, we can purify even the mind of which we cannot be conscious ourselves, that is our subconscious mind, and we can make our thought and conduct harmonize spontaneously with our surroundings. If our thought and conduct are in harmony with our surroundings, sufferings and worries cannot trouble us. This mental state is true peace of mind, the stage of “Nirvana is quiescence,” the absolutely quiet stage in which we cling to nothing.

  This state of mind is not limited to a passive mental peace. Our consciousness of being enlivened by this great universal life gives us great hope and courage. Energy springs from this consciousness so that we advance to carry out our daily lives, our work, and our bodhisattva-way for the benefit of others in this world.

  Our awareness of being caused to live is our great salvation. Our absolute devotion to the truth that imparts  life to us . . .  to take refuge in the Law wholeheartedly with utter faith and trust. . . [Here Niwano extols the practice of all followers of the Lotus Sutra as originated by the 13^th Century Priest, Nichiren] . . . we do not worship a thing, a person, a spirit, or a god existing outside ourselves, but devote ourselves to the Law which causes us to live and unites us with it with our entire heart and mind—this is the purest and the supreme faith . . . No form of religion is purer than this . . .

Next -  Considering nuclear physics, energy and matter

“What then should we depend on?”
Notes from Nikkyo Niwano (1)

Buddhism for Today, A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Nikkyo Niwano; John Weatherhill, Inc., New York and Tokyo; and Kosei Publishing Company, Tokyo. Copyright 1961, 1976 by Kosei Publishing Company.  [Kojiro Miyasaka’s English translation very slightly amended] – from Chapter 16, The Life of the Tathagata:

  What then should we depend upon for our salvation? Here we must here remember the Buddha’s teaching, “Make yourself the light, make the Law your light,” the words Shakyamuni spoke to Ananda, one of his ten great disciples [also his cousin] before dying. Ananda felt anxious, reflecting, “When the World-honored One who is an unparalleled leader and teacher, dies, who on earth should we depend upon in our practice and life? In response to Ananda’s anxiety, the Buddha taught him as follows:

  “In the future you should make yourself your light and depend on your own self. You must not depend on other people. You should also make the Law your light and depend upon the Law. You must not depend upon others.”

  There is no better teaching than this to sum up the essence of a right religion in a few words. The Buddha first taught, “You can depend upon your own self.” When we depend upon other people, we do not know what to do if we are forsaken by them or if they disappear. Therefore the Buddha admonished us to depend upon ourselves and walk the Way through our own efforts.

  But what should we depend upon in living our lives? The Buddha taught that this is nothing other than the Law, namely, the truth, and that we must not depend absolutely upon others, Here the word “others” means “gods,” being who are considered to exist and to be our masters. The Buddha taught emphatically that we must not depend upon such gods, but only upon the Law, the truth.

  [Note from dfs, the guy above driving the car – When Pilate asks Jesus, “What is truth?” Jesus is silent and doesn’t answer, after which Pilate says, “I find no fault in this man.”]

  Indeed, his words carry great weight. A single word of the teaching “Make the self your light, make the Law your light” is more valuable than all the innumerable teachings concerning human life and religion that have been promulgated by the many great persons of past ages.

  Through this teaching we understand that what we depend on, the Law, exists both within and outside us. It is the truth that permeates the entire universe, not establishing a distinction between inside and outside. Our body is produced by this truth and is caused to live by it. Our mind is also produced by it and caused to work by it. All things, including society, the earth and sky, plants, birds and beasts, are produced by this truth and are caused to live by it.

  A person who feels the word “truth” to be somewhat cold and abstract can replace it with the term “the great life,” which makes everything in this world exist and live. When we are firmly aware in the depths of our mind that we are given life by the great life that permeates the universe, we can obtain the true mental peace that is not disturbed by anything.

Next – In what way can we gain such consciousness?

Ending all fear

  The Buddha had no religion, he did not teach “Buddhism.”  In the Lotus Sutra when the father gets all his children out of the burning house, he reveals he is like this father, desiring all people to become like him—fearless, ever seeking the good, benefiting all beings—knowing that “all the living” possess this capability, realized once they enter “the Buddha way.”

  “The Buddha said to Shariputra, "Good! Good! It is even as you say, Shariputra! The Tathagata is also like this, for he is father of all worlds who has forever entirely ended all fear, despondency, distress, ignorance, and umbrageous darkness and has perfected boundless knowledge, powers, and fearlessness; is possessed of great spiritual power and wisdom; has completely attained the virtues of tactfulness and wisdom; who is the greatly merciful and greatly compassionate, ever tireless, ever seeking the good, and benefiting all beings.

  "I am the father of all creatures and I must snatch them from suffering and give them the bliss of the infinite, boundless Buddha-wisdom for them to play with.

  "As long as these creatures have never escaped birth, old age, disease, death, grief, and suffering, but are being burned in the burning house of the triple world, how can they understand the Buddha-wisdom?

  "Know ye! all these three vehicles are praised by sages; in them you will be free and independent, without wanting to rely on anything else. Riding in these three vehicles [learning, self-awareness, world of compassion], by means of perfect faculties, powers, perceptions of the seven degrees of intelligence, ways, concentrations, emancipations, and contempla­tions, you will as a matter of course be happy and gain infinite peace and joy."

Exchange with Lunares – “We are like the universe like islands in the sea . . .”

  Lunares – these last posts are super interesting Dana, I like them so so so much. Reading texts like this, I always think how different is Christianism and Buddhism in this point of view about the universe. That's why many times I think I'm very next to Buddhism although I have been educated like Catholic but Catholic does not teach some feelings I can feel: I always feel we are in the universe like the islands in the sea, if you watch the sea, you can see islands and islands, they look like different islands among themselves but if you remove all the water of the sea, you can see that the islands are all the same thing because they all are the same Earth. I think that's what happens with us but, because of some reason, for many people is very difficult to feel it.

  Deep and heartfelt appreciation for this beautiful response, querido Lunares. I hope you will not object if I make this today's post at Ancestral Well. It is indeed wondrous for one to see and feel, and realize different views discovered in our spiritual journeys – not necessarily "opposing" – just different – and wonderful to discover how we feel about them and their meaning in our lives, today, here and now. Your metaphor of the "universe like the islands in the sea . . ." is truly profound. (If only we could add this to The Threefold Lotus Sutr – it would certainly enhance the teachings of the Buddha. You are a wonderful man! and I'm privileged to know you.

  Agradecimiento profundo y sincero por esta hermosa respuesta, querido Lunares. Espero que no se opondrá si hago el post de hoy en esta Ancestral Bueno. De hecho, es maravillosa para que uno ve y siente, y se dan cuenta de los diferentes puntos de vista descubiertos en nuestros viajes espirituales – no necesariamente "oponerse" – simplemente diferente – y maravilloso para descubrir cómo nos sentimos acerca de ellos y su significado en nuestras vidas, hoy, aquí y ahora. Su metáfora del "universo como las islas en el mar..." es verdaderamente profunda. (Si sólo pudiéramos añadir esto a la Triple Sutra del Loto. Que sin duda mejorar las enseñanzas del Buda Usted es un hombre maravilloso y yo soy el privilegio de conocerte!

  Super super super interesting!!!! Yes Dana: finally, I can see how the new theories o physics known as “unified theories” are arriving at the same point of Buddhism: we ARE the universe, we are the same thing!!!

  Ah, mi querido Lunares, now you are with me in spiri – only it is really 1982 when I first began to discover these connections with the Buddha's teachings. At that time, had you been looking over my shoulder, I might have arrived where I find myself today much quicker!

  Ah, mi Lunares Querido, ahora están conmigo en espíritu – sólo es realmente 1982, cuando empecé a descubrir estas conexiones con las enseñanzas del Buda. En ese momento, había estado buscando por encima de mi hombro que podría haber llegado a donde me encuentro hoy mucho más rápido!

The Cosmos

Magically a Part of Us

  Here in Buddhism's atheism [or preferably, non-theism /dfs] is the key concept that separates the dualist faiths of man from this no-nonsense, unsupernatural belief-system. Mahayana Buddhism sees ALL existence as supremely sacred; it needs no other-worldly injunction to validate this sanctity, no God on High; and, most important of all, it sees the plain and mundane things of daily existence—when viewed from the right perspective—as sanctified as the loftiest ideals. In short, in this enlightened awareness, we can all see the marvelous wonder of our universe, blemishes and all, and find our home and comfort in a cosmos that is magically a part of us, and us a part of it. This interpenetration of the individual in the universe is what the teachings of the Buuddha are all about. This is their scope and majesty.

  You do not see the sky, you are the sky.  You do not touch the earth, you are the earth.  The wind does not blow on you, it blows within you.  In this simple one taste, you can drink the Pacific Ocean in a single gulp, and swallow the universe whole.  Supernova are born and die all within your own heart, and galaxies swirling endlessly, where you thought your head was, and it is all a simple as the sound of a robin singing on a crystal clear dawn.

Milky Way over Jackson Lake, Wyoming

For Robert Eichenberg, Jonny Joe – The Hadron Accelerator – a personal journey

Beyond Newton and Einstein

on the New Frontier of Physics

by Timothy Ferris

© The New York Times Magazine

September 26, 1982

  A seminal article linking the teachings of the Buddha profoundly, although not realized at the time—perhaps its value not even fully realized today. The article certainly enlivened progress along “the path to gaining Buddha-knowledge.” Today, 2015, returning once more to this eloquent resource for practice. [italics added, indicating links to “gaining mindfulness.”]

  we talk of “the universe” as if it were far away, but of course it is right here too. Its history concerns not only the remote stars and galaxies, but our world as well—down to the atoms that make up these words, this page, you and me.

  This insight has long been entertained by poets and philosophers. Now it is bearing fruit in science, as physicists probing the tiny nucleus of the atom are uncovering evidence of how the universe as a whole may have taken shape in the first moments of time.

  Responsible for the breakthrough are new theories o physics—known as “unified theories”—that seek to improve scientific understanding of how nature functions from the very smallest to the very largest scale. These theories which stand on the frontier of physics, are most precisely expressed not in words, but as mathematical equations. They imply that all the known forces in nature are manifestations of one basic interaction and that once, long ago, all were part of a single universal force or process.

  That view might sound farfetched were it not for the fact that cosmologists—scientists who study the nature of the universe as a whole—have found evidence that everything that now exists began in a “big bang.” (See chart) That explosion would have generated the tremendous amounts of energy and pressure that the unified theories say would have been needed to fuse the apparently separate forces into one.

  The consequences of their discoveries and the newest ideas in cosmology is pro­ducing a new physics, one that sees matter, energy and the laws according to which they behave not as immutable and eternal, but as evolving processes in an evolving universe. Like archeologists unearthing the ruins of an ancient city, theorists are uncovering the outlines of a new, more profound and in some way, simpler physics, a physics that could reveal and explain much of the history of the cosmos.

  The consequences of their discoveries promise to reverberate throughout science and beyond. Textbooks may have to be rewritten and philosophies revised. Just as Newton’s work served as the basis for much modern science and technology, and as Einstein’s discovery of the equivalence of matter and energy, E = m c², led to such advances as the harnessing of nuclear power, so too the new understanding provided by the unified theories may lead to unexpected leaps in our ability to manipulate nature.

  It is, of course, impossible to predict where, specifically, those leaps will land us. But a unified physics would promote a scientific vision of nature worthy of Zen masters and Old Testament prophets alike—a vision revealing that everything about us belongs to a chain of cosmic revolution that leads back to the birth of the universe and forward to a glimpse of the fate of the universe.

*  *  *

  Physicists have hit upon this new vision of a unity of large and small not through the mystical transports of a William Blake who saw the world in a grain of sand, but while trying to do little more than put their scientific house in order. Their goal is not to rewrite Genesis, but only to craft a theory that would explain the interactions of the myriad particles – from the now-familiar quarks to obscure muons – that inhabit the subatomic world.

Later in article – quote sent to AW (and Cody)

  Normally we think of virtual particles as restricted to the quantum world of the very small. But in the first moments of cosmic history, the universe was very small. Con­ceivably, the whole show could have begun as a speck of quantum foam in a vacuum. “Nothingness contains all of being,” writes the physicist Heinz Pagels in his “The Cosmic Code.”

  “All of physics – everything we hope to know – is waiting in the vacuum to be dis­covered.”

Article concludes:

  “The belief that the world is understandable justifies itself by its results,” John Wheeler said one day recently. We sat in his living room, surrounded by books and paintings, watching the river town of Austin turn gold in the slanting rays of the sunset. “We find the world strange,” Wheeler said quietly, “but what is strange is us. It seems to me that we don’t yet read the message properly, but in a time to come, we will se it in some single simple sentence. As we say that sentence to each other, we’ll say, ‘Oh, how beautiful! How could we have missed it, all that time?”

3/10/12 – Comment from DFS:

  Perhaps that one simple sentence is from the Buddha’s teaching: “We are caused to live by the great life-force of the universe.”

Celebrating Life

Stories from The Threefold Lotus Sutra

  human kind, born from earth and sea on a planet formed from an exploding star in a galaxy called the milky way, emerged late in the earth’s four-to-five billion year history as a result of the same conditions which in the beginning, created the universe. The Buddha’s teachings propose that this remarkable, even mystical chain of cause and effect, was inevitable and necessary.

  Progressing from the beginning of the universe to the formation of planet earth, to the dawn of human beings five to six million years ago, thus did the flow of time lead to the birth of us all, and in the 6^th Century before the Christian Era, the birth of Prince Siddhartha who became at the moment of his enlightenment, Shakyamuni Buddha, “the enlightened one of the Shakya clan,” the Buddha who sees beyond the universe, beyond space and time, perceiving that his birth as a human being emerges out of limitless, eternal incarnations, a continuity shared with all humanity.

  In the moment of his enlightenment, the Buddha is awakened to the profound interconnection of all living things. He perceives that an imperishable energy, a universal life-force, is the cause of all existence, imbedded in all laws. From emptiness, the profound Law of the Void, itself the Great Perfection, he realizes human beings and all living things, are equal in the fundamental value of their existence and are caused to live by the will to live, brought into being by virtue of karmic necessity, evolving creatively with planet earth.

  He has awakened to a profound truth that has existed from the infinite past, even before he appeared in this world. His fundamental desire in teaching this “final profound truth” is that all living beings will discover it for themselves.

Enlightenment

  Questioning “What is Enlightenment?” Enlightenment is something to accomplish in a moment of time,. an experience of absolute awareness—but awareness of what? perhaps that’s the question, or perhaps, How can I describe the experience? (Good luck!)

  The Buddha never specifically defines Perfect Enlightenment he attained under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya. Ultimately in the One Vehicle Sutra, the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Law, Chapter 16, he will declare his “Perfect Enlightenment” has existed eternally, addressing the Bodhisattva in the great assembly,

  “Listen then all of you attentively to the secret, mysterious, and supernaturally pervading power of the Tathagata. All the worlds of gods, living beings and asuras consider: ‘Now has Shakyamuni Buddha come forth from the palace of the Shakya clan, and seated at the training place of enlightenment, not far from the city of Gaya, has attained Perfect Enlightenment.’ But, my good sons and daughters, since I veritably became Buddha, infinite, boundless hundreds of thousands of myriads of  hundreds of thousand kalpas have passed.”

  At the close of the chapter, enlightenment is defined as something accomplished, the Buddha asking himself how he shall cause all the living to accomplish it speedily.

  "I, ever knowing all beings,

  those who walk or walk not in the Way,

  according to the right principles of salvation

  expound their every law,

  ever making this my thought:

  How shall I cause all the living

  to enter the Way supreme

  and speedily accomplish their buddhahood?"  (enlightenment),

  As a member of Rissho Kosei-kai in Los Angeles in the early 1990s, I came across a back issue, July 1982, of their monthly publication, DHARMA WORLD, Volume 9, © 1982; Kosei Publishing Co., Tokyo. Hui-neng's Enlightenment—Here and Now by Pracy Pugh, committee member of the Buddhist Society of N.S.W., Australia.

  Here’s an eloquent answer to What is Enlightenment?

  The absence of all thoughts to cease discriminating indicates the mind adheres to no "object" but relaxed in self-expression, appreciates itself in pure mirror-activity and stilled perception.

  “Here lies the ultimate, subtle, and elusive truth of all Buddhism: enlightenment occurs in the realization of one's own inner primal nature, which, as the buddha-nature, is infused with all experience, is absolute and universal—purest being—the totality of all things, a spontaneous awakening occurring at the root of consciousness that comprehends the entire manifold world. Moreover, this primal vision encompasses the opposites of existence, including the darkness of non-being. So it is ineffable and mysterious. Here, says Hui-neng, rejoice in your primal nature where samsara is nirvana, and nirvana is samsara. . . becoming is being, being is becoming.

  “This remarkable doctrine of self-salvation centers on the identity of one's own nature with the Buddha. It is the Buddha (or the Tathagata) in the minds of the aspirants who save themselves. From this insight a charity and a morality arise, because the individual and the totality are one ecological organism, mutually dependent.”