Author and Activist Duane Elgin wrote a beautiful and technically engaging description of how material reality is fluid and ever-changing, not static and solid – something quantum scientists have been proving over the last century and the Buddha explained in great depth over 2,500 years ago:
“The Buddha awakened to interdependent co-arising and the insight that there is no solid and enduring reality. In turn, he taught that our failure to recognize the flux and fluidity of existence produces an inaccurate and therefore unsatisfying relationship with the flow of life. An analogy clarifies this process: If we assume that the universe is a regenerative system that, for illustrative purposes, is arising or emerging at a pace of, say, 100 frames per second, and if we further assume that in everyday life our pace of perception is functioning at, say, 25 frames per second, then the regenerative universe will not appear to us as flashing into existence at each moment but rather will seem to be a seamless whole of solidity that endures over time. The Buddhist teacher, Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche, describes this process clearly:
So everything arises and ceases at the same time, moment to moment. This is the condition of the universe and the condition of our own mind, perceptions, and experiences, without exception. But because it is so subtle and the movement so rapid, because each moment is so similar to the one that just vanished, we make up a continuum. Just as we do when watching a movie, which is actually twenty-four frames flashing each second on a screen, we create substantial appearances. (Kongtrul, 2013, p. 28)
Without precise attention, we can easily lose ourselves in the cosmic movie theatre. However, as we increase the precision of our perception to match the pace of manifestation of the universe, then all becomes trans- parent and there is no longer a boundary between our perception and the universe arising—all is co-arising as one direct experience. When both are embraced in awareness, the two are naturally one in experience— awakening wisdom and compassion.
Appreciating that we live within a co-arising universe is immensely valuable as it offers a way of understanding subtle spiritual insights such as the “impermanence” of reality. When we regard the world around us as solid and enduring, we are not seeing the lightning fast pace whereby the entire universe arises and passes away as a continuous flow. Then, in thinking the world around us is solid and permanent, it is only natural that we would try to grasp hold of and possess the seeming solidity of things. Because this intention is not in accord with the actual, dynamic nature of existence, we can quickly find ourselves out of alignment with the true nature of a continuously regenerated reality, and this engenders feelings of dissatisfaction and disconnection.
Similarly, we may read about the “emptiness” of reality and be perplexed by what this means from a conventional perspective. However, in the context of an interdependent co-arising universe, the fullness of one moment vanishes completely only to be replaced by the fullness of the next instant of manifestation. All that existed in the preceding moment disappears completely so all things are truly empty of an enduring, physical existence. This is a subtle and foundational insight for a wise relationship with the complete dynamism of reality.
The ideas of impermanence and emptiness are confusing when seen from an “ordinary” perspective but they come into shining simplicity and clarity of meaning when seen from the perspective of a gigantic cosmic theater being projected into existence moment by moment as a seamless whole. All of existence is an evolving and learning system that never rests in its creative co-arising. There is no permanence. At every moment everything vanishes only to be born anew at every instant.”
TSW Insight–>We as co-creators with Universal Consciousness are the ones collectively creating our reality every moment. Why do then things appear solid – because our thoughts stay the same. Humans have 50,000 thoughts per day – most coming from stored memories in the subconscious – 95% of our thinking then is habitual. Thus, our physical reality stays the same, and appears static. If we want our reality to change, then we need to think differently and break the cycle of habitual thoughts that create more of the same experience from moment to moment.
~Jay Kshatri
www.ThinkSmarterWorld.com
