Everything is One and One is All

Why is emptiness an important element to ponder at? Why Buddhism stresses on

seeing into emptiness? Frankly speaking, it is imperative for one to realise on the

emptiness of all things because this would lead one into seeing all things as they

really are. When we examine our usual mind, its delusion is negated, what is left is

a nature of clarity of the innate mind. And Buddhism articulates on one’s

potentiality of exploring the base level of the mind that is luminous.

From direct experience, we know that humans and things cause pleasure and pain,

and that they can help and harm. Therefore, phenomena certainly do exist but the

question is how? They do not exist in their own quality but only have an existence

dependent upon many factors, including a consciousness that conceptualises them.

In other words, one cause is never enough to bring about an effect. A cause must,

at the same time, be an effect, and every effect must also be the cause of

something else. This means all things exist conditionally without an eternal

essence i.e. all things can never sustain in an absolute discrete orientation.

In the dependent nature, we do know one thing that is consistently constant i.e.

becoming. This becoming process is the main reason for all the things that we

observe right here, right now. When there is a becoming process, there is a

changing process. The changing process would then conjure up an ability of sorts

that is known as ‘energy.’ Therefore, we shall be clear by now that energy is

something that has always been in existence and remaining as a constant - as per

the Law of Conservation of Energy that says energy in a system can neither be

created nor destroyed and the sum of all energies is a constant or never changes.

For general understanding, energy is nothing but mere vibration. When there are

opposing forces, there would be vibration. The alternate movement of the

opposing forces would generate a continuum of wavy pattern oscillating up and

down. This is the main reason for all the repeating cycle of rising and falling

activities that one could witness in the dependent nature or samsāra. In other

words, by understanding well and observing thoroughly into the characteristics of

energy, one could gain insight into the nature and its orientation. Let us look at

the following illustration: -

A gravity pendulum in play

Basically, the vibrational motion of energy is akin to a simple gravity pendulum in

play – a weight suspended from a hinge that could swing freely when displaced

sideways from its resting equilibrium position. From the above observation, one

would be clear that the circumstances of duality or multiplicity are merely the side

effects of the vibrational characteristics of energy. In a way, we would begin to

understand that the fundamental qualities in the dependent nature would be energy

and emptiness because every single thing or happening would involve with it,

without exception.

When one sees into energy, one sees into emptiness; when one sees into

emptiness, one sees into energy. This is the rationale for the saying, ‘Form is

Emptiness, Emptiness is Form.’ The principle in effect: seeing into form is seeing

into matter, seeing into matter is seeing into energy and seeing into energy is

seeing into emptiness. On the same pretext, emptiness is a necessary

prerequisite for any objects to exist; without it, the object would be impossible. In

order for one to develop the skills of realising into emptiness, one could perform a

series of Buddhist virtues known as the four immeasurables or brahmavihāras.

Through meditation, one could cultivate and radiate out to all beings in all

directions the mental states of: -

1. Mettā (Loving-kindness)

2. Karunā (Compassion)

3. Muditā (Emphathetic joy)

4. Upekkhā (Equanimity)

The above four immeasurables are powerful antidotes that would act as means for

weakening the links of suffering in the wheel of life and concurrently, it would

expedite one’s effort of attaining enlightenment in the present lifetime.

The principle in effect: - A stream of loving-kindness and compassion would conjure up empathy,

A stream of empathy would conjure up boundless,

A stream of boundless would conjure up voidness,

A stream of voidness would conjure up stillness,

A stream of stillness would conjure up peacefulness,

A stream of peacefulness would conjure up enlightenment.

Once again, all subject matters are empty and comprise with energy per se. It is

the wonder of nature that all things are neither identical to, nor entirely different

from one another. The circumstances of duality or multiplicity are merely the end

result of various activities of aggregation being observed by the mind under the

influence of multiple causes and conditions. The mind is actually a pattern of

consciousness that is born from awareness. When awareness touches on objects,

consciousness would arise simultaneously. Consciousness is naturally looking

outward to objects and it is flitting all the time. Whereas, mind is something more

objective and involves clear discrimination – differentiates and understands the

characteristics of objects.

And one utilises mind to understand things because mind understands the

manipulation of consciousness. Subsequently, the untrained mind brings forth the

false mode that all living beings, things and phenomena could establish their

respective rights or qualities. However, one could distinguish between appearance

and reality by fully realising on the emptiness via cultivating the four

immeasurables or brahmavihāras. Retrospectively, one would realise that all things

are born from the same fundamental qualities i.e. emptiness and energy that would

orientate as a continuum of one integrated whole. This is the ultimate reality of all

things or matters. As the saying goes, “The peace of your mind is an ease of my

heart.” All subjects and objects are inter-dependent and inter-connected at all

times.