Infinite Quantum Zen

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~ ∞ ~ The Birth of Infinite Quantum Zen 2/2 - Awaken the Living Awareness Within ~ ∞ ~

Let us continue. Somewhere along the way, I also realized that after reaching a certain level of Self-Awareness, there comes a point where it becomes apparent that there is ultimately nothing that can be taught to others ‘as such.’ Rather, there are only realizations upon realizations that can bear fruit in a form of knowledge, which can be conveyed to others as information. Based on that information, one can develop an intellectual understanding of the ideas and concepts. Thus, we can only share a representation of what we have experienced and realized within ourselves, and no matter how detailed our informational legacy may be, it is always up to each individual how they use what they have been given.

When I came to this profound realization, I also understood that everything is readily and plentifully available for everyone – equally, although it might not seem that way to some. This means that everything from the Secrets of the Universe to the Mysteries of Life is to be known, and to be understood quite easily through the Self-Realization process. I realized that to achieve this, all it takes is one’s own willingness to become aware of it all. To become aware is to become free of self-imposed limitations; to become aware is to become aware of thoughts, emotions, feelings, physical sensations, behaviors, and speech; to become aware is to shed the layers of the human condition that blinds our perception of our Infinite Being. To become aware is to awaken from the dream of life, which in turn means becoming aware; and being aware, each moment, of what we are doing as we are doing it, of what we are thinking as we are thinking it, and how we are feeling as we are feeling it. And so you see, the more we want to become aware – the more we become aware; and the more we become aware – the more our consciousness expands.

The process itself requires high amounts of perseverance and strength of will, including the willingness to surrender to the Greater Intelligence of Life – one’s Free Will must be aligned with the Divine Will. And hence it results in the lack of need to teach others how to become Self-Realized. You see, Self-Realization is, after all, something that one needs to do themselves – it is something that everyone must experience for themselves by realizing themselves; there are no shortcuts – you see, it all boils down to Self-Mastery, and the pursuit of Self-Mastery requires dedication and effort, which are the first steps in mastering one’s life. Self-Realization is, after all, realizing one’s deepest desires and capacities, fulfilling the possibilities of one’s potential; and likewise is the case with its natural progression, Self-Actualization – utilizing one’s potential, expressing one’s creativity, quest for spiritual enlightenment, pursuit of knowledge, and desire to give to society.

This kind of process is something that cannot be taught ‘as such,’ because each individual is different in their own unique way. What can be done, though – is to show the way, and what can be done to ease this process, is the sharing of documented experiences and the valuable knowledge therein. These kinds of examples can encourage and help others in many unimaginable ways on their own unique paths toward Self-Mastery – through Self-Realization and Self-Actualization. On that note, it is worth pointing out that the best teachers are those who show active example by walking their walk instead of just talking the talk. All that teachers can eventually do is to point the direction – after that, it’s purely up to the student whether to walk across the path that is shown; and yet, in all actuality, each and every one of us have to find our own ways and methods that work for us. In so doing, we eventually find our own unique way within ourselves – see?

We cannot teach people anything; we can only help them discover it within themselves. ~ Galileo Galilei

As a natural part of the process, I found myself reading and studying the best available books about the nature of reality, consciousness, awareness, mindfulness, philosophy, and psychology – just to find out and to realize that to a certain degree I already knew these universal truths; it was more about the remembrance and acknowledgement than anything else. As I progressed on my chosen path, writing down realizations of various kinds – I understood that it was my task in this life to inspire others through writing; to help others become aware of their inner world; to help guide others back to their Inner Spirit, in hopes that they could discover and awaken the Living Awareness within. It was one of the greatest and grandest moments of this journey to realize that I was created like this on purpose – God had created me the way I am, with all of my abilities, strengths and weaknesses, for a purpose. And so you see, through this inner journey, I saw how God really does have a plan for each of us.

In the midst of this process of discovery, there was a moment of clarity where all the pieces fell into place. It was as if deep down within my core, I recalled something profound – I was appointed this task and I was ready to take up the challenge, even if it would take me years to finish. And so you see, many times on this path I found myself experiencing a feeling of déjà vu, or altervu – the deep inner feeling that I had experienced this before. This is to say that I had a strong feeling that I had lived before prior to this existence; and that I had already written this book in some shape of form in some previous existences, or quite possibly, in some alternate – parallel simultaneous existence.

As we examine this idea, it’s not far from what the ancient wisdom teachings throughout the world has known for thousands of years: Life being a continual expression of consciousness moving or transmigrating from one existence to the next, in which the circumstances into which a being is reborn are determined by the good or bad acts done by that being in previous existences. In the Buddhist formulation of dependent origination (Interconnectedness of All Things), samskāras are described to be “mental constituents” that are transmitted from one life to the next; samskāras themselves are the result from ignorance of the truth (Dharma); the word samskāra means “that which has been put together,” and “that which puts together.” Taking the previous into consideration, the continual feelings of déjà vu and altervu – makes perfect sense.

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Now when I come back to those books that I mentioned earlier*1 – it needs to be noted that somehow only the most relevant sources of information found their way into my hands, like D.T. Suzuki’s books on Zen. Another great example is Alan Watts’ book The Way of Zen, which had been waiting to be read for some time – even though it had found me quite mysteriously through the Phenomenon of Synchronicity, I had never opened the book until the summer of 2014. From the very moment I opened the book, I felt a certain familiarity with Alan – a deeper level of connection that cannot be explained with mere words. This is to say that there was an impeccably strong aura surrounding him – alive and vibrant energy signature, not constrained by time or space; so familiar indeed, that later when I was listening to his audio lectures, I could sense his presence near me – as a teacher and a mentor (I’ve previously had similar experiences with the Sensei of Shambala*2).

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*1 The booklist is provided at the end of this book.
*2 The Sensei of Shambala https://www.schambala.org/books.html are a set of books by Ukrainian Anastasia Novykh. which are based on the personal diary of a former high school senior girl, reflecting events of the years 1990-1991. She tells a story of an inner exploration that leads her to meeting with a most erudite man, a Martial-Arts Master and a very enigmatic person, Sensei of Shambala. His fascinating philosophy and the knowledge of the world and of humans, dynamic martial-arts, wordly wisdom, alternative medicine, ancient spiritual practices, human abilities phenomena and beyond. Most importantly, she finds answers to her principal inner questions and learns from the personal experience that humans are granted the most powerful creative force above – the power of belief and love.

That said, it is worth of mentioning that The Diamond Sutra and The Heart Sutra are among the best reads ever; to get a glimpse of these precious treasures, the following Red Pine’s explanation is quite fitting (translator and interpreter of Chinese texts, primarily Taoist and Buddhist, including poetry and sūtras).

Zen Buddhism is often said to be a practice of mind-to-mind transmission without reliance on texts. Buddhism has inspired some of the greatest philosophical writings of any religion, and two such works lie at the center of Zen:

The Heart Sutra, which monks recite all over the World, and The Diamond Sutra, said to contain answers to all questions of delusion and dualism. This is the Buddhist teaching on the perfection of wisdom and cuts through all obstacles on the path of practice.

The Diamond Sutra may look like a book, but it’s really the body of the Buddha. It’s also your body, my body, all possible bodies. But it’s a body with nothing inside and nothing outside. It doesn’t exist in space or time. Nor is it a construct of the mind. It’s no mind. And yet because it’s no mind, it has room for compassion.

In closing, as I walked the walk, I wrote down notes about the many insights, realizations, revelations, and epiphanies that I came across on my journey; and it just happened that Infinite Quantum Zen website was created as a result of that journey. In hindsight, it can be said that Infinite Living Intelligence within Living Life expressed itself through creative means – the end result is seen as a form of Infinite Quantum Zen.

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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~

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~ ∞ ~ The Birth of Infinite Quantum Zen 1/2 - Awaken the Living Awareness Within ~ ∞ ~

In this chapter, we will take a short detour and see how the conceptual framework named Infinite Quantum Zen got started; this will be an eye-opening reading experience that will shed some light on the personal side of things – while doing this, we are also engaging in learning. You see, this kind of personal narrative provides a wonderful way to further explore some of the themes already familiar to us.

Originally Infinite Quantum Zen was only an idea – a seed for something big and transformative; when the idea was born, it had no name or any outline of its contents. Slowly but surely the seed began to sprout, and eventually the project was started in late 2013; all I had at that point in time was the deep inner knowing that the project would eventually lead up to become a cohesive whole.

After spending years designing complex software architecture, it occurred to me: what could be more interesting than studying Life and finding out the secrets that are embedded in every cell and every particle in our universe. As such, Infinite Quantum Zen is a result of years of study, self-inquiry, contemplation, intuition, processing and practice. In other words, a synthesis of everything I’ve learned and experienced over the years.

When I began this journey, I had a deep sense of certainty that the personal subjective experiences combined with the latest scientific understanding of the Quantum World, coupled with Ancient Wisdom – would open up the door to the Mystery of Life. In hindsight, I can say that the certainty alone was the main driving engine behind the success of the project – the more I trusted the path I was on, the more certain I became.

The beginning stages were once written down and collected into a blog; its sole purpose was to document the first-hand experiences and realizations – past, present & future – forming a timeline of Self-Realization Journey. Everything was shared from the heart, and hence the term ‘Living Truth’ was used to describe the style of expression. In essence, this kind of pure expression maintains its authenticity and rings truth in every cell when the receiver is tuned to vibrate in harmony with the Source of All Creation. In other words, I was practicing honesty in its purest form.

As processes often are in their core essence – ever-changing and ever-evolving, so are humans with their thoughts, opinions and outlook on life; I’m no different in this regard, and was also subject to change – meaning that somewhere along the way, I realized that I had to start from scratch. This part of the process resulted in a re-created and re-formed idea – a crystallized body of work that might also help others to understand Life, its mysteries, and the nature of reality a little better.

From the very beginning, the aim was to crystallize years worth of learning into an easily understandable format that could offer a radically different view of reality, of the existence of a primal web of energy – connecting our physical body, mind, and inner consciousness with the world and the larger universe. Somewhere along the way, I realized that in order to answer the fundamental questions about human beings and human civilization – I had to fully understand humankind itself. From this realization, it became apparent that turning inward to search for the answers was the only viable option.

In other words, I realized that if I could understand how I myself think and function, I should also be able to understand how other humans function; if I could understand my own intelligence, I should also be able to understand human intelligence. Furthermore, if I could understand my own relationship with nature, the universe, and God*1 – I should be able to understand the relationship between human species, nature, the universe, and God.

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*1 The concept of a Higher Power or Creator – being or essence that is known throughout the world by many different names; it matters not what name we call it – in essence, they all mean the same.

Little I knew at the time how it all would unfold, and even less did I know how big of a role Self-Transformation*1 would play in this wholeness. I had already had some glimpses of the Thoughtless State of the Mind (Mushin*2), but never could I have imagined what would transpire if I would completely surrender to the process of Self-Transformation. Infinite Quantum Zen in its entirety (including this book) is the result of achieving a permanent state of thoughtless mind – resulting in a whole new way of living (Lucid Living*3).

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*1 Self-Transformation is a process of creating ourselves anew.
*2 Mushin is a thoughtless state of the mind, which is a mental state into which trained martial artists are said to enter during combat; they also practice this state during everyday activities. Mushin (無心; Japanese mushin; English translation “no mind”) The term is shortened from mushin no shin (無心の心), a Zen expression meaning the mind without mind and is also referred to as the state of “no-mindness.” That is, a mind not fixed or occupied by thought or emotion.
*3 This area is discussed in more detail in the section, titled AWARENESS – in the chapters 1.) The Art of Lucid Living, and 2.) The Art of Mindful Living.

Now when I look back, I can say in hindsight that for me there was never a single point at which I would have felt the need for a teacher, a spiritual guide, a guru, or someone outside myself to tell me what I already knew deep down in my core. Mainly so because deep within the most ancient parts of my being there was a part of me that knew the Truth – Life in its Infinite Wisdom is the best teacher there is, ever was, and ever will be. In other words, I learned everything I am sharing with you now by walking my path deep within myself – alone, except the friendship, beauty, love, and guidance of the unseen world – which we can simply refer to as Spirit.

Infinite Happiness, Exhilarating Joy | Living Consciousness | Sambodhi Padmasamadhi, Diamond Sutra - Perfection of Wisdom, Buddhism, Nonduality, Advaita

~ ॐ ~
~ Sambodhi ~
~ Padmasamadhi ~
~ ∞ ~ Self-Realization ~ ∞ ~
~ ॐ ~

When the direction of my quest turned inward, I began to uncover the truth about human existence and our evolutionary journey through life.

We are human, and as humans we are curious beings – just as we want to know who we truly are, we also want to know why we are here, and what is the purpose of our existence here on Earth.

We are all on a journey, slowly discovering more of our True Self, gradually getting to the core of who we truly are. There are many paths to take, and none is better than the other – see?

Along the way, it became obvious that in the end, we all want the same things in life: health, happiness, and love – very much in that order; none of which are dependent upon external factors such as money or belongings.

The deeper I went, the more I realized that there is nothing we must be, do, or have, nothing to achieve, to become, to grow to, or strive for – and ultimately, nothing to seek, and nothing to find.

This, in other words, is realizing the great cosmic joke – that you are what you are seeking. The most important part of this realization was that there really is no becoming – we merely discover what we truly are. You see, we cannot become that which we already are. In other words, the only becoming is unbecoming everything we are not. So where does the cosmic joke lead us? Back to where we started, but with a completely new perspective – to the unadulterated pure joy of just being alive. We all look for happiness, peace, and fulfillment in the things of the world, yet all along, these things are our very nature – our very own center of being, you see?

There are no possible ways to explain this level of realization apart from saying that all the questions have finally been answered, and what remains is the incommunicable experience of ‘emptiness’ or ‘voidness’ or sunyata*1 as it is called in Sanskrit; one could even translate it as ‘zero’ or ‘nothingness.’ Interestingly, at the same time, it can be translated to mean openness, or pure potentiality. But all these are but words that we use to label an experience – a spiritual, even a transcendental, experience – which we have no way of describing, and thus they can be misleading unless one has experienced it for themselves. This is why one has to study these concepts more in depth to get even a glimpse of what this mystery entails.

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*1 Sunyata refers to understanding that all things are empty of intrinsic existence and nature. The Heart Sutra, articulates this in the following saying: “Form is emptiness, emptiness is form. Emptiness is not separate from form, form is not separate from emptiness. Whatever is form is emptiness, whatever is emptiness is form.”

Whatever one may learn about sunyata, it is always essentially a mystery, something to be experienced in the equal mystery of one’s own personal spiritual life. In other words, all the various explanations and formulations are but means to and end, not ends in themselves – they all, from within their own different contexts, point the way by which we may ourselves experience that Truth. To give an example: just as a noise can only be heard in relative silence, and light can only be seen in contrast with darkness, form can only arise within the context of emptiness. Emptiness, then, as the nature of every thing, is the condition that makes existence as things possible. It is against this backdrop that we can more easily understand this experience of sunyata.

If one continues on their path of self-discovery, all of the above will eventually lead one to discover that life is – as unpleasant as it may sound, totally and utterly purposeless, without any particular meaning assigned to it. In other words, life has no built-in meaning – it is we ourselves who give meaning and purpose to our lives by living fully in the present moment, aware of and awake to our current experience. One way of looking at it is to say that life is a “sandbox” of sorts – tabula rasa, empty canvas. That is to say, life is what we make it, and life has all the meaning we give it. You see, in life, we are in full control of the perspective and meaning we take from any event. However, if one looks deeper, we can, indeed, find greater purpose. You see, it is that very purposeful purposelessness in itself that gives rise to the human need to find both purpose and meaning.

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Some might take this as an absurdist point of view, and if that’s the case, perfect! You can congratulate yourself for recognizing that – to realize the absurdity of life is the beginning, not an end. You see, the realization of the absurdity of life fundamentally changes one’s way of living, thinking, and feeling; it allows one to further realize that happiness stems from being aware; from being grateful for this moment. As we can see, even though life may seem absurd, pointless and without meaning – there is purpose in everything; we just need to be aware enough to see it, as is the case here: by being what it is, this book has served its purpose – creating the spark that illuminates what is truly meaningful, universal and eternal, if only for a brief second.

And that is the beauty of it all – you see, even if something contradicts itself, it can still be true; the wisdom lies in paradox: life is both meaningful and meaningless; nothing matters and yet everything matters; we can make no difference but we can also make all the difference; we are both everything and nothing; all of it and none of it. The conclusion being: the key to the Truth is found in paradox; the method or process by which this realization comes to be experienced and expressed – be it Zen, Yoga, the Paradox of the Absurd, or something else – doesn’t really matter, and what does, is that one embarks on a journey. Although there are many paths to take, there is only one journey to which we are called; although there are many paths to the top of the mountain, the view is always the same – see?

As one treads the path of their choosing, one will ultimately arrive at the point where one finds that the greatest achievement is to return to the Original State of Being; to become nothing at all, and in so doing, paradoxically enough – becoming everything. You see, the beauty of it all lies in the truth that we cannot become that which we already are. Knowing this truth allows one to experience that which some would call a “God Realization,” which is the highest state of consciousness in Creation. The greatest challenge is to peel off the layers we have gathered throughout our lives. As we continue our inner journey, having finally shed all the unnecessary layers, we eventually discover that what remains is the experience of pure beingness. In this process, we can learn how to become empty and receptive, which naturally and inexorably leads to a state of being which can best be described as the balance between emptiness and fullness. In this state, one is able to experience total harmony within oneself.

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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~

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the essence of zen alan watts the book of awareness - samadhi, discover the key to inner joy, peace, happiness

~ ∞ ~ The Essence of Zen - Awaken the Living Awareness Within ~ ∞ ~

Now that we have covered the basics, it is time to take a closer look at the Essence of Zen, so that we can better understand the upcoming chapters – in particular those dealing with the ideas of consciousness, awareness, and existence in general. In this chapter, our focus is placed on examining the very core of Zen philosophy – that of mindfulness or effortless state of being. Mindfulness, in and of itself, facilitates direct intuitive insight (called wisdom) into the ever-changing, conditioned nature of all phenomena from moment to moment; it facilitates understanding that everything is interconnected, and that there is no separate permanent entity such as a self, separated from others, with absolute control over processes and events of life. When one has the understanding that we are part of the whole and the whole is part of us, that all living things have consciousness, and are inseparably linked to all other living things in this Great Cosmic Web of Life – it can be the key that unlocks inner peace and harmony within, you see?

Although the Essence of Zen may be impossible to capture in words, it doesn’t mean that we cannot discuss Zen. In fact, it can be immensely helpful to discuss Zen – what it is, and what it isn’t. On that note, it is important to keep in mind that language is an external representation of what we perceive or experience – often times used to denote and describe past events. And because language cannot ever describe the true essence of our existence and our experience of it, we are forced to use signs and symbols in an effort to express something that is very much inexpressible. Thus, no matter what we say, it will always be limited and insufficient to capture the essence that can only be experienced directly – this is especially true with everything Zen related. You see, words can only point to the direct experience which goes beyond any words and definitions. Language can only convey an idea of what direct experiencing is like and what it isn’t; experiencing reality just-as-it-is means that it has to be expressed in daily life – not in words, ideas or concepts.

As to what Zen is, the Buddhist scholar D.T. Suzuki gave the following description in his essay, An Introduction to Zen Buddhism. The description below opens the door to the idea of awareness, which in turn gives us the chance to understand life as a unified, interconnected whole, in which patterns are contained within patterns – just like our consciousness is embedded in awareness, you see?

The idea of Zen is to catch life as it flows. There is nothing extraordinary or mysterious about Zen. I raise my hand; I take a book from the other side of the desk; I hear the boys playing ball outside my window; I see the clouds blown away beyond the neighboring woods – in all these I am practicing Zen, I am Living Zen. No wordy discussion is necessary, nor any explanation... When the sun rises, the whole world dances with joy and everybody’s heart is filled with bliss. If Zen is at all conceivable, it must be taken hold of here.

The word Zen is derived from the Japanese word Chán, which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna – meaning “meditation” or “meditative state”; dhyana is the practicing of the inward life – the silent realization by which the individual is instructed in the great universal truths. Even though the word Zen is derived from Sanskrit, Zen is much more than just meditation and dhyana in its ordinary sense, and hence it can be said that meditation is not Zen. When we talk about meditation we are talking about reaching in, looking inside. In the context of Zen, it is worth pointing out that the highest meditation is simply to be – effortlessly; being aware of being aware, you see? This is consciousness knowing its own being, which is the only activity that is absolutely effortless. To give an example: even blinking requires more effort than being established in one’s true nature – this is why true meditation is always truly effortless.

The emphasis on the present moment is perhaps the most distinctive characteristic of Zen – more than anything else, Zen is about reclaiming and expanding the present moment. A typical Zen understanding is that life exists in the present or nowhere at all, which goes on to say that we come out of the world, not into it, and thus we are each expressions of the world. This means that we’re not some strangers in a strange land, or flukes of consciousness in a blind, unintelligent, unliving universe – like our current scientific paradigm teaches us. When life exists in the present – it means that there’s just one event with multiple aspects unfolding here and now. Therefore, it is important to have our focus on the present moment. In other words, trying to see all of life at once is like trying to explore a vast cave with a box of matches – kind of pointless, would you agree?

The basic idea of Zen is to come in touch with the inner workings of our own being, and to do this in the most direct way possible, you see? The discipline of Zen consists in opening the mental eye in order to look into the very reason of existence itself; Zen, therefore – is a total state of focus that incorporates a total togetherness of body and mind. This goes on to say that Zen is a way of being – a state of mind that involves dropping the illusion and seeing the world as-it-is, without the distortion created by our own thoughts, emotions and feelings. Zen is, therefore, a way of living, a way of being in the world; it is the achieving the balance between the world and the Self, you see?

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Zen is always directed towards the world, not away from it, and because of this – it opens up the shapes, forms, objects, textures, materials, colors, actions, and events, in both time and in space, you see? In other words, Zen means waking up to the world, and therefore it is also the realization of the beauty of life. From this, it becomes obvious that the beautiful Art of Lucid Living arises from the conscious realization that life is a continuous process of evolvement and development, including different stages and cycles of learning, integrating, and expressing.

In Zen, we find all the philosophy of the East in crystallized form – nevertheless, Zen is not a philosophy in the ordinary sense of the term; Zen is not founded upon logic and intellectual analysis – instead of concepts, Zen deals with living facts of life, which goes on to say that whatever teachings there are in Zen, they come out in one’s own mind. In other words, we teach ourselves – Zen merely points the way, you see? This means that in Zen, there is really nothing that could be taught to a student – every person must discover Zen within oneself. Zen ultimately is, and remains a path that one should follow with a joyous and loving heart, and hence each individual decides how far and how fast they want to progress. That said, it should kept in mind that you alone are your own best master, and thus you should listen to yourself and your inner voice – it alone will lead you to success.

If someone were to ask if Zen is a religion; to that, the simple answer would be: no, Zen is not a religion – Zen is neither monotheistic nor pantheistic; Zen is free from all the dogmatic and “religious” constraints, and hence does not attach any intrinsic importance to sacred texts. Zen emphasizes the inner spiritual experience, and therefore Zen is the spirit of all religions and philosophies, you see?

Infinite Quantum Zen, Living Awareness, Living Life, Awaken to the Living Life - Living Awareness means of a direct connection to Source of All Life. We all have within us the capability of becoming aware of this innate connection

~ ∞ ~ Satori ~ ∞ ~

Zen in its basic essence is the art of seeing into the nature of one’s own being; in Zen, Satori is ‘a glimpse of truth’ or a sudden moment of awakening – seeing into one’s true nature; Zen is a product of Satori – achieved by the deepening of one’s experience even further and bringing it into maturation by continuous practice.

Naturally, then, Zen emphasizes the attainment of freedom and points the way from bondage to being fully free – being free from all unnatural constraints. Being free means of giving free play to all the creative and benevolent impulses inherently lying in our hearts – Zen liberates all these energies naturally stored within each of us. In other words, Zen is the Spirit of Man – a way to his inner purity and goodness.

Every human being has within themselves the potentiality of becoming awakened, if one so wills it and endeavours. Each of us have the potentiality to wake up from the dream of life – as we ordinarily take it to be, and find out who we really and truly are – pure awareness. This kind of an awakened individual is one who knows the truth about all things, one who knows just what is what, and so is capable of behaving appropriately with respect to all things. In other words, the knowing in body, mind, and Soul – that we are One with the Omnipresence of God; and that there is just God’s Infinite Being that we are inseparable part of. When this innermost wisdom is truly awakened, we are able to realize that each and every one of us is identical in Spirit, in essence, in nature with the universal Eternal Living Life.

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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~

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Extra Material: Video: You're It - Alan Watts. Video description: "An inspiring and profound speech from the late Alan Watts. Speech extract from 'Zen Bones and Tales' by Alan Watts"

Holographic Fractal Source Code of Life - Infinite Quantum Zen, Success Life Quotes, Alan Watts Philosophy

~ ∞ ~ Infinite World of Quantum and Zen - Awaken the Living Awareness Within ~ ∞ ~

In this section, we will further our understanding of life and our experience of it; the discussion we are having here is a natural continuation of the one we started in Prologue. We begin this section by briefly exploring the core idea of Zen, which is to come in touch with the essence of life, and to do this in a way that is both simple and elegant. In this brief exploration, we can see how the Zen approach parallels with the fascinating realm of the Quantum World. Each of them in their own unique ways help us understand life, each of them have something to teach us about life, about ourselves, about interconnectedness of all life, you see? Therefore, it is not only logical, but imperative that we get familiar with both as they form the backbone of the conceptual framework named Infinite Quantum Zen – the cornerstone out of which this book emerged, you see?

The fundamental core of this dynamic framework is found in awareness – more specifically, in Living Awareness. And because this framework essentially resides within everyone who comes into contact with this book, it is an essential prerequisite to have an understanding which allows one to see beyond the surface. For you see, it is like a seed – when planted in fertile soil, it can bear the fruits of wisdom, peace, happiness, harmony, and virtues; it dynamically creates and holds the space for exploration and discovery. So therefore, any bit of prerequisite information and prior knowledge can enhance the experience of reading this book, and in so doing can make the journey a little bit smoother.

Soon after we have covered the basics, we will take a closer look at the Essence of Zen, which will lay the foundation for further learning as it opens the door to the idea of present moment awareness – mindfulness, if you will. This will help us tremendously as we progress on our journey of discovery through several other sections; there are plenty more to discover, a plethora of questions to be asked, and lots of answers to be found. The key here is not to rush; as is the case with all novelties that need time to grow, ripe and mature – so is the case with wisdom. You see, an essential part of mastery (of mystery) is patience, persistence, and consistency, as is the case here – see?

After we have explored the Essence of Zen, we will take a short detour and see how the above-mentioned conceptual framework got started, and how something that was initially conceptual became a living experience – it will be an eye-opening reading experience that will shed some light on the personal side of things. Later in our journey, we will have the great opportunity to delve deeper into the miraculous nature of Life and its built-in Living Intelligence. In this journey, we will learn a new way of seeing life, which gives us the chance to understand Life as a unified, interconnected whole. In the midst of this, we also get to discuss what is needed of us in the future if we as the collective human species are to pursue the path of conscious transformation, which entails a conscious effort on our part to grow, mature, and progress – and eventually prosper, you see? This discussion also serves the purpose of laying the ground for what lies ahead in the next section.

So without a further due, let us delve right into it, shall we? There’s no better way to capture the Essence of Zen than by saying that Zen is a way of living and being. We can continue by saying that Zen in its basic essence is the art of seeing into the nature of one’s own being – seeing into one’s true nature. In other words, Zen is coming back to this moment, to the natural, obvious simplicity of our true nature, which is another way of saying that Zen is a way of being in the world with mindful awareness of the present moment. As such, Zen is the achieving the balance between the world and the self. If there is anything to take away from this, it is this: Zen approach can teach us how to become empty and receptive.

When we are talking about the similarities between the ideologies of Zen and the Quantum World, we can find one common denominator above all else – Infinity (∞). Not only is the universe of Zen Infinite, but so is the realm of the Quantum. Infinity is a concept describing something without any limit; Infinity is infinitely infinite, in which even seemingly finite structures are inherently infinite at all points. In other words, Infinity is the unreachable point at the end of a never-ending line that repeats itself ad infinitum.

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In the worldview of Zen, the entire universe is found in a single hair, and countless worlds in a speck of dust; likewise, in the scientific world, the Quantum Mechanics is used to explain the natural world’s operations as the understanding of macro is found in micro. Quantum Mechanics shows that one cannot decompose the world into isolated tiny entities capable of an independent existence. You see, the deeper we look, the more we realize that matter is not a collection of tiny independent particles but rather an interconnected web of relations between parts of a whole.

Another similarity can be found in the idea of sunyata as it is called in Sanskrit. Sunyata signifies that the universe is an open space of unlimited creative potential; similarly, Quantum Mechanics describe potential for existence. To give an example: matter and energy are not in themselves phenomena, and do not become phenomena until they interact with the mind. These experimental aspects of sunyata are described in quantum phenomena. Although sunyata is often translated to mean ‘emptiness’ or ‘voidness,’ it is not a vacuum or a state of nothingness as generally understood – rather, it is both ‘emptiness’ and ‘fullness’ at the same time; or more aptly, pure potentiality – see?

One of the most glaring examples of the intersection of the worlds of the Quantum and Zen is to be found in the principle of wave-particle duality, which holds that elementary particles can exhibit the characteristics of both particles and waves, yet can be wholly reduced to neither. Quantum Mechanics recognizes the duality of matter by showing that nature on the smallest subatomic level behaves as both a particle and a wave. A photon, for example, can be a particle, or it can be a wave – or it can be both at the same time. Thus, one can say that Quantum Mechanics reveals the basic unity of the universe. You see, in Quantum Mechanics, subatomic particles exist in probability waves, and are only defined when something conscious observes them – otherwise they are everywhere and nowhere. And here we can find an amazing parallel: in the Zen way of thinking, opposites can exist simultaneously; contradictory things can exist at the same time.

Like the quantum wave function, a probability matrix used by physicists to describe the state of a system at a given time, wave-particle duality points us to one of the central problems at the heart of the Quantum World: Is there an objective, independent reality that is capable of being quantified, or are all such measurements subjective? Subjective by virtue of the fact that the measurements are always dependent on the observer, thus merely reflecting the observer’s mind, observer’s consciousness. Let us explore this from the viewpoint of Zen, which contains many parallels to quantum physics in the way it introduces the basic ideas of spiritual duality – heaven and earth, transcendent and immanent. For example, in Zen, there are two domains of reality – emptiness and form – thus the Zen axiom: “Form is Emptiness, Emptiness is Form.” The wave-particle duality of quantum physics recognizes two similar domains – potentiality and actuality. Likewise, consciousness plays a role in both realms in quantum physics as it does in Zen, as shown in this parable:

Two monks are arguing. One says, “The flag is moving.” The other says, “No, the wind is moving.” A master, passing by, admonishes them both: “The flag is not moving; the wind is not moving. Your mind is moving.”

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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~

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On Interconnectedness of Everything 2 of 2 - The book of zen awareness, alan watts mindfulness key to happiness peace joy

~ ∞ ~ On Interconnectedness 2/2 - Awaken the Living Awareness Within ~ ∞ ~

As everything is interconnected, interdependent, and interrelated, as everything seems to be arising in relation to everything else – it would mean that cause and effect “inter-are,” that all things – both seen and unseen, are bound together by cause and effect. As everything arises in relation to everything else, it would also mean that nothing can exist in absolute independence of other things or arise of its own accord. Everything in the world, therefore, comes into existence in response to causes and conditions, which means that all beings and phenomena exist or occur only because of their relationship with other things. And so you see, with regard to humans, the whole of humanity is a single being – having a collective consciousness, the sum total of all human life, having a collective direction and destiny; each life is a link in a chain of lives, bound together by cause and effect, different, yet the same – see?

This chain of lives or “samsara” as it is called in Sanskrit, refers to the idea that human life is a repeated story; the one we all have been caught up – a dream from which we are unable or unwilling to wake up. This perpetual cycle of interconnected and interrelated chain of lives is caused by a lack of knowledge, lack of awareness, and most of all, ignorance that is caused by our desire for fulfillment outside of ourselves, grasping at passing experiences. And so you see, when people are looking outside, they never have to look inside, and so it goes that yearning for fulfillment outside of ourselves only generates more desire, making the cycle of desire a continuous, perpetual self-sustaining loop. This brings us face to face with another aspect, far too rarely or infrequently discussed or written about. You see, nothing ever goes away until it teaches us what we need to learn, which goes on to say that everything seems to be cyclical.

One doesn’t need to be particularly observant or to have a keen eye for detail to see that not only are the stories we tell cyclical, but also our lives and everything in it, including our thoughts and ideas, desires and attachments. In the end, we all want the same things in life: health, happiness, and love – very much in that order, and most of all, contentment and fulfillment; none of which are dependent upon external factors such as money or belongings – yet, the peculiar thing is that most people seek these things from the world outside themselves. And because of this, we continue repeating the cycle, retelling the same stories over and over; this is why we continue to embody ourselves, or be reborn in this infinite and eternal universe as a result of these unfulfilled desires – the chain of births lets us resume the pursuit, until such time when we can become aware enough to awaken from this never-ending dream, and realize that we ourselves hold the key that can end this perpetual cycle, resulting in the cessation of suffering that arises from our ignorance of the true nature of reality, and which is caused by our desire and attachments – see?

By virtue of the aforementioned, it should be pointed out that it matters not whether or not one happens to believe in, or subscribe to, the idea of a repeated or continued nature of human life, i.e., rebirth – what matters most is that we ourselves, humanity – as a collective, are enough evidence that there is more to human life than meets the eye. Isn’t it peculiar that besides the cyclical nature of the stories we tell, thoughts we think, ideas we come up with, desires we have, and attachments we cling to – everything in life seems to be rediscovered, reinvented, recycled, reused and repurposed time and time again? Intriguing, isn’t it? And so you see, as it has been before, so it shall be again, and what has been done before, will be done again. Against this backdrop, one should be asking themselves: Is there a deeper meaning behind it all? Could the meaning be as simple as this: Life is a full circle; coming back around, again and again, in hopes of meeting ourselves; in hopes of seeing and really knowing ourselves; around and around and around we go, in this thing we call life. And now the question becomes: Is it really so simple? Hardly. In principle, maybe, but in practice – not so much.

If we could learn to recognize and acknowledge that everything arises in dependence upon multiple causes and conditions, it can lead us one step closer to peace – with ourselves and with others. Pointless conflicts in human relations would diminish greatly, if we as individuals would embrace the view “because of that, this exists,” and, “because of that person, I can develop.” If we manage to do that, then the next step would be realizing that nothing happens by chance – everything happens for a reason, you see? We can use the following analogy to understand this better: this is – because that is; this happens – because that happens. Another way of saying the same is through negation: this is not – because that is not; this ceases to be – because that ceases to be. Whether or not we are aware of the interconnected web of causes and conditions that bring about an effect, one thing is certain: every action has a reaction, or consequence, you see? This goes on to say that eventually we have to face up to the consequences of our actions – both individually and collectively, “we reap what we sow,” as they say.

As our realization deepens, of the interconnected nature of life, we begin to discover that we can’t separate ourselves from the pain and suffering of others, and that the suffering of the world is our own suffering as well – this brings us to the idea of compassion, which is a whole other topic on its own, and is left out of the discussion for the sake of simplicity. For the sake of context, though, it should be noted that the word ‘compassion’ originates from the Latin root meaning “co-suffering.” The essence of compassion is a desire to alleviate the suffering of others and to promote their well-being. Some would say that compassion originates as an empathic response to suffering, while others hold that compassion originates in our own suffering and self-compassion, which is then recognized in the other. Now, let us consider this: If personal suffering stems mainly from craving and ignorance – the same applies to the suffering that afflicts us on a collective scale – ignorance begets ignorance, and suffering begets suffering, doesn’t it?

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We humans are beings who are particularly good at ignoring problems and their causes; we are beings who like to blame others and not take responsibility for our actions – does it not, then, inflict suffering upon others if we behave irresponsibly? To inflict suffering upon others is to become more deeply involved in ignorance, deepening the problems we already have. Indeed, people inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their happiness or satisfaction through external means, but alas, the honest truth is that true happiness comes from a sense of inner peace and contentment. In so doing, in our pursuit of satisfying our craving, we are subject to emotions without properly using our intuition and intelligence, which is why we are in conflict with ourselves and with others. In an interconnected world, this inner conflict manifests in various forms and occurs at different levels. In other words, our inner conditions have a real and tangible impact on the external world – see?

By virtue of the aforementioned, considering the interconnected nature of life, isn’t it intriguing that of all things, it is suffering that unites humanity? Isn’t it intriguing that instead of happiness, contentment and fulfillment, it is the void we feel inside, and our attempt to fill the void what unites us all? Isn’t it intriguing that we all look for peace and happiness, contentment and fulfillment in the things of the world, and we try to fill the void with anything – be it people, money, education, sex, drugs, travel, entertainment, cars, houses, or other material possessions – however big or small? But alas, the honest truth is that satisfaction in life is not a function of what you can buy in a store; happiness in life has little to do with what you wear, drive, eat or drink – see?

Here we should ask ourselves: Why are so many of us driven by the cravings of various sorts? Why is it that everyone seems to want the same things that others do? Why are so many of us driven to accumulate more of everything, without any evidence that they provide us with contentment and fulfillment? We can only arrive at one conclusion: this endless craving of material possessions is our desperate way of trying to alleviate our spiritual thirst for deeper fulfillment. And so you see, all along, these things we seek – happiness, contentment, and fulfillment, are our very nature – our very own center of being.

Wouldn’t all this then suggest that as we live in an interconnected world, taking care of ourselves is intimately linked to, connected with, and dependent upon taking care of each other and the Earth? Wouldn’t this also suggest that the overall health of the individual and society is dependent upon inner well-being more than anything else? This, in turn, can be achieved through the cultivation of altruism, of love and compassion, and elimination of ignorance, selfishness and greed, can it not? How else would an intelligent, sentient species like us humans survive, grow, progress, and eventually prosper – if not through these means? All things living in harmony, live long, and they prosper, do they not? Are humans any different in this respect?

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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~

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Extra Material: Video: You're It - Alan Watts. Video description: "An inspiring and profound speech from the late Alan Watts. Speech extract from 'Zen Bones and Tales' by Alan Watts"