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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.
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~ 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.
, which had been waiting to be read for some time – even though it had found me quite mysteriously through the 
and 
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).
