The topic today is advertised as “the Heart Sutra and Emptiness.” After sitting with this topic in the past couple of weeks I have come to realize that a more appropriate title is “Emptiness and Boundlessness,” the latter term preferred by Kazuaki Tanahashi and Joan Halifax. They, as well as Thich Nhat Hahn, are concerned that the English word, “emptiness,” when used in the context of the core idea in the Heart Sutra that “form is emptiness, and emptiness is form,” that “emptiness” in that context may be understood as “non-existence.” For example, to say, as Nagarjuna does, that all things are “empty” some may understand that to mean in a nihilistic sense, that things do not truly exist, which is not the case. Things exist in relative terms, but not in the absolute. For me, “boundlessness” provides an image of openness, freedom and unattachment. To live boundlessly implies we are not separate from the world around us and the people who cross our paths on a daily basis.At a certain point in our life the question is, when does it stop being all about us, and it's about other people as well? How do we get along in the world, because of that? And of course, this gets into the whole issue of our sense of self. I love this phrase, David Loy and others use, they talk about “our sense of self.” It's not the self per se, but our sense of self, meaning our understanding, our view, our identity or who we are. There's a sense of it. It's not as though it's definite, it's just our take on it. And so the question is, what is our sense of self? Do we see ourselves as smart, or n ot-so-smart, or bad at math, as shy, or overweight, spacy, kind, greedy.etc. And then based on our sense of self, how do we function in the world?
In more popular language I think we would say, let's talk about our ego. And what is the ego? What is the self? Now, if you opened up a college Introductory to Psychology book these days, and you turn to the chapter on “The Self,” it will likely emphasize that our sense of self and our “selves” are not what we think. It will likely explain that the self is a construct, a creation of our minds that has been shaped and reinforced by our life experience, out personality, our culture, family, class, race, etc. Our sense of self, our identity about who we are- I am a man, a kind person, a good son, a Buddhist, etc.- has been developed and embraced in our own mind. And just because we see ourselves a certain way does not mean that is how we act in the world, or are seen that way by others. It's just what they think.
So there's this question of self and this is basically what the Buddha taught 2,500 years ago. In explaining the Four Noble Truths, he broke our sense of self into the so-called “5 aggregates,” or 5 aspects of our psychological process when we make sense of the world. When we interact with the world, our “sense of self”- who we are, how we see ourselves, how our identity helps dictate our reactions- results from our multi-dimensional response to any given interaction with the world. Our body-mind’s 5-part response involves form, sensation, perception, reaction and consciousness. The Buddha taught that it is our attachment, or clinging, to how we perceive or react to a given situation that creates our suffering. The all-too-common response of “I don’t like….” a, b, or c, i.e. a given situation, or someone’s opinion or behavior, comes into play as we see, perceive, and respond to a given situation. Our Zen practice involves becoming aware of when and where our ‘sense of self,” so often due to our opinions or perceptions of this or that, can throw us into a bit of a tizzy. Thoughts about Donald Trump…good or bad…anyone?
Most of us come to a practice like this in order to find more peace and equanimity in our lives, even if we're relatively happy. We don't have to be in crisis. And yet we understand that how we look at the world in large part determines how we approach our lives. How do “I’ navigate the trials and tribulation of being a human being in the United States in 2025? Well, we can start with the simple fact that this “I,” this construct, is like, okay, here I am, right? I'm looking at the world, okay, it's a nice day. Now I feel good. Or, I may look outside and realize, damn, it’s going to rain, that will ruin our day! The point is that in light of the 5 aspects of our sense or self, our response to the weather, the “form” out there, sunny or rainy, illicits a sensation and a response: “I love the warm sun/I hate the wet and cold rain.” Our moods changes depending on the exterior conditions, the circumstances outside our selves.
What happens here, is that we tend to see our “selves” as the inside, as if in a bit of a bubble or an interior space, and the world, here in the form of the weather, as “out there.” We have created a separation between ourselves and the world, between our sense of ourselves and our very lives.
We're here, and the world is out there. It's like we have glasses on, right? I'm on this side of the bifocals, and the world is out there. I am separate. I am this entity here. Buddhism often defines this sense of self as “self-existent.” I see myself as self-sufficient, independent, capable of living my life as a separate entity in the world. And it's not only the world as in nature (the weather, in this case), it's also the world of people, in that “I” am here, the they are out there.
In this context, I think we have to really focus- and this is absolutely central to the Heart Sutra- on the role of emptiness and boundlessness in our lives. How do we create separation between ourselves and the world, i.e. with our very our lives, due to our sense of self resulting from our identity, ego and opinions. As long as we are “in here” and everything else is “out there,” we are creating separation. We need only look at the political divisions in the US and around the world today to recognize that separation based on “us” and “them” is an extension of our individual habit of seeing the world as if “I” am here, and they are “out there.”
At the heart of our teaching is the recognition of the oneness of this life and the world. And yet, that is not easy to do, which is why we do zazen (Zen meditation). We sit in order to learn about who we really are and how our mind makes sense of the world and our place in it. When we quiet the mind we can recognize how our mind easily creates stories and scenarios that seem to be real and can make us feel good or bad about ourselves. We create a new “reality” for ourselves and how we feel about our lives even though nothing has really changed. In light of such a tendency for many of us, the practice of meditation speaks directly to this habit. When we sit deeply in meditation, our breath slows down, our busy mind becomes quieter, we begin to relax in mind and body, and we learn to simply “be” while we sit in a chair or on a pillow. The world is as it is, and we can simply be a part of it, in all its wonder, pain, and joy.
Leading Buddhist teachers make the point these days that the palpable sense of separation is at the heart or so much of our troubles today. There is no question that more than a few politicians in the US and globally generate support by demonizing their opponents and rallying their forces in the name of “us” vs. “them.” Yet, this is a false reality. When we reflect on the prevalence of smoke due to the wildfires that are ravaging the world, the COVID epidemic, global warming, the financial crisis of 2008 and beyond, we see that it matters not if one is Republican or Democratic if a fire is racing across the terrain toward your house.
Our practice and especially our sitting practice helps us understand that we are not separate. Thich Nhat Hahn brilliantly captures how we actually live our lives when he uses the term “inter-being.” We live in relationship with other people and with our environment. We inter-are.
The examples of our inter-connectedness are endless. Thich Nhat Hahn provides the example of a single piece of paper we write on. It’s just a piece of paper, nothing special. We take it for granted. We typically look at it and say to ourselves, “it’s just a piece of paper.” However, when we break down how the paper got into our hands, we see interdependence everywhere. The fact is that the paper is a product of a long series of inter-connected processes without which there would be no paper. Specifically: there is a tree; that tree needed soil, and sun, and water to grow; someone cut down that tree; someone removed the branches so the tree can be put on a truck; someone drives the truck and someone takes the tree to the lumber yard; someone else controls the machines at the lumber yard in order to process that tree and make pulp. The pulp is then processed and turned into paper that is gathered, packaged into boxes, then put on a truck to be driven to the wholesaler who ships in by a trucking company, which takes it the retailer where someone unloads the paper boxes and someone else puts it on the shelf in the store where the person at cash register processes the sale. And someone buys the paper, brings it to your business and puts it in the supply room for your usage. In simple terms, that piece of paper in your hand depended on nature, technology and a whole line of people, possibly on the other side of the world, to make it into your hands. We inter-are in the world.
If we look at every part of our day today, everything depended on somebody else. I am not a separate, self-existent person: and this is in the great teaching of Buddhism. We are confused when we see ourselves as wholly independent, not appreciating the fact that we are connected to both the natural and social world on so many levels when we look deeply at how the world actually works- or as the Buddha is said to have stated- “to see things as they are.”
We see ourselves as this permanent, “I am Tom.” I'm the same person I was yesterday and 25 years ago, and the fact that I'm now 70 is a scary thought to think that I'm that same person for the last 70 years, or almost the same person. From a biological point of view, one of the things I love in discovering about this, and different scientists have different theories, but basically, in one second, a million cells, at least, in my body will die. In one second, another million cells will actually be created. In a single day, billions and billions of cells die and billions of cells are created. So literally in the last 25 seconds, let's say, 25 million cells in my body have died, and the 100 cells are now been born, or vice versa. The point is, is that I'm not the same person. I'm just not. We are less a single, unchanging entity than an unfolding process that is affected by the world moment to moment and in return is changing the world moment to moment.
As silly as this may sound, I like the grammatical metaphor that “I am not a noun, but a verb;” not a static thing, but a person who is always in the process of change and interdependence. Put another way, “I am not so much a single “self,” but am in the continuing process of “selfing,” meaning that the nominal self of this moment is not the same as the “self” in the next.
By looking deeply at how we live our lives, we can avoid so many self-imposed frustrations; we can learn to let go. Enlightenment is not about gaining or acquiring some great insight, although that is part of it, it is ultimately about letting go, letting go of our sense of self as the “I, me, mine” that we cling to. We can live in the world with an understanding of our habits, ideosyncracies, preferences, etc.- because we all have them and that is ok- and yet the real challenge is to be able to carry them lightly, because it is not all about “me.” We can learn to see how our identity and opinions create all sorts of defenses as well as self-righteousness. In our community we like to quote Bernie Glassman’s approach to moving lightly through the world when he used to add at the end of expressing a point of view, “it’s just my opinion, man.” No ego, no fuss.
The point being is that our intention is to develop a spiritual life, a level of awakening and compassion in order to see that there is no separation between ourselves and the world and that when we open our hearts and mind fully we become the universe and the universe is us. The process of emptying ourselves of ego and identity and opinions, helps to open ourselves to the fullness of life in all its complexities and embrace it with compassion and kindness. The great teaching of the Heart Sutra is that the emptiness that comes from letting go of a permanent sense of self does not mean that there is nothing inside us, but to the contrary, that we can embrace all aspects of both the world and our lives and live the boundlessness that is true liberation.
Thomas Redden, PhD Professor Emeritus of History and Politics, SVC Interfaith Chaplain/ Zen Buddhist Priest & Teacher, GRZC
In more popular language I think we would say, let's talk about our ego. And what is the ego? What is the self? Now, if you opened up a college Introductory to Psychology book these days, and you turn to the chapter on “The Self,” it will likely emphasize that our sense of self and our “selves” are not what we think. It will likely explain that the self is a construct, a creation of our minds that has been shaped and reinforced by our life experience, out personality, our culture, family, class, race, etc. Our sense of self, our identity about who we are- I am a man, a kind person, a good son, a Buddhist, etc.- has been developed and embraced in our own mind. And just because we see ourselves a certain way does not mean that is how we act in the world, or are seen that way by others. It's just what they think.
So there's this question of self and this is basically what the Buddha taught 2,500 years ago. In explaining the Four Noble Truths, he broke our sense of self into the so-called “5 aggregates,” or 5 aspects of our psychological process when we make sense of the world. When we interact with the world, our “sense of self”- who we are, how we see ourselves, how our identity helps dictate our reactions- results from our multi-dimensional response to any given interaction with the world. Our body-mind’s 5-part response involves form, sensation, perception, reaction and consciousness. The Buddha taught that it is our attachment, or clinging, to how we perceive or react to a given situation that creates our suffering. The all-too-common response of “I don’t like….” a, b, or c, i.e. a given situation, or someone’s opinion or behavior, comes into play as we see, perceive, and respond to a given situation. Our Zen practice involves becoming aware of when and where our ‘sense of self,” so often due to our opinions or perceptions of this or that, can throw us into a bit of a tizzy. Thoughts about Donald Trump…good or bad…anyone?
Most of us come to a practice like this in order to find more peace and equanimity in our lives, even if we're relatively happy. We don't have to be in crisis. And yet we understand that how we look at the world in large part determines how we approach our lives. How do “I’ navigate the trials and tribulation of being a human being in the United States in 2025? Well, we can start with the simple fact that this “I,” this construct, is like, okay, here I am, right? I'm looking at the world, okay, it's a nice day. Now I feel good. Or, I may look outside and realize, damn, it’s going to rain, that will ruin our day! The point is that in light of the 5 aspects of our sense or self, our response to the weather, the “form” out there, sunny or rainy, illicits a sensation and a response: “I love the warm sun/I hate the wet and cold rain.” Our moods changes depending on the exterior conditions, the circumstances outside our selves.
What happens here, is that we tend to see our “selves” as the inside, as if in a bit of a bubble or an interior space, and the world, here in the form of the weather, as “out there.” We have created a separation between ourselves and the world, between our sense of ourselves and our very lives.
We're here, and the world is out there. It's like we have glasses on, right? I'm on this side of the bifocals, and the world is out there. I am separate. I am this entity here. Buddhism often defines this sense of self as “self-existent.” I see myself as self-sufficient, independent, capable of living my life as a separate entity in the world. And it's not only the world as in nature (the weather, in this case), it's also the world of people, in that “I” am here, the they are out there.
In this context, I think we have to really focus- and this is absolutely central to the Heart Sutra- on the role of emptiness and boundlessness in our lives. How do we create separation between ourselves and the world, i.e. with our very our lives, due to our sense of self resulting from our identity, ego and opinions. As long as we are “in here” and everything else is “out there,” we are creating separation. We need only look at the political divisions in the US and around the world today to recognize that separation based on “us” and “them” is an extension of our individual habit of seeing the world as if “I” am here, and they are “out there.”
At the heart of our teaching is the recognition of the oneness of this life and the world. And yet, that is not easy to do, which is why we do zazen (Zen meditation). We sit in order to learn about who we really are and how our mind makes sense of the world and our place in it. When we quiet the mind we can recognize how our mind easily creates stories and scenarios that seem to be real and can make us feel good or bad about ourselves. We create a new “reality” for ourselves and how we feel about our lives even though nothing has really changed. In light of such a tendency for many of us, the practice of meditation speaks directly to this habit. When we sit deeply in meditation, our breath slows down, our busy mind becomes quieter, we begin to relax in mind and body, and we learn to simply “be” while we sit in a chair or on a pillow. The world is as it is, and we can simply be a part of it, in all its wonder, pain, and joy.
Leading Buddhist teachers make the point these days that the palpable sense of separation is at the heart or so much of our troubles today. There is no question that more than a few politicians in the US and globally generate support by demonizing their opponents and rallying their forces in the name of “us” vs. “them.” Yet, this is a false reality. When we reflect on the prevalence of smoke due to the wildfires that are ravaging the world, the COVID epidemic, global warming, the financial crisis of 2008 and beyond, we see that it matters not if one is Republican or Democratic if a fire is racing across the terrain toward your house.
Our practice and especially our sitting practice helps us understand that we are not separate. Thich Nhat Hahn brilliantly captures how we actually live our lives when he uses the term “inter-being.” We live in relationship with other people and with our environment. We inter-are.
The examples of our inter-connectedness are endless. Thich Nhat Hahn provides the example of a single piece of paper we write on. It’s just a piece of paper, nothing special. We take it for granted. We typically look at it and say to ourselves, “it’s just a piece of paper.” However, when we break down how the paper got into our hands, we see interdependence everywhere. The fact is that the paper is a product of a long series of inter-connected processes without which there would be no paper. Specifically: there is a tree; that tree needed soil, and sun, and water to grow; someone cut down that tree; someone removed the branches so the tree can be put on a truck; someone drives the truck and someone takes the tree to the lumber yard; someone else controls the machines at the lumber yard in order to process that tree and make pulp. The pulp is then processed and turned into paper that is gathered, packaged into boxes, then put on a truck to be driven to the wholesaler who ships in by a trucking company, which takes it the retailer where someone unloads the paper boxes and someone else puts it on the shelf in the store where the person at cash register processes the sale. And someone buys the paper, brings it to your business and puts it in the supply room for your usage. In simple terms, that piece of paper in your hand depended on nature, technology and a whole line of people, possibly on the other side of the world, to make it into your hands. We inter-are in the world.
If we look at every part of our day today, everything depended on somebody else. I am not a separate, self-existent person: and this is in the great teaching of Buddhism. We are confused when we see ourselves as wholly independent, not appreciating the fact that we are connected to both the natural and social world on so many levels when we look deeply at how the world actually works- or as the Buddha is said to have stated- “to see things as they are.”
We see ourselves as this permanent, “I am Tom.” I'm the same person I was yesterday and 25 years ago, and the fact that I'm now 70 is a scary thought to think that I'm that same person for the last 70 years, or almost the same person. From a biological point of view, one of the things I love in discovering about this, and different scientists have different theories, but basically, in one second, a million cells, at least, in my body will die. In one second, another million cells will actually be created. In a single day, billions and billions of cells die and billions of cells are created. So literally in the last 25 seconds, let's say, 25 million cells in my body have died, and the 100 cells are now been born, or vice versa. The point is, is that I'm not the same person. I'm just not. We are less a single, unchanging entity than an unfolding process that is affected by the world moment to moment and in return is changing the world moment to moment.
As silly as this may sound, I like the grammatical metaphor that “I am not a noun, but a verb;” not a static thing, but a person who is always in the process of change and interdependence. Put another way, “I am not so much a single “self,” but am in the continuing process of “selfing,” meaning that the nominal self of this moment is not the same as the “self” in the next.
By looking deeply at how we live our lives, we can avoid so many self-imposed frustrations; we can learn to let go. Enlightenment is not about gaining or acquiring some great insight, although that is part of it, it is ultimately about letting go, letting go of our sense of self as the “I, me, mine” that we cling to. We can live in the world with an understanding of our habits, ideosyncracies, preferences, etc.- because we all have them and that is ok- and yet the real challenge is to be able to carry them lightly, because it is not all about “me.” We can learn to see how our identity and opinions create all sorts of defenses as well as self-righteousness. In our community we like to quote Bernie Glassman’s approach to moving lightly through the world when he used to add at the end of expressing a point of view, “it’s just my opinion, man.” No ego, no fuss.
The point being is that our intention is to develop a spiritual life, a level of awakening and compassion in order to see that there is no separation between ourselves and the world and that when we open our hearts and mind fully we become the universe and the universe is us. The process of emptying ourselves of ego and identity and opinions, helps to open ourselves to the fullness of life in all its complexities and embrace it with compassion and kindness. The great teaching of the Heart Sutra is that the emptiness that comes from letting go of a permanent sense of self does not mean that there is nothing inside us, but to the contrary, that we can embrace all aspects of both the world and our lives and live the boundlessness that is true liberation.
Thomas Redden, PhD Professor Emeritus of History and Politics, SVC Interfaith Chaplain/ Zen Buddhist Priest & Teacher, GRZC