Science Explains Buddha-Nature

There is a page on Buddhistdoor.net that is brilliant writing. Susanna Yeung, PhD wrote about quantum physics and Buddhist principles. Please read the whole article at this LINK.

Here is my favorite excerpt:

The material world is a projection of the mind.

According to the Copenhagen interpretation, matter only manifests in space-time when there is an “observer.” These quantum phenomena are called the “collapse of the wave-function (wave-form)” and the “observer effect.” When there is no “observer,” said phenomena revert back into their primary state of wave functions, which consists of all possibilities and is potentially everywhere all at once, yet not. Here, the world of wave functions represents the pure potentiality of Pure Consciousness. The “observer” represents the dualistic mind that perceives and filters conventional reality; by its nature, it is limited and faulty. Quantum physicists and neuroscientists recognize that what we see as the world, as self, and as others exist in our mind only. Simply put, they are merely electrical signals interpreted by our brain-mind. Without human beings, there is no world as we know it. Physicist John Wheeler (1911–2008) said, “No phenomenon is a real phenomenon until it is an observed phenomenon.” (Futurism) He stated that observers’ consciousness is required to bring the universe into existence, and thus he coined the phrase “Participatory Universe.”

Nowadays, many physicists, such as Menas Kafatos, John Hagelin, and Lothar Schafer recognize that quantum particles are the stuff of the mind. Such recognition is in parallel with Ven. Chin Kung’s comment that quantum particles are actually our thoughts. Quantum physics has striking parallels with the Buddhist teaching of, “Mind-only without objective reality (weishu wu jing 唯識無境).” That is, reality as we know it is a projection of the mind, its very existence depending on the way we perceive it. The renowned psychologist and spiritual leader, Dr. Wayne Dyer (1940–2015) said, “When you change the way you see the world, the world you see changes.” (Wayne Dyer)

Our minds are energy, but encoded with information. Since reality is malleable depending on our consciousness, we are constantly co-creating realities at individual and collective levels. The mind is a wonderful tool for living and being in the world if we make it work for us, instead of against us.

and…

I would suggest that matter seems to be taking place in the mind or consciousness, which has dominance over matter; but mind is taking place in Consciousness or Mind, the fundamental ground. Reality is like an onion: one level of reality is within a higher one, which in turn is within a yet higher one. Consciousness is fundamental, mind is secondary, and matter is tertiary.  

matter is an illusion, the material world is a projection of the mind, and the mind is the projection of Pure Consciousness—all is Mind. … What is certain for now is that ultimate reality is somehow fundamentally tied to the mind, and Mind. This Ultimate, I believe, is Buddha-nature, which is present across all reality. Should we pierce through the illusions that bind our conventional perceptions, it will flow through us and as us, transforming our cosmos into a Pure Land.

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