Freedom from Ourselves: Into Emptiness Chapter 1 Summary

We suffer unnecessarily. This suffering stems from a profound misunderstanding of ourselves and the world around us. Much like addicts clinging desperately to a drug, we are unable to relinquish the deeply ingrained sense that we are substantial, solid, independent, and autonomous beings.

We construct elaborate schemes, both grand and trivial, to acquire and to harm, all rooted in this fundamentally flawed perception of our existence. Think deeply about that for a moment. On behalf of this exaggerated sense of self, driven by fear, anger, and pride, we inflict harm upon others. To nurture and appease the fleeting whims of this inflated ego, we cultivate our greed.

The path of greed and harm leads nowhere near happiness. It is, in essence, samsara: the cyclical path of perpetual dissatisfaction and misery. Time and again, moment after moment, we stumble into this self-made trap. Like the addict's drug, the false notion of an independently existing self is the bedrock of our own suffering, and the suffering we cause others.

The Illusion of Solid Existence

Of course, we exist. We are living beings who make choices, and those choices have tangible consequences for ourselves and for others. But at a deeper level, we struggle to accept that as enough. To truly be real, to be truly alive, we feel compelled to believe that we must, deep down, possess a solid and independent existence.

Death, however, whispers a different truth. We resist hearing the message of death and go to great lengths to avoid it. In modern societies, we have effectively concealed death as a natural part of life. Many individuals do not confront the reality of mortality until well into their 30s and 40s, sometimes even later. We sequester death away, shielding it from our collective awareness. Ram Dass spoke eloquently about the inherent dangers of this cultural avoidance.

We exist contingently and interdependently. We are real, yes, but only in dependence on our ancestors, our physical bodies, the food we consume, the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the complex web of relationships within our society. We could not, and do not, exist in isolation, devoid of connection. Our very existence is possible only because it is far less rigid, less concrete, than we typically imagine.

Instead of perceiving reality as it truly is, we project onto ourselves and the world around us a false notion of self-existence, an essential reality that simply does not exist. In Buddhist philosophy, the ultimate truth lies in the sheer absence of any such inherent essence. This is shunyata, or emptiness.

While the word 'emptiness' may sound bleak, disappointing, or even frightening, it is in fact the very nature of reality itself. It is in reality, and not in fantasy, that our ultimate hope and refuge lie. The path to liberation from needless suffering, both for ourselves and for others, begins with a profound realisation of this fundamental truth.

Emptiness as Potential

How can we embrace emptiness as a positive force? The word carries powerful negative connotations, evoking feelings of hopelessness and suggesting meaninglessness. Think about the associations that word conjures within you.

We struggle to translate it otherwise. The Sanskrit word shunyata literally means emptiness, and refers to a lack or absence in things. But it is not a lack of meaning, hope, or existence itself. It signifies something far more profound. It is the lack of an exaggerated and distorted existence that we project onto ourselves and onto the world. It is the absence of a false essential nature with which we unconsciously invest everything.

Doubt can arise as we begin to question this heavy-duty sense of reality. We may fear that things cannot exist at all if they lack the solid existence to which we are accustomed. But now consider this crucial point, a point emphasized by Tsongkhapa. If we possessed an inherently solid existence, it would mean we could never change.

Consider that eternalist tendency. If it were our essential nature to be as we are, we would forever remain exactly as we are. Do you have a Ferrari today? No. But thanks to emptiness, you are not permanently stuck with that fate. You could have a Ferrari tomorrow. Do you have a million dollars today? No. Well, because of emptiness, you could have a million dollars tomorrow. That is the crucial point.

If we possessed a fixed and immutable existence, we could never change. As ancient philosophies, from Heraclitus to the I Ching, have taught us, the only constant is change. The only permanent thing is impermanence. Everything changes, everything flows.

If it were our essential nature to be exactly as we are, we would be perpetually locked into our present state. There could be no life; everything would be static and frozen. We could not interact with other beings, learn, or grow. How could we attain wisdom? How could we find happiness? How could we escape misery? How could we experience anything at all?

Time itself embodies impermanence. Time and being, as Dogen articulated in his work, Uji, are inseparable. Time is being, and being is time. Time is emptiness. Emptiness signifies the absence of inherent existence. It is the wellspring of all possibility.