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Interbeing
The Middle Path transcends all pairs of opposites, such as being and nonbeing, or coming and going. This teaching is grounded in four technical terms:
- pratitya-samutpada (dependent co-arising)
- shunyata (emptiness)
- prajnapti (metaphor or conventional designation)
-
madhyama (the Middle Path)
Phenomena arise when conditions are sufficient and stop manifesting when they are not. There is action and retribution, but no separate self or actor. Everything is a conventional designation, including the self (atman) and things (dharma). In the light of interbeing, the word I is only a metaphor, as the one is made of the all.
The very small contains the very large; the whole cosmos can be seen in a flower or on the tip of a hair. This mirrors the implicate order in physics, where things are inside each other. Every somatic cell contains the totality of the body’s genetic heritage and the information of all ancestors. Reality manifests like a wavicle or namarupa (name and form), appearing sometimes as matter and sometimes as mind. In a particle of dust, there are countless buddhas, and one second contains eternity.
Every cell and mental formation contains the ten realms:
- Humans
- Gods
- Asuras
- Animals
- Hungry ghosts
- Hell
- Disciples
- Self-enlightened beings
- Bodhisattvas
-
Buddhas
When one realm manifests, the other nine hide. Genes are not deterministic; they follow instructions from the environment, which turns them on or off. While genetic engineering offers hope for treating disease, it lacks control and can be dangerous. We must create a collective awareness and a favorable environment to turn on the realms of buddhas and bodhisattvas, relying on our capacity to heal through mindful living.