garryageez's Journal

Jan 2007
4:06 PM GMT

Albert Einstien. How Buddhist was his thinking? Born in 1879, Albert Einstein is known today for his incredible mathematical ability and… well, his wild hair. But more important than the physical attributes of his cranium, is the fantastic information which it provided. He will probably always be remembered as the greatest mathematical genius of the modern world. Honors he has received for his works include the Nobel Prize, which he was awarded in 1921, the Royal Society Copley Medal, which he was awarded in 1925, he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1921, and he became an AMS Gibbs Lecturer in 1934. He also was a very vocal advocate against nuclear weapons, and spoke out for international peace. Fittingly, a letter asking that his name be put on a manifesto urging all nations to give up their nuclear weapons, was the last he wrote before his death in 1955. "Buddhi sm has the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion for the future: it transcends a personal God, avoids dogmas and theology; it covers both the natural & spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense aspiring from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity" Einstein and a Personal God. There are many quotes on religion from Einstein. Here isa sampling[3] : Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind. The Lord God is subtle, but malicious he is not I am convinced that He [God] does not play dice Perhaps the best quote of his that really captures his views on God and religion are A legitimate conflict between science and religion cannot exist. Although Albert Einstein was certainly not a Buddhist, these statements sound much like it: "A human being is part of a whole, called by us the 'universe', a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separate from the rest - a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affectation for a few people near us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty." "Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." From Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh: Garrys View: When I read and study the Buddahs teachings on Emptiness, I cant help thinking about Einstiens study of atomic particles. The teachings on Emptiness show us that nothing is self existent, But all things in the universe are reliant on past causes and conditions ( cause and effect) Even if we take a Human Being and strip him down to atomic particles their is nothing within that can be called a self. A human Being is made of the elements Earth, Air, Fire and Water. These are the bassic elements that make up all sentient beings. When these four elements are brought together with the correct causes and conditions a Human being is the result. From appearance we are a human being, at closer inspection we are an infinate number of different causes and conditions, that make the appearance of a Human. I believe that when the Buddah came to the realization of Emptiness, he saw all matter fromits sub atomic level. Maybe through the study of these teachings, Einstien was inspired to look deeper into the teachings and this lead him to bring these theories away from the dogma of belief and into the realms of science. Well one thing is for sure, he certainly had a great respect for the teachings of the Buddah and Buddhism as a whole. I also think that he was absolutely spot on when he said that a conflict between religion and science cannot exist. I would go as far as to say they are two vital sides of the same coin, for as the late great Bob Marley said, and I quote. "Noah had tree sons ,Ham, shem and japhet , Japhet was given the wisdom of Technology. Its Not Technology that is the problem, It is man who has the technology for he doesnt know what hes dealing with." To end - knowledge without wisdom will ultimately lead to our downfall. Science gives us Technologyand religion teaches us the wisdom needed to use it. With Metta Garry D. http://buddhism.kalachakranet.org/wisdom_emptiness.html follow this link to the best site I have found so far on my quest to learn more on the wisdom of Emptiness.

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Location: United Kingdom