Chapter one
Einstein Questions, Buddha Answers Albert Einstein’s historic success happened over 100 years ago. In 1905, he published five papers, one of which was the Theory of Relativity. As part part of the centennial celebration, there were regular documentaries about Albert Einstein, some of which I watched while writing the original version of this challenging book. This viewing has given me some insight and helped me tremendously to piece together all the following information and thoughts, which enable me to find the connection between Einstein’s notions and the Buddha’s. The run-up to the Theory of Relativity
I feel most grateful to Albert Einstein, the Nobel Prize winning physicist, who asked the most vital question on behalf of humanity. He asked, what is the absolute ruling point in nature? I am no scientist and don’t have much of a clue about what Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics are all about. I am only interested in why he needed to find the absolute ruling point in nature in the first place. place. From what I can gather, this absolute ruling point could be used as the fixed standard to measure everything against so that the results would be universally precise and accurate. Einstein, however, failed to find such a definite ruling point because he found out that there is absolutely nothing standing still and the universe is constantly moving, therefore everything is moving relatively. Consequently, we can only measure everything in a relative manner by nominating an assumed point. Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. THAT'S relativity, said Einstein.
Let’s elaborate further for clearer understanding. Take our body weight as an example. Our weight is closely related to gravity; whatever our body weight is on earth, it will be six times less should we weigh ourselves on the moon. Say... if you weigh 60 kilos on earth, you will weigh only 10 kilos on the moon. So, when we talk about our body weight, we naturally assume that we use the weight on earth as the standard of measuring, not that on the moon! Water is liquid and translucent when you touch it gently but when you bang t he surface of water with force and high speed, the water become more solid until until it hurts your hand, and if a plane drops onto water at 800 miles per hour, the surface of the water is as solid as cement. London is near when you live in Brighton but it is farther when you live in Edinburgh; it is even farther when you live in New York. Compared to Jane, Lucy is pretty but compared to Sally (the beauty queen), Lucy is very plain. Experiences like these have given birth to our familiar phrase, ‘relatively speaking’, which actually governs everything in the universe, not just physics.
Such an initial notion is, nonetheless, the run-up to the Theory of Relativity – which is totally out of my range from then on! Einstein’s quest for the Theory of Everything
After the Theory of Relativity and his landmark discovery about the close link 2 between energy and mass, e= mc – the equation was later applied to the invention of 1 the nuclear bomb . Einstein developed Quantum Mechanics based on finding out that everything everything in the universe universe works works in the the same way as as throwing throwing a dice. The The result result is based on probability, which is the very nature that Einstein could not surrender to. Basically he could not bear standing on loose ground (probability, changing nature); what he needed was a solid base, which he thought only mathematics could offer. As a result, Einstein was downright hostile towards his own Quantum Mechanics and its performance despite its huge huge importance and success. Einstein’s Quantum Mechanics was the early stepping-stone leading to the advent of cutting edge edge science and and st technology of the 21 century. What held Einstein back was his religious nature, his belief in God. Together with his overwhelming passion in wanting to know the sheer precision of everything through mathematics, these two ingredients combined combined and triggered a chain reaction in the thinking of this genius once again. Einstein embarked upon a quest that constantly fed his mental hunger until the last moment of his life. He relentlessly tried to find a unified theory which, in his belief, would be able to explain all phenomena phenomena in the universe and give the answer to everything. This caused his quest for The Theory of Everything – the persistent task task that continued until his death. God would not play dice
Einstein believed that the precision of mathematics was the answer to everything and this too must be able to explain how God built the universe. As he said: I want to know how God created this world. I am not interested in this or that phenomenon, in the spectrum of this or that element. I want to know His thoughts; the rest are details.
The Theory of Everything was his wanting to find an equation that could reflect the mind of God and his artwork in creating the universe. Although the nurse tending his Maybe God didn’t want us to know his mind ,’ Einstein death bed tried to tell him: ‘ Maybe 1
Einstein was a pacifist; he never thought that e= m c2 would be developed into a nuclear bomb some 40 years later. Foll Following owing his landmark landmark discovery discovery – that a tiny amount of mass could could be tur ned into immense energy should that mass be tr avelli avelling ng at t he speed of light light squar ed – Einstein Einstein gave an interview to the media saying saying that making that theory work should be compared to shooting a bird in the dar k in a country where there wer e not many birds around. He He never thought t hat ther e would be any technology technology that could make this theory work. However, However, one of his physici physicist st friends worked out how to do it – by using protons to split the nucleus of the atom. Its Its chain reactions would cause the immen se energy that was late r developed into a nuclear bomb. This friend came to see Einstein in the US and asked him to write a letter to President Roosevelt Roosevelt because th ey were afraid that t he Nazis Nazis would develop this n uclear technology and use it against the Allies in the war. What was supposed to be a warning letter to the President gave the United States the know-how te chnology of a nuclear bomb. The first first ever n uclear bomb was finally made, deployed and drop ped over Hiroshima in 19 45, followed followed by the second on e over Nagasaki. Albert Einstein was devastat ed.
wouldn’t have it. ‘God would not play dice , nurse!’ said Einstein stubbornly. His quest was fruitless; he left the world without finding the answer. Had he found it, those who survived the holocaust and the Asian tsunami victims along with the rest of humanity, might be able to answer their challenging questions beginning with the really big ‘WHY?’ Why did the almighty God not help his children at the most critical and most desperate moments of their lives? Einstein’s admission to Buddhism
Although Einstein left the world without finding the answer he had been looking for all his life, he, however, left a most valuable speech for mankind, for which I am immensely grateful. The following speech can still urge us to ask the fundamental questions he posed on behalf of humanity. Towards the end of his life while he was struggling to find the unified theory, he began to suspect that Buddhism might have the answer he was looking for. In his book titled “The Human Side” published in 1954, Einstein said: The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal God and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both natural and spiritual, it should be based on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual and a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers this description. If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific 2 needs, it would be Buddhism.
The great man was spot on. The unified theory for everything that Einstein was looking for, had been described by the Buddha over two thousand five hundred years earlier. Einstein questions, Buddha answers
As far as I am concerned, Einstein’s initial notion of wanting to find the absolute ruling ruling point and and his quest quest for the unified unified theory theory referr referred ed to the same wish. wish. Fundamentally, he wanted to find something that was absolute, solid, definite, everlasting and unchanging so that he could eternally and unconditionally rely on this very final certainty. These definite descriptions sound very much like the ultimate element, in other word, the absolute truth. If this is the case, Buddhism has the answer for it because the enlightenment of the Buddha is all about his uncovering the ultimate element in nature called: Nirvana. It seems to me that the final ruling point and the unfound unified theory cannot be anything else but but the absolute truth or Nirvana in Buddhist terminology. Humankind must know that this ultimate/absolute element element in nature does exist. The Buddha found it on the night of his enlightenment nearly 2600 years ago. Indeed, all through the history of Buddhism, there have always been some enlightened followers who came forward and confirmed the ultimate truth or Nirvana. This is one of the main factors which have kept Buddhism and its culture alive to this day. The ultimate 2
Albert Einstein, 1954, from Albert Einstein: The Human Side, edited by Helen Dukas and Banesh Hoffman, Princeton University Press
truth will certainly fulfil the same characteristic and give the same result at absolutely every time and place in the entire universe. This definite and reliable nature is exactly what Albert Einstein had been looking for all along. 28 terminologies for the ultimate element
Being the ultimate element or the absolute ruling ruling point in nature, it therefore therefore has everything to do with each and everyone everyone of us in our daily life. Hence I come up with these these 28 termin terminolo ologie giess to facilitat facilitatee people people of all belief beliefss – religi religious ous,, spiritu spiritual al and scientific – so that everyone everyone can connect with the ultimate element from their own psychological comfort zone. I think they may help all of us to relate with the ultimate truth one way or another. I shall explain a few of these these terms in this book so that you can understand your status in relation to the universe including finding your ‘true self’. self’. Here are the 28 terminol terminologies ogies referr referring ing to the ultimat ultimatee truth: 1. The ultimate enlightenment 2. Nirvana 3. The Kingdom of God 4. The Tree of Life 5. Godhood 6. Tao 7. Eternity 8. Immortality 9. The ultimate (absolute) truth 10. The ultimate reality 11. The grand ultimate (the meaning of Tai chi) 12. The absolute ruling point in nature (Einstein’s concept) 13. The absolute simplicity 14. The absolute ordinariness 15. The absolute normality 16. The ultimate certainty 17. The true self 18. The real self 19. The non-self 20. The eternal peace 21. The absolute harmony 22. The ultimate freedom 23. The end of suffering 24. The true (real) happiness 25. Here and Now 26. The final frontier 27. Life out of prison 28. The innocent perception (my coinage). The truth is right in front of our nose!
My invented term ‘the innocent perception’ perception’ is the result result following my ‘Eureka experience’ in the autumn autumn afternoon of 1997. 1997. That extraordinary experience experience gave me the courage and confidence to confirm that the answer to the absolute ruling point in nature and the unified theory has been, all along, hidden in the very simple experience
called the innocent innocent percep perception tion – existing existing right under our nose! nose! I will will explain explain how you can achieve achieve this this ultimate ultimate element element in chapte chapterr nine by by using the analogy analogy of the the two trains trains running at the same speed. speed. The ultimate ultimate truth cannot cannot be be found by the power power of human brain brain (thinking, (thinking, imagin imagining ing and conceptualising); it must be initially pointed out by those who themselves have been through the ultimate enlightenment. Tackling the ultimate truth is based on the principle of sheer common sense and simplicity, which makes it extremely difficult for us to understand, especially for intellectual geniuses, who are keen to delve into their tubes tubes of intellect intellect (exercisin (exercising g the thinking thinking faculty) faculty) – the nature nature of digging digging endless rabbit holes! I will delve into this issue in chapter seven. Here and Now
I will also cover the issue of ‘here and now’, which is a very neutral and familiar phrase and has the scientific connotation. connotation. ‘Here and now’ is the exact answer the great man would have wanted to locate but failed; the ultimate nature can clearly be explained by using the allegory of the two trains running at the same speed. ‘Here and now’, in my view, is the absolute absolute ruling ruling point point in nature nature.. In chapter chapter eight and nine, nine, I will explain the preliminary concept of ‘here and now’ as the nature of the truth: simplicity and normality. However, trying to have access to ‘here and now’ is indeed another matter. It involves practising practising certain certain mental mental skills skills called the the four foundat foundations ions of mindfu mindfulness lness – very much like learning how to ride a bicycle! Asking the right question
All professional writers know that they could face a mental block when they begin their piece of work with a wrong sentence or wrong paragraph. Although it may sound beautiful and seem perfect, writers can’t move on unless they try another sentence, maybe with a different approach. The change of the sentence and approach may sound a bit dowdy dowdy and not attractive, but but it works wonders as it takes away the obstacle and allows the brain brain (the mind) to work – flowing like tap water! The human mind is a funny funny old thing and full of mysteries. You must must know how to handle the mind skilfully to make it work well for you. If not, you get nowhere. It works the the same as piecing piecing jigsaw jigsaw puzzles together. together. Unskilfu Unskilfull people will will begin the puzzle without grouping the pieces first, which makes them progress very slowly. Whereas Whereas skilful skilful players will group group the different different colours pieces pieces together together first and will certainly begin from the straight edges; with this strategy, they will progress much quicker. Likewise, when questions and approaches are wrong, we get nowhere in finding the answer. Einstein trusted mathematics mathematics so much much that he walked deeper into his tube tube of intellect, but sadly a dead end was all he found. As far as finding the ultimate ruling point/absolute truth is concerned, it is important to take advice from the enlightened people such as the Buddha and his enlightened followers. These people can help us to ask the right question and endeavour on the right path so that the ultimate truth can be easily located. This book is my attempt to help you asking the right right question about life
so that you can find inner peace and harmony which I think it is most urgent for our mental well-being. The innocent perception that I will talk extensively in this book is the very nature the ultimate truth or the absolute ruling point in nature. The relative nature is the same as suffering
Relativity certainly extends to our mental state too. It can be described as our mental nature standing on loose shaky ground. This unstable predicament is the nature of suffering or impermanence in the Buddha’s terms. This relatively changing nature (suffering) had had urged the young prince Siddhartha to search search for the end of suffering suffering and Einstein to pursue his quest for the Theory of Everything: the mind of God. Indeed, the Buddha Buddha found it but, unfortunately, unfortunately, not Albert Einstein. Following the the ultimate enlightenment of the Buddha, the Eastern wisdom perpetually echoes this maxim: if the truth is not right here in front of us, where do we think we can find it? This profound saying confirms further that the innocent perception is the very ultimate truth. One ultimate truth
Logic suggest suggestss that if there was any any ultimate ultimate truth at all, it had to be one, not two or or three, three, and it cannot convenien conveniently tly belong belong to any religion. religion. The ultimate ultimate truth has to be totally totally and absolutely absolutely universal universal,, beyond any any religious religious belief as well as human human langua language ge too. too. Nirvan Nirvana, a, here here and now now or the the innocen innocentt percept perception ion cove covers rs all all those those credentials. I shall elaborate this as the contents are progressing. In the mean time, it is important to know that the ultimate truth is waiting right here for everyon everyonee to uncover. uncover. It is not reserv reserved ed only only for monks monks,, priests priests and spiritu spiritual al people. It is absolutely for all of us regardless of our age, gender, race, nationality or belief. Should we have the right tool for the right job, we can uncover the ultimate truth all the same. This is a guarantee. Vipassana
What is so special about the Buddha is that following his discovery of the ultimate knowledge, he also taught us ‘ the means important as the means to the the end’, end’, which is as important ultimate truth itself, if not more. There is no point to listen to someone praising how beautiful Rome is if the guide cannot lead us to witness Rome with our our own eyes. The clear means to inner peace and full control of the mind is very much lacking in our academia. The Buddha is the greatest teacher because he shows us the very lucid path so that enthusiastic people people can reach this ultimate wisdom just just like he did. The renowned Buddhist practice of the four foundations of mindfulness or vipassana is the exact tool leading us to the ultimate truth. This This practice can be easily easily adapted and performed within any religious environment as well as used as a neutral exercise like what I do in my Tai chi class. Vipassana is nothing more than the mental skill of raising raising higher higher level of self-awaren self-awareness ess by learning learning to observe observe our breathing, breathing, movements and physical sensations including our inner phenomena created by our thoughts, memories and feelings. It is a very scientific means suitable for people of all beliefs, religious or non-religious.
Vipassana is the path to world peace
It is a shame that Albert Einstein didn’t didn’t have a chance to bump bump into a vipassana teacher during his time, otherwise the world might be much different from what it is now. With the zeal from a great man like Einstein, it could well mean that vipassana might have been globally recognised recognised as a valid scientific means to restore mental stability, normality and full control of human human mind. mind. This first first class recognition recognition would would subsequently have guided the scientific research about about ‘human mind’ in the the right direction and subsequently subsequently shape shape the global culture towards less less greed, economic equality, no class distinction and the eventual peace among humankind. With the green light from a Nobel prize winning physicist like Einstein, vipassana could have well become a main component of our mainstream education across the globe. Vipassana is the first domino that will collapse all nature of problems surfacing from the heart of an individual human being all the way to the whole of humankind. This is the only formula for world peace and it is indeed what Einstein would have wanted to see, as he was very much a peace lover. Einstein Einstein wrote this formula formula without without knowing vipassana vipassana:: If A equals success, then the formula is: A=X+Y+Z. X is work, Y is play, and Z is keep your mouth shut. Had Einstein known vipassana, he might have said this instead: If A equals world world peace, then the formula formula is A=X+Y+Z. A=X+Y+Z. X is inner peace in all men results from practising vipassana vipassana Y is inner inner peace in all women women results from practising practising vipassana vipassana Z is wise speech and action results results from practising vipassana vipassana Moral relativism
Due to the lack of true wisdom wisdom towards the ultimate ultimate truth, The Theory Theory of Relativity has influenced our our contemporary way of thinking leading to moral relativism. Having no absolute ruling point in nature, it also means there is no moral absolute. absolute. We therefore judge our actions whether good or bad, moral or immoral, in a relative manner. Consequently, common thieves are allowed to think of themselves as better persons than first time murderers, who feel they are better persons than serial killers. This relative way of thinking can go on forever in both directions: good and and bad alike. Moral relativism, consequently, is responsible for the dramatic decline of morality throughout the world community because we can always find someone morally worse to compare with, which makes us feel a bit better about ourselves. With the tendency to use corrupt people as the assumed standard, immoral conduct flourishes and becomes more acceptable. Infidelity, which used to be morally wrong, has become more common because it has been practised among the rich and the famous: e.g. some government ministers, some prime ministers, some presidents, teachers, even monks and clerics! The breaking up of family units and poor parenting causes fewer people to become qualified to be role models for our young generation. This results in a
massive moral vacuum. Consequently, morality is brought down to its knees, resulting in more chaos and increasing entangled social problems. The ultimate ruling point can eliminate moral relativism
To eliminate our confusing social and moral climate, we must stop moral relativism. To do that, we must know the reason behind classical moral guidelines; society must know why every saint in the past gave us the same message telling us to be morally good. The ultimate ruling point or the ultimate truth is the only entity that can straighten out all the moral and social confusions humanity is facing. There are, in fact, very good reasons behind moral conduct. Honest, truthful and law-abiding people can be relaxed and at peace no matter where they are whereas deceitful and corrupt people are perpetually stressed and worried fearing that they will be caught somewhere and somehow. somehow. Inner peace is a good enough reason reason for people to be morally sound. This brings us back to Einstein’s initial notion again and why we need to know the absolute ruling point in nature. Should we find the ultimate ruling point, society will have a chance to restore order order and bring back true normality. Although such a chance seems remote due to the distorted global society caused by the the injustice and the corrupted cartel banking system, system, which are the root root cause for the majority majority of human suffering, we should at least try our very best first. The difference between having having and not having the ultimate ruling point is extremely dramatic and irreplaceable. Without the fixed point to measure against, everything is freely shifting, moving and subjective, which ultimately results in the problematic moral relativism. In the contrary, with the definite ruling point, the result will be absolute and no longer subject to individual interpretation. We would consequently know exactly why we have to be morally good. I have talked about this issue quite extensively extensively in A Handful 3 of Leaves and The User Guide to Life: The Moral Diet and The Law of Karma . Why geniuses prefer simple jobs
Some years ago, I watched a documentary following up on the lives of a few adults whose IQs were exceedingly high from a very young age and were labelled ‘children prodigies.’ While the world expected to see these whiz kids holding prominent academic careers in their adulthoods, they, instead, turned out to be a plumber, a carpenter, a farmer or a chef. This is because people with genius minds know it as a fact that one door is merely opened to yet another door and another endlessly; there is no exit (solution) as far as the use of the brain is concerned. Once intellectual geniuses have reached the brick th wall of the 10 inch mark mark in the tube of intellect intellect (chapter (chapter seven), seven), it is a natural process that they would make a U-turn and find their way back to ‘experience Y’ (the innocent perception). Through experience, they will soon find out that the simplicity and ordinariness surrounding every avenue of their lives have a m uch better taste than exercising the power of their brains. This is the reason why those whiz kids ended up doing simple jobs instead of seeking a blaze of glory in the intellectual world. 3
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Making a U-turn
Albert Einstein was one among those geniuses who was in the process of making a Uturn and heading towards ‘experience Y’ (the ultimate truth/the innocent innocent perception) as his speeches contained a high level of simplicity, humility, normality and ordinariness, which are significant significant qualities of the truth truth or the innocent perception. These quotes quotes below by Einstein Einstein are the the clear clear signs signs of of his his enthus enthusiasm iasm supporting supporting the st fact that he was engaging in his outward-bound journey towards the 1 inch inch mar mark k in the tube of intellect. They are: 1. A table, a chair, chair, a bowl bowl of fruit fruit and a violin; violin; what what else does does a man need need to be happy. 2. Gravitation cannot cannot be held responsible responsible for people falling in love. 3. Try not to become a man man of success but but rather to become a man of value. value. 4. We should take care not to make the intellect our god; it has, of course, powerful muscles, muscles, but no personality. personality. 5. The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking. 6. Problems Problems cannot cannot be solved solved at the same same level of awarenes awarenesss that created created them. 7. The only only sourc sourcee of knowledge knowledge is experie experience. nce. 8. If I had had my life to live over over again, again, I'd be a plumber. plumber. 9. All our lauded technological progress - our very civilization - is like the axe in the hand of the pathological criminal. criminal. Although Einstein left the world without knowing the ultimate truth, his legacy continues, especially the fundamental questions he asked on behalf of humanity and his pointing towards Buddhism. His notions can certainly raise awareness about the wisdom of the Buddha and bridge the gap between science and religion, leading the believers and non-believers to meet at the central stage of the truth, honesty and humility.
