The connection between quantum physics and spirituality according to the Dalai Lama

Quantum physics and spirituality present fascinating coincidences for the Dalai Lama. While it is true that science and Buddhism are two apparently antagonistic spheres, the Tibetan spiritual leader believes that both should work together. If we open ourselves without reluctance to both perspectives, he points out, we would acquire a deeper and more meaningful vision of the reality that surrounds us.

in his book The universe in a single atom, 2007, explains that this interest in science has always been present in him. He frequently meets with top scientists and seeks, above all, a reconciliation between both perspectives. Because only in this way will we be able to illuminate our conscience, to alleviate suffering and find the answers to the enigmas of our world.

Let’s delve into this interesting perspective to understand the concepts that support it.

Quantum physics and spirituality: how are they related?

Theories that establish a connection between quantum physics and spirituality are not new nor do they come solely from the Dalai Lama. About 1970, the culture New Age He became interested in this science thanks to books like The roots of chance, 1972, by the philosopher Arthur Koestler or The Medium, the Mystic, and the Physicist, by the psychologist Lawrence LeShan.

Likewise, and within these clearly pseudoscientific currents, the figure of Deepak Chopra and his book, Quantum healing, 1989. Now, in this attempt to unite science and Buddhism, it is worth noting other personalities who inspired the Dalai Lama himself. Amit Goswami, a retired professor in the Department of Theoretical Physics at the University of Oregon, is a pioneer in this field.

Books like Science and spirituality: a quantum integration, They emphasize the need to combine both spheres. Likewise, physicists such as Raja Ramanna, known above all for his role in India’s nuclear development, and author of research such as those published in Journal of Human Valuesbecame interested in the texts of the philosopher Nagarjuna in his last days to discover something amazing.

Many of the statements of the founder of the Buddhist school madhiamaka converge with some principles of the science of quarks​. Let us try to analyze below how quantum physics and spirituality are related, according to these perspectives.

What is quantum physics?

The term «quantum” comes from “quantum”which is the smallest unit that makes up light. Thus, what quantum physics seeks is to be able to understand matter and energy at their most fundamental level; as well as all those elementary particles that compose it. A basic idea of ​​quantum physics is that energy manifests itself in indivisible packages called «how many”. These elements behave differently from macroscopic matter itself. That is, particles can manifest as waves and, in turn, waves behave as if they were particles. We are facing a science that began around the 20th century, in which names like Max Planck established a large part of the theories of those we currently have. Likewise, Albert Einstein also spoke of “light quanta”, referring to them as those elements organized in packages in the radiation itself. It is a discipline that seeks to define and understand what is not seen, what cannot be measured and all that indeterminism inscribed in the particles that make up our reality..

Spirituality and the science of quarks

What link could there be between atomic or quantum science and the spiritual perspective? To understand it, we can cite a study published in the journal Natureby Johns Hopkins University physics and astronomy professor Richard Conn Henry. In it, he concludes by suggesting that The universe is immaterial, mental and spiritual.

It should be noted that his ideas were very controversial for the scientific community itself. His vision harmonizes with that connection that the Dalai Lama himself sees between quantum physics and spirituality.

All the atoms that make up our body are the same ones that the universe itself is made of.. What’s more, those quarks, remain the same ones that shaped their appearance. From a spiritual perspective, we would all be connected, tuned to each other by the same elements or subatomic particles. We are an indisputable part of the universe, we are the same matter and everything we do has an impact in others.The exploration of the subatomic world reveals to us that there is an innate energy that puts everything into operation. For spiritual practices, every element that surrounds us and even what we think is energy in vibration or “law of resonance.” Likewise, and from this perspective, energy is a product of consciousness. It’s more, consciousness would be able to mediate our universal well-being, if we were able practice mental approaches based on kindness, humility or forgiveness.

What does the Dalai Lama tell us?

If the Dalai Lama chose to title his book The universe in a single atom It wasn’t a coincidence. Remember, in some way, that beautiful quote from the physicist Fred Alan Wolf: «The entire universe, all knowledge, is within each individual and each thing. Each part contains the whole. An electron is all the electrons. A particle is all particles. And the microcosm is the path of the electron beyond space-time.

Let’s see below what ideas he conveys to us in his attempt to find a connection between quantum physics and spirituality.

Two sciences in the same purpose

The Dalai Lama wants to transmit a more holistic and integrated way of understanding the reality that surrounds us. Buddhism does not have to be the opposite of science or the opposite. Both disciplines have different research methods, but they can converge and complement each other to achieve higher and deeper purposes.

Criticism of scientific materialism

As expected, The spiritual leader is very critical of scientific materialism. This approach in which every effect has its objective cause and, in turn, every cause produces its effect, is a very limited framework with little potential. From that perspective, questions such as the meaning of life or good and evil cannot be resolved. Combining spirituality in that variable broadens the view much more.

Understanding Consciousness

For the Dalai Lama, the universe itself is an inseparable part of mental life. It is our actions, thoughts and emotional states that draw the map of our realities, of what happens to us and even of those relationships of causality or karma. For the Tibetan spiritual leader, quantum physics would be a mechanism to better understand our consciousness.

This resonates with a work published in the Journal for the Study of Spirituality. The world cannot be understood only by that scientific materialism mentioned above, by Newtonian principles of separation and atomism. Quantum physics and spirituality would allow us to better understand the phenomena of consciousness that, until now, we have understood only as a mere phenomenon of the brain.

As an element of interest, it is also worth highlighting research from the University of Arkansas. In it they remind us of the revolutionary ideas that the Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung contributed at the time through analytical psychology. Jung’s conception of the human mind would fit these same perspectives.. For him, the mind was a mystical entity.

Final conclusion

Nowadays and in almost any store, we can find endless books with the term “quantum”: “quantum computing”, “quantum mind”, “quantum psychology” “quantum healing”… It is as if this mysterious dimension could suddenly be integrated into much of our daily activities.

Now, it should be noted that pseudoscience lives behind many of these disciplines, practices and approaches.. This does not mean that they are inspiring and interesting subjects. Nor can we leave aside the purpose that the Dalai Lama sought with his book The universe in a single atom.

Science and spirituality have fought very antagonistic battles for years. Seeking harmony and interconnection between both spheres for the good of humanity is undoubtedly something hopeful and anyone can desire it. That’s the key.

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