Understanding how all phenomena arise dependently, have no independent existence, and are ultimately empty—yet appearances function perfectly in the relative world.
Author
Buddhist-Vedantic synthesis
प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद (Pratītyasamutpāda)
Dependent Origination / Interdependent Arising
Nothing exists independently. Everything arises in dependence on conditions, exists only in relation to other things, and has no inherent, separate existence.
Every phenomenon exists because:
Therefore: Nothing has independent, inherent existence. All things are:
Examples:
The Insight: Nothing appears without causes. No phenomenon exists by itself, from itself, for itself.
Examples:
The Insight: All concepts are relative. There are no absolute categories—everything is defined by its relationship to something else.
Examples:
The Insight: Objects don’t come with names attached. Mind creates boundaries and labels—without this labeling activity, things don’t exist as distinct entities.
शून्यता (Śūnyatā)
Emptiness
Empty of what? Empty of inherent, independent, permanent existence.
Not empty of what? Not empty of:
The Teaching: Everything is empty (no inherent existence) AND everything appears (functional reality). This is the middle way between:
रूपं शून्यता शून्यतैव रूपम्
Rūpaṁ śūnyatā śūnyataiva rūpam
”Form is emptiness; emptiness is form”
— Heart Sutra
What this means:
Like:
The Chariot Analysis (from Nāgārjuna):
Is the chariot:
Conclusion: The chariot is a conceptual designation for a collection of parts in relation. It has no inherent “chariot-ness.” Yet it functions perfectly as a chariot.
Apply to everything:
Where is the inherent, independent existence? It’s not found. Yet life functions perfectly.
Both teachings reveal:
Buddhism (Pratītyasamutpāda):
Advaita (Brahman):
Integration: Phenomena are empty of inherent existence (Buddhism) because they are appearances in consciousness (Advaita). Both point to non-dual reality.
In Daily Life:
Your body:
Your thoughts:
Your self:
When you see emptiness:
Liberation from:
Arising of:
“To be is to inter-be. You cannot just be by yourself alone. You have to inter-be with every other thing.”
A flower exists because:
The flower is:
Nothing is excluded: When you look deeply into the flower, you see the entire universe. The flower doesn’t exist separately—it “inter-is” with everything.
You are:
Nothing is separate: Your existence depends on and includes the entire universe. You are not IN the universe—you ARE the universe, expressed as a human being.
Practice:
The Realization: Everything is like a rainbow—beautiful, vivid, but with no substantial existence. Completely empty, yet perfectly appearing.
The Practice:
The Recognition: Nothing has the solid, separate, permanent existence your mind assumed. Yet the world functions perfectly.
Q: If everything is empty, why does anything matter?
A: Because beings suffer. Emptiness doesn’t mean unimportant—it means flexible, workable, capable of transformation. Precisely because things are empty, change is possible and compassion makes sense.
Q: Is emptiness the same as nothingness?
A: No. Nothingness implies absence. Emptiness implies lack of inherent existence but doesn’t negate appearance or function. It’s empty OF something (independent existence), not empty AS nothing.
Q: If I have no inherent existence, who is asking this question?
A: Excellent question! The questioner also lacks inherent existence—it’s a process, not an entity. Yet the questioning happens. This is the mystery: no one, yet it happens.
Q: How is this different from solipsism?
A: Solipsism says “only I exist.” Dependent origination says no “I” exists independently—the sense of “I” arises dependently, just like everything else.
Q: Doesn’t this contradict “I am Brahman”?
A: No. The personal self is empty (Buddhism); what remains is pure consciousness (Advaita). Both point to freedom from false identification with a separate self.
In relationships: “This person has no fixed nature. They are a process, like me. Let me relate to the process, not to a fixed idea.”
In problems: “This problem is empty—it depends on conditions. When conditions change, it will change. It’s not as solid as it appears.”
In success: “This success is empty—it arose from many causes beyond ‘me,’ and it will pass. Let me enjoy it without clinging.”
In suffering: “This suffering is empty—it arose from conditions and will cease when conditions change. Meanwhile, let me meet it with compassion.”
In identity: “‘I’ am empty—a process, not a thing. I can drop old patterns, transform, evolve. I’m not stuck being who I thought I was.”
The teaching: Everything is empty—no inherent existence anywhere.
The reality: Life works perfectly. Cause and effect operate. Phenomena appear and function.
The integration: BECAUSE everything is empty, everything is possible. Emptiness isn’t negation—it’s the creative void from which all possibilities arise.
From the Heart Sutra:
“Form is emptiness, emptiness is form. Emptiness is not other than form; form is not other than emptiness.”
*Nothing stands alone.
Each thing contains all things.
No separate existence anywhere—
Only the seamless web of interdependence.
Empty of inherent nature,
Yet appearing vividly.
Nothing to grasp,
Nothing to fear.
In emptiness, infinite potential.
In interdependence, universal compassion.
This is the freedom
Of seeing things as they are.*
May you see through solid appearances to the emptiness that liberates, and through emptiness to the compassionate heart that embraces all beings as yourself. 🕸️🙏