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Life, the Universe, and Everything: Anatta vs.

Atta (Atman) and the meaning of Ubuntu


http://fortytwostrong.blogspot.com/2007/07/anatta-vs-atta-atman-and-meaning-of.html[08/30/2013 3:50:53 PM]
Life, the Universe, and Everything
Musings on the number forty two: A college student's thoughts on life, science, and stories from her never-
ending spiritual journey.
S UNDAY, J UL Y 2 9 , 2 0 0 7
Anatta vs. Atta (Atman) and the meaning of Ubuntu
In Buddhism, there is this concept called Anatta which says that the
Self does not exist. There is no everlasting soul or Atman. This
concept states that we are just an empty conglomeration of changing
body and mind. I had much trouble understanding and accepting this
doctrine, since I have always believe in a soul. However, this does
not mean that there is no Self, only that the Self changes from
moment to moment. We are not the same person, in body and mind,
that we were ten minutes ago, nor is the universe the same at any
instant of its progression through time. I think I may have begun to
understand and accept, so I decided to write about it.
We do not inherently exist. That is we cannot exist independently.
We must depend upon other people, plants, and the very fabric of
the universe, spacetime, and everything in it in order to exist. The
same goes for every other object and being. H.H. the Dalai Lama
gives this example. A flower needs the seed, the parent flower, the
water, the soil, the sun, and the air to exist. It is not independent
arising. The sun and even the entire galaxy, as great and massive as
they are, also depend on the existence of everything, even the little
flower. Without the mass of the flower or every other planet,
person, and star, the galaxy would fly apart, because each mass
provides the gravity that holds the galaxy together. Alone, all these
things are empty and meaningless, and they cannot exist. This
emptiness I at first took for nihilism, yet Anatta is far from nihilism.
It does not mean that human life, the flower, and the universe are
devoid and meaningless. Instead they are full and rich and
important, because they are a part of the whole, and the whole of
existence depends on everything in it. Without the universe and
without the connection to everything in it, life is meaningless, Self is
meaningless and could not inherently exist.
Looking at Anatta this way, I find that this doctrine is not nihilism at
all, but existentialism. We are all connected to one another and
dependent upon one another. We have a Self (and a self) that exists
and changes from one instant to the next based on our experiences
and the change in the universe. It makes sense now that when we
are alone, we feel emptiness, because we ARE empty without others
(and others are empty without us). This makes morality and
compassion all the more important. Because we depend on the
existence of others for our own, we should be kind and loving. We
need to be compassionate for the sake of others and ourselves,
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http://fortytwostrong.blogspot.com/2007/07/anatta-vs-atta-atman-and-meaning-of.html
Life, the Universe, and Everything: Anatta vs. Atta (Atman) and the meaning of Ubuntu
http://fortytwostrong.blogspot.com/2007/07/anatta-vs-atta-atman-and-meaning-of.html[08/30/2013 3:50:53 PM]
Posted by Vermilion at 10:08 AM
because what we do to others (who are connected to us), we do to
ourselves.
I suppose I could bring the whole God thing into this too. I believe
that the collective whole is God, just like the Hindu Brahman who is
everything and in everything (the Self). There is a powerful African
word which reflects this: Ubuntu, which means alone we are nothing,
but together we are (God). Ubuntu literally means, I am, because
We are. I once read a book by Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu
who worked against apartheid in South Africa. In the book, he talks
about Ubuntu and why even the supporters of the apartheid
deserved forgiveness, A person with Ubuntu is open and available to
others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are
able and good, for he or she has a proper self-assurance that comes
from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is
diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others
are tortured or oppressed. Every action precipitates a reaction
which will produce another reaction and so on. We are all connected
to everything in the universe. We need to practice tolerance,
acceptance, and love, because we ourselves want to be tolerated,
accepted, and loved. Those who are truly compassionate and do kind
acts will improve others, and that in a small way, will help the
universe on its journey to peace, happiness, and truth... reality,
nirvana.
There is something to live for, there is something to hope for, we
have a purpose! It is for the sake of others that we exist. Which
reminds me of a quote by Albert Einstein, Strange is our situation on
the earth. However, there is one thing that we know, we are here
for the sake of others. Above all, for those upon whose smile and
well-being our own happiness depends. And, also, for the countless
unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of
sympathy. Einstein said it exactly.
Back to the lack of an everlasting soul, we should live in the now and
not worry about what is to come, because we do not know or control
anything beyond the present. We should not try to store up good
deeds in heaven or good karma for a satisfactory rebirth, because we
do not know if there is an afterlife, or another reincarnation, or
even an eternal soul. No one can answer these in the negative or the
positive. All we can do is live now and enjoy what we have now. If
we are worried about the future and the afterlife, we will continue
to suffer, because we are living in the future which may never come.
We should live for others, not to get into heaven or gain a good birth
or obtain some vengeful god's favor, but to reach peace and
happiness in this life NOW and help other do the same.
So this is my acceptance of Anatta. We exist. We are beautiful. We
are, but not without one another. Ubuntu.
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Life, the Universe, and Everything: Anatta vs. Atta (Atman) and the meaning of Ubuntu
http://fortytwostrong.blogspot.com/2007/07/anatta-vs-atta-atman-and-meaning-of.html[08/30/2013 3:50:53 PM]
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