How the Buddha and Science became BFFs
Unicorn poop becomes involved somehow
“Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” — The Buddha
I am a big fan of science and I have been and most of my life. And I also have been a fan of the Buddha for shocking number of years. Those two things go together even if they seem like they shouldn’t. Allow me to explain.
Is Buddhism a philosophy or a religion?
The answer to that question is “neither.” It’s a method.
Huh?
There are millions of Buddhists who would argue with me on that point. Buddhism has rituals, mantras, sutras (scripture verses), monks, nuns, and incense — lots of incense.
Okay, I love all this stuff but it’s still not a religion.
Buddhism is a method. It’s right there in the Four Noble Truths.
1. There is suffering.
2. Suffering can end.
3. There is a method to end suffering.
4. And that method is the Eightfold Path.
If your young life went reasonably well, your mom taught you the basics of 6 of the 8 “folds.” Those things concern morality (see my article on morality, link below). The other two precepts have to do with meditation and mindfulness. (And I also have an article on meditation, link also below).
The Eightfold Path seems to break down into two or three categories, but that is deceptive. All the precepts are woven and interlaced into a single fabric. The moral precepts (don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t harm anyone, etc.) will improve the happiness of your life but if you truly want to alleviate your suffering, you need to do them all. In other words the Eightfold Path is a single method.
The scientific method.
People often think about science as a quasi-mysterious, quasi-magical thing that gives us cell phones, GMOs, cancer cures, rocket ships, and atom bombs.
The scientific method has 6 “folds.” (Or 4 or 8 depending on who you read)
1. Make some observations about the world.
2. Make a hypothesis, a tentative explanation, that is consistent with what you have observed and which can, at least in theory, be proved wrong.
3. Use the hypothesis to make predictions about facts that might be observed if the hypothesis is true.
4. Test those predictions by experiments or further observations.
5. If necessary, adjust your hypothesis to fit the new observations you have made.
6. Go back to step 3 and repeat until your hypothesis matches all the known facts and the results of your experiments and observations and isn’t contradicted by any facts that you know of.
The art and science of asking questions is the source of all knowledge. — Thomas Berger
As more and more evidence accumulates to support a hypothesis and as it is refined to fit with observations, gradually the hypothesis can begin to be fleshed out into a theory. (I’m a life coach, not a scientist. If a real scientist wants to jump in here, please do in the comments.)
Are there invisible unicorns on the moon?
That can’t be tested. You can fly to the moon and conduct a search, but if you don’t find them, it doesn’t mean anything. They could just be hiding really, really well.
Now, if you find glittery piles of pink and lavender poop and some hoof prints, your hypothesis has been provisionally supported. Further tests could be conducted, like sending up a virgin astronaut (said to be attractive to unicorns) or do a DNA tests on the poop. That would be the beginnings of fleshing out the hypothesis about Moon Unicorns.
So how does science get from unicorn poop to atom bombs? By using that identical method. Making observations and asking questions that can be disproved is a method that is almost unimaginably powerful. Just ask Siri.
Buddhism hearts science
So imagine the Dalai Lama’s delight when he learned about science as a boy. He is now 82 years old and he still admires the scientific method.
“If scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims.”
― Dalai Lama XIV, The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality
That statement proves Buddhism is not really a religion because belief is not required.
In science, belief is not only not required, it is downright “surplus to requirements.” In science, belief is a fog that will obscure reality and lead you astray. In Buddhism it is simply called “delusion.”
Science means constantly walking a tightrope between blind faith and curiosity; between expertise and creativity; between bias and openness; between experience and epiphany; between ambition and passion; and between arrogance and conviction — in short, between an old today and a new tomorrow. — Heinrich Rohrer
I love science, not just because it gave me a super computer I can slip into my pocket. I love it and the teachings of the Buddha because both can make life boundlessly better and neither require belief without evidence.
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