Evan Thompson of the University of British Columbia has
verified the Buddhist belief of anatta, or not-self. Neuroscience has been
interested in Buddhism since the late 1980s, when the Mind and Life Institute
was created by HH Dalai Lama and a team of scientists. The science that came
out of those first studies gave validation to what monks have known for years —
if you train your mind, you can change your brain. As neuroscience has begun
studying the mind, they have looked to those who have mastered the mind.
While Buddha didn’t teach anatta to lay people, thinking it
might be too confusing, the concept is
centered on the idea that there is no consistent self. The belief that we are
the same one moment to the next, or one year to the next, is a delusion. Thompson
says that “the brain and body is constantly in flux. There is nothing that
corresponds to the sense that there’s an unchanging self.”
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When there is no consistent self, it means that we don’t
have to take everything so personally.
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It is useful to look at a video of yourself from the past,
or read something you wrote years ago. Your interests, perspective, beliefs,
attachments, relationships, et al, have all changed in some way. Anattadoesn’t
mean there’s no you; it just means that you are constantly changing, constantly
evolving, and shape-shifting. Why is this important? Why does it matter if
there’s no solid “you” or “me”?
Buddhist teacher Kadam Morten Clausen says Buddhism is a
science of the mind:
Dr. Rick Hanson, author of Hardwiring Happiness and Buddha’s
Brain, argues that when there is no consistent self, it means that we don’t
have to take everything so personally. That is, our internal thoughts are only
thoughts and don’t define us. External events are only external events and
aren’t happening to us personally. Or as Tara Brach says, our thoughts are
“real, but not true.”
There is tremendous liberation in not identifying ourselves
with thoughts, or a set idea of who we are. It is then that we can grow and
change, with the help of neuroplasticity. There is then hope that we can
overcome our vices or bad habits (of mind and body), because if we aren’t stuck
with the self-limiting beliefs inherent with a consistent self, we may orient
ourselves toward becoming more of who we want to be.
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The belief that we are the same one moment to the next, or
one year to the next, is a delusion.
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As science and Eastern thought continue to hang out with
each other, there may be more 21st Century studies to back up 2,600-year-old
thoughts. But, as HH Dalai Lama said, “Suppose that something is definitely
proven through scientific investigation. ... Suppose that that fact is
incompatible with Buddhist theory. There is no doubt that we must accept the
result of the scientific research.”
Hearing a pro-science stance from a religious leader is a
relief to many. In the end it seems Buddhism and neuroscience have similar
goals: What is this thing we call the mind, and how can we use it to make
ourselves a little less miserable and a little happier? Maybe even just 10
percent happier, as Dan Harris wrote. If there is no consistent self, it is at
least my intention that my ever-changing self be equanimous and, well, 10
percent happier. No matter who I am.
Source :
bigthink.com