PATTERNS OF ENERGY

What is the self? From the perspective of scientific understanding, we know the body is an organism made up of trillion of cells. Each cell is composed of molecules, each molecule is composed of atoms, ;and each atom is composed of subatomic particles.

Things look quite different at this level. Existence of particles is expressed as probabilities, so in a sense you are not all here all the time. At any instant, you are partially shifting in and out of existence, but the overall effect is a stable manifestation in the mundane world. What seems solid and substantial to us is only the appearance. The underlying level of reality is constantly changing.

Scientists tell us that ultimately, we can all be described as patterns of energy. Such patterns are unbelievably complex and yet perfectly choreographed in their functions. The intricacy and precision required to make everything work can only be described as miraculous. This is the truth of the self: a marvelous miracle masquerading as a mundane manifestation.

The Tao Today

There is far more to reality than surface appearances may suggest. The more we understand, the more we appreciate that nothing in the world is ordinary. Everywhere we look, we can see that everything is an exquisite construct of energy. The miraculous is so commonplace that we take it for granted. Pause for a moment to contemplate this, and feel the breathtaking truth of it all.

The Tao of Joy Every Day

~ Derek Lin