Emptiness: A Word Doodle
Emptiness is something I have experienced all my life though I only attributed the word to the experience after my initial exposure to Buddhism in college. Emptiness, as I mean it here, is a particularly Buddhist project and it is the single most important aspect of Buddhism infused into my personal spirituality. Appreciating and incorporating Emptiness is tricky because it is so easily misunderstood. My own understanding of it has shifted and evolved through the years. The connotation of the word "empty" is more negative than positive in our western way of appreciation. For that reason it is best to begin with what emptiness is not before proceeding to what it is and how it can positively affect the Lifeworld . Emptiness is not nothingness . That Emptiness is a fundamental part of human Being does not mean things are illusions or pointless or even less inspiring. Zen master Shunryu Suzuki clarifies: "I do not mean voidness. There is something, but that som