I am curious too?And also to know why 'everything unfolds fromm
emptiness and merge back into emptiness'? Why not the emptiness
stay as it is? In Vedantic religions and Buddhism its the same
concept.Why all this creation and destruction and our existence
from which we need to liberate?Totally silly from a larger point of
view.
The Vedanta religion is not talking about emptiness, it is
talking about awareness. It is a different realization. This
awareness is taken to be inherently existing in Hinduism as their
ultimate reality Brahman, but in Buddhism we realize that Awareness
too is empty of inherent existence (any kind of intrinsic,
independent, changeless existence) or Self-hood. That is emptiness
realization.
Secondly I think what I wrote here is relevant to your question
because you are presuming that there is a 'purest state in the
beginning':
Thusness addressed the question of first cause years ago to me,
and I wrote this then based on what he said:
Actually we don't have an original nature, we have an empty
nature, that has no beginning nor ending. To visualise a purest
state from the start is a dualistic view. Emptiness is not a void,
not absence of suffering, emptiness is the nature of suffering and
all phenomena. Getting 'lost' and becoming dualistic is natural
when we develop those conditions that make us 'lost', for example
being attached to our luminosity is one of the factor. When
condition is there, samsara (dualistic vision) simply
manifests...
The assumption that there is a purest state and we will not
becoming dualistic is itself a dualistic view. There is no purest
state, when condition is there, delusion manifests, every states
are dependently originated and are empty, and being empty all
states are equally pure. Suffering too is empty and pure. Even the
state of delusion is empty and pure but we just don't recognize it
due to our karmic obscurations (or deep conditionings, karmic
propensities of falsely projecting 'self' and 'inherency') that
blinds us from seeing.
And no, realising the luminosity aspect alone can't lead to
liberation. As I said... other religions talk about that aspect as
well and not just Buddhism, but when its empty nature is not known,
it becomes a metaphysical essence, and all phenomena becomes like
dust on the mirror. And then there is a mirror reflecting external
conditions. That becomes dualistic and 'inherent'. The cause of
samsara is still not uprooted, and one of the fundamental causes as
Thrangu Rinpoche* stated is the attachment to luminosity due to not
perceiving its empty nature. If you read my friend's experience you see that there must
be further insights into the anatta and sunyata nature of
awareness.
But emptiness is also not just empty, so you must realise the union
and inseparability of luminosity and emptiness. Having conviction
in our luminous nature as everpresent, never lost, is important,
but having glimpses of that pure luminosity is just the beginning
and we are still far from perceiving its nature.
*
Thrangu Rinpoche answers: If the nature of mind is this
all-pervading, brilliant union of luminosity and emptiness,
ungraspable, how is it that it could be obscured, even for a
moment, let alone lifetime after lifetime?
