Nothingness and Desire ― A Philosophical Antiphony

Heisig (permanent fellow, Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture, Nogoya, Japan) writes of the dual nature of the considered life. If one tries hard enough and long enough, one can convince oneself that the ultimate achievement is the recognition of, and the embrace with, nothing. Once that sense of no purpose is achieved, it is relatively easy to quit thinking about it, sit back, and relax until the pointlessness of life overwhelms itself and you die. The sense of nothingness is powerful, but so is the sense of desire; it pops up when you least expect it, and it must be explained away as quickly as possible, to let the sense of nothingness replace it again. One method is to say that desire is only delusion, which puts it back in its proper place with nothingness. However, at least to some people, nothingness is a choice. The East/West divide over the true nature of nothingness, particularly as defined in this book, is central to its function; without the nagging feeling that nothingness may be incorrect, there would be no reason to debate the issue anyway. That there is even debate negates the impetus toward nothingness. Annotation c2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

James W. Heisig is a permanent fellow of the Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture in Nagoya, Japan.