
Maya, the Illusion of the Self: Alan Watts will transform YOU
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Of course, I'm real! I'm a self with a soul! |
Māyā also connotes that which "is constantly changing and thus is spiritually unreal" (in opposition to an unchanging Absolute, or Brahman), and therefore "conceals the true character of spiritual reality" [5, 6].
The question becomes, Is this true of the [Five Aggregates clung to as] "self," "ego," "personality," or "soul"? Are they absolutes or conditioned phenomena coming into temporary being utterly dependent on supporting causes and conditions?
The Mahayana (Hindu-Buddhist) way of saying this is to state that self and all other phenomena are empty (Śūnyatā).
- Alan Watts, when there was a Zen boom, provided explanations and answers for Westerners wishing to understand Eastern philosophy and The Way, be that the Buddha's eightfold path or the Tao or the marga as found in the Vedas and Hinduism.
- Alan Watts (alanwatts.org), KQED; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly
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