Religion and the Scale of the Universe

As a kid, I was always fascinated by Astronomy, and I remember often watching the stars at night, when I would visit my dad’s house on the weekends. Back then, I didn’t really understand astronomy well, but I learned what I could about constellations, I visited the planetarium at the Pacific Science Center, and of course I became a big fan of classic Star Trek through my uncle. In college, I even majored in Astronomy for a time until I realized that Physics wasn’t my forté.

Space and the universe have always fascinated me, and for a long time, I’ve felt that in light of space, science, etc, Buddhism has been particularly suited for this worldview. 

The Buddha-Dharma functions in a lot of ways like the laws of physics or other natural laws. It’s less something to believe in, and something more to understand or at least acknowledge. It can fit into any time or place.

The various Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, primarily found in the Mahayana tradition, might seem superstitious, but embody important Buddhist truths and can be just as weird and cosmic as anything the universe has to offer. Further, belief is such beings is neither required nor expected. It is up to each person to adopt what they want. They are quite literally a form of expedient means.

Finally, when you look at the sheer vastness of space, it’s hard not feel small. But that is alright too. Buddhism thinks big, but also because everything is interconnected in some way, it assures that the choices we make, wholesome or unwholesome, do affect all other things. We can light one corner of the world (and universe) through our actions and our thoughts.

Namu Kanzeon Bosatsu
Namu Amida Butsu

P.S. Featured photo is Whirlpool Galaxy (NASA and European Space Agency, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

P.P.S. I’ve often wondered if the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas really do exist, would they be humanoids like us, or would they be strange aliens like in Star Trek? Would Amida Buddha’s original from be a green alien with four arms? 😋