new friend of life

  We’ve all heard it in science class: life on Earth first appeared billions of years ago. Since then, scientists have been trying to figure out how that was even possible. They’ve run experiments—zapping gases like methane and ammonia with electricity, splitting water molecules— all in the hope of recreating the conditions that might have sparked life. And yes, they’ve managed to form organic compounds from inorganic substances. In other words, they’ve built the raw material—the physical “stuff” of life. But here’s the big question: How do you breathe life into that material? Does it just happen on its own once the ingredients are all there? Most of us sense—intuitively—that it doesn’t. We love to divide the world into “living” and “non-living.” And of course, we put ourselves—humans—at the top of the living category, calling ourselves the pinnacle of evolution, the masters of nature. But is that really true? Is life something separate, something higher than all m...

  While reading a book by Thich Nhat Hanh, I came across this short but powerful sentence: “You are without self.” At that moment, something clicked inside me. I thought, “Ah! What a beautiful and elegant way to express the Buddhist concept of emptiness.” More specifically, it’s a concise expression of anatta , or non-self — one of the core teachings in Buddhism. But then I wondered: How would someone from a Western background interpret this sentence? Would they be able to understand what it really means? 🧠 "You are without self" — A Phrase That Can Be Confusing At first glance, the sentence is grammatically clear: You exist (you are) , but you do not possess a fixed self (without self). It’s not saying you don’t exist . Rather, it challenges the idea that there is a permanent, unchanging self inside you. However, for many Westerners, the concept of the “self” is deeply ingrained in philosophy, psychology, and even spirituality. The self is usually seen as...

  Enlightenment isn’t some mystical or extraordinary event. In truth, it’s much like what we call "growing up" — a process of maturing, of coming to understand life and oneself more deeply. As children, we see the world only through our own needs. We cry, demand, and expect others to respond. But as we grow into adults — becoming sons, daughters, parents, and members of society — we start to consider others. We learn to give up certain things for the sake of harmony. We begin to coexist. But this isn’t true maturity just yet. Real Maturity Includes Empathy Real maturity — what I call the beginning of true enlightenment — includes something deeper: a sense of empathy that treats others as extensions of oneself. When I’m hungry, I know others must feel hunger too. When someone is in pain or grief, I feel that pain as if it were my own. I don't just understand with my head, but with my heart. From here, a sense of morality and integrity naturally begins to take root...