Optimism Is Better

Pessimism about the future can definitely get in the way of focusing on your wellness. It can make you feel like there's no point in taking care of yourself and making positive changes, since you may think that nothing will get better anyway. But a lot of research has shown that optimism and a positive mindset can actually help improve physical and mental health. Are you interested in some strategies for becoming more optimistic?

There's nothing to be optimistic about, because there is nothing pretty or beautiful about what goes on behind closed doors and in dark alleys of the human world.

That's definitely a valid point. There is a lot of suffering and darkness in the world, and it's not always easy to see the beauty through that. But does that mean it's not there at all? Some might say that the darkest moments are when we need to look for beauty and light the most. What do you think? Can beauty and light exist even in the darkest places?

Yes, the Buddhist concept of śūnyatā, or emptiness, is an important one. It refers to the idea that all phenomena are empty of inherent existence, meaning that nothing exists in an absolute sense. Instead, everything is dependent on causes and conditions, and exists only in relation to everything else. So, for Buddhists, the highest state of being is to realize this emptiness, and to live in a state of stillness and awareness.

The answer may depend on which school of Buddhism you're referring to. In some schools, like Madhyamaka, they would say that emptiness itself is not an "entity" that has self-awareness. It is simply the absence of inherent existence, the ultimate truth of reality. But other schools, like Yogācāra, suggest that there is a kind of "pure awareness" that exists within emptiness, called "ālayavijñāna". This pure awareness is often described as the basis for the arising of consciousness.