Interbeing 

 

The term "interbeing" was first coined by the Zen Buddhist monk, and Nobel Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh(1), “to express the reality of mutual interdependence in human relationship, both in the sense of relating one to another and in the wider sense of humanity’s relationship to the natural world as a whole.”(2)

 

 

Towards a science of Interbeing

 

In 2000, Francisco Varela, eminent biologist, philosopher, and neuroscientist, published an article entitled “Steps to a Science of Inter-being: Unfolding the Dharma Implicit in Modern Cognitive Science”(3). In this article, Varela presents “the possibility of a future cognitive science of interbeing, a further stage in the history of the development of the field”.(4) He affirmed this development, would come not from looking for “an interface or an encounter” between science and spirituality, but by “rediscovering some fundamental insights of Buddhism from within.”(5)

 

According to Varela, the last stage of this development would come through the already emergent field of “neurophenomenology”, an approach which combines the study of experience from within, and neuroscience. 

 

 

The Dalai Lama and the Mind and Life Institute

 

Varela’s vision keeps evolving today through the vast activity of the Mind and Life Institute, which he co-founded in 1987, together with Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, and Adam Engle. As explained in the declaration of the Institute’s mission: “Whereas science relies on empiricism, technology, “objective” observation, and analysis, the Dalai Lama, Engle, and Varela were convinced that well-refined contemplative practices and introspective methods could, and should, be used as equal instruments of investigation — instruments that would not only make science itself more humane but also ensure its conclusions were far-reaching. Mind and Life was formed to bridge this divide and advance progress in human well-being.” (6). 

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Daniel Siegel and Interpersonal Neurobiology

 

Introspected knowledge has nowadays reached main stream sciences, and is being increasingly used as a fundamental pillar for research (7). Therefore, it is now becoming possible to describe the reality of our interdependence in scientific terms accepted by academic circles. One of the key voices in this respect is Daniel Siegel M. D., director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center, and pioneer of the new field of interpersonal neurobiology. Here are two quotes from him:

 

“While many scientists state something to the effect that “the mind is what the brain does”, I myself, trained as a scientist, as well as a clinician and educator, find this an incomplete stance...

 

...I believe (and cannot find any science to disprove) that an important aspect of the mind can be defined as an embodied and relational, emergent self-organizing process that regulates the flow of energy and information both within us and between and among us....

 

If this proposed definition of the mind is true, then the mind is certainly not simply “enskulled” and coming only from the activity of the brain, but it is at least embodied, and likely relational as well.  And then the self, as an aspect of the mind, is not only embodied, it is also relational...”(8)

 

“Part of the reflective practice, ironically, is that it makes our senses stronger and bodily well-being clearer, and increases empathy towards others, which then strengthens our connections to people in our lives. We become more open in a loving and wonderfully exciting new way. In fact, the real definition of self becomes we, and all of a sudden we begin to think that there is hope fo the planet. We begin to realize this is our collective home. There is real hope to turn things around.

 

I am incredibly optimistic that with reflective practices there is hope for our species. We have to understand the brain so that we can grasp how non-integrated thinking puts us at risk for planetary destruction, but also harness the power of our creativity to turn it all around and turn this into a much more integrated home in which we live.” (9)

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Thomas Hübl and the Academy of Inner Science

 

In 2008, contemporary mystic and systems' thinker Thomas Hübl founded the Academy of Inner Science, to serve as an arena for scientific and practical research of modern mysticism. The Academy offers a platform for trainings, workshops, study groups, and for non-profit events and, since 2017 it offers multidisciplinary graduate programs in collaboration with five Universities. The following research areas are covered by the program: social science, psychology, communication science, culture study, management science, and engineering science. For more information click here.