Imagine that youre standing on a long, straight road that stretches out before you as far as the eye can see. As you look down the road, youll notice that the two sides of the road seem to converge at a single point in the distance. This is called the vanishing point, which is a key component of linear perspective in art and design.
However, if you were to try to reach the vanishing point by walking or driving down the road, youd never be able to reach it. This is because the vanishing point is not a physical object, but rather a result of the way our eyes perceive the world around us.
In a way, the vanishing point is like the concept of emptiness in Buddhism. Just as the vanishing point isnt a physical object that we can touch or grasp, emptiness is not a thing that we can point to or identify. Rather, emptiness is the absence of inherent existence that we find when we examine any object or phenomenon closely.
Just as the vanishing point can help us to see the world around us in a new way, recognizing emptiness can help us see beyond surface appearances and understand the true nature of reality. By seeing that all things are dependently arisen and devoid of inherent existence, we can cultivate compassion and wisdom, and let go of our attachment to fixed identities and perceptions.