The Music of Life: a systems biology view of Buddhist concepts of the self/no-self
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Abstract
Systems Biology is the study of the interactions between the elements (genes, proteins and other molecules) of living
systems. Genes do not act in isolation either from each other or from the environment, and so I replace the metaphor of the selfish gene
with metaphors, many of them musical, that emphasise the processes involved rather than the molecular biological components. This
may seem a simple shift of viewpoint. In fact it is revolutionary. Nothing remains the same. There is no ‘book of life’, nor are there
‘genetic programs’. The consequences for the study of the brain and the nature of the self are profound. They lead naturally to the concept of anatman (Pāli: anatta), no-self, and to a better understanding of
the relation between the microscopic and macroscopic views of the world.
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Views and opinions expressed in the articles published by The Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Universities (JIABU), are of responsibility by such authors but not the editors and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors.
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