Thoughts on the relationship between Buddhism and Physics

Duality.  It’s a phenomenon existent in nature and the universe. The Yogacara tradition and the idea of duality in liberation personally hit a note in the way I think about physics and its explanation of the universe. Physics and religion both together have fascinated me in the ideas of the nature of matter and the universal meaning of everything. The first idea that instantly came to mind was the connection of the Yogacaran idea of duality with wave particle duality in quantum physics, where an elementary particle of matter can exhibit dualistic properties of both waves and particles. That quantum entity is not only a particle, but also a wave.  It isn’t one, but both. Additionally, Schrodinger’s wave function also illustrates the idea of duality. Imagining the symmetry of a wave functioning say on the ‘x’ axis in mathematics. The wave can’t exist without the presence of this axis with respect to the ‘y’ axis. On a different note, in physical chemistry, one chemical can exhibit different states when heat or cold is present or propagated. Over time, all these ideas of matter and their properties and nature have interested me as to what their irreducible state really is. Physics and religion, specifically Buddhism traditions share somewhat similar parallels of thought I feel in regards to the nature of the universe (that irreducible, supreme nature of everything) but ultimately fall short in their relationship on a purely complimentary, unifying explanation. The language of both make attempts to complement one another, but the work of physics unquestionably is still reaching towards understanding of the causes and beginnings of the universe. All of these ideas in science influence my insight into the nature of matter, and ultimately of reality, and existence. It introduces thought to formulate new connections of nature both in reality and within ourselves. If the mind is made of matter, and matter can exhibit a dualistic nature, then perhaps it can be said of something within the perfected nature of existence that the Yogacaran tradition seeks to explain. The mind consciousness of the constructed nature of existence plays a role in the perception and rational reasoning of external reality and begs to question if there is deeper meaning in physics not understood that can further explain this perfected state of existence.