Interconnectedness

In his new book, The Universe in A Single Atom, the Dalai Lama talks about the belief in the independent existence of things. He asks David Bohm about this concept finds that the answer from a physicist is not so different from the ancient Buddhist thought.

He [Bohm] said that if we examine the vaious ideologies that tend to divide humanity, such as racism, extreme nationalism, and the Marxist class struggle, one of the key factors of their origin is the tendency to perceive things as inherently divided and disconnected. From this misconception springs the belief that each of these divisions is essentially independent and self evident.

As humans, I think we love to categorize people but from the quote above and reading, I think it's important to remember how divisive categories can be. Perhaps while mentally putting people in their boxes we should remember that the boxes are all one part of a greater whole.