A Binary World

On and off. Black and white. Up and down. Right and left. In and out. Yes and no.

All of these are simple binary statements. They are all fine examples of a series of ones and zeros. There are so many instances of this – in fact, everything in our world can be described with just two numbers.

It is amazing how all of what we do can be reduced to a simple combination of ones and zeros. In many ways, it’s hard to believe, hard to comprehend, hard to imagine how such beautiful patterns and structures in our world exist because of ones and zeros – nothing more, nothing less. This is, without doubt, the definition of “elegance in simplicity”.

And this series of digits brings to mind the fact that life is just a series of simple, straight-forward decisions. It is but a decision made at every fork in the road, a choice in every waking moment, a stimulus and a response – a one, or a zero. On or off. Right or left. Up or down. Yes or no.

A binary existence is really quite Zen-like. It is very much about being “in the moment”, to act upon but one thing at a time, to turn on or turn off, to let go …

But what happens? We get caught in the distractions, caught in the pace, caught in the perception that everything is really so confusing and dramatic and exotic and … unfocused. When we do finally find ourselves simplifying our world, we discover life in the beauty of this “binary flow'” – a fine example of when East meets West, when mathematics meets Tao. And we are re-introduced to – ourselves.

Just a series of ones and zeros. Our world is pretty straightforward, isn’t it?