🌀 Quantum Physics and Non-Self Series (1) Where Is the Electron? – Quantum Physics and the Non-Substantial Nature of Existence
🌀 Quantum Physics and Non-Self Series (1)
Where Is the Electron? – Quantum Physics and the Non-Substantial Nature of Existence
– The Meaning of ‘Existence’ from the Perspective of Clinical Oriental Medicine
🧘♂️ From Traditional Oriental Medicine to Quantum Physics
Until now, this blog has mostly focused on Oriental medicine, the I Ching, and the structure and flow of Eastern traditional medicine. However, after briefly mentioning quantum physics and the Buddhist concept of non-self (anatta), I was surprised by the great interest many readers showed.
With gratitude, I would like to slowly share some thoughts I have long kept in mind, along with my clinical experience.
This series consists of three parts, covering the following topics:
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Where Is the Electron? – Quantum Physics and the Non-Substantial Nature of Existence
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There Is No One Who Is Truly “Me” – Rethinking the Concept of Self
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The Eightfold Path and the 8-Fold Way – A Metaphor of Order in Chaos
Today, we begin with the first story.
1️⃣ What Did ‘Existence’ Mean in Classical Physics?
In the physics we learned in school, something “exists” if it has a specific location and certain attributes (mass, velocity, etc.).A ball is on the ground, an electron orbits the nucleus, and a tree is “in” the garden.
This is a substantialist view of existence — the belief that something must exist as a fixed, concrete entity.
Oriental medicine has also long emphasized change and flow over fixed substance in understanding the body and mind.
2️⃣ The Electron: Not “There” but “Probably There”
Quantum physics fundamentally shakes this substantialist view.
The electron is no longer a fixed point. Instead, it can only be described as having a probability of being in certain places. This is mathematically expressed by the wave function.
“It is here.” → ❌
“It is likely here.” → ✅
A similar idea appears in the theory of zang-fu organs (臟腑) in Oriental medicine. When we talk about the liver (肝) clinically, we don’t directly see the physical organ but diagnose "liver qi stagnation (肝氣鬱結)" through patterns of symptoms such as memory loss, menstrual irregularities, chest discomfort, and eye fatigue. We diagnose a tendency of function rather than a fixed substance.
3️⃣ Schrödinger’s Cat – An Undecided State
Schrödinger’s cat experiment illustrates this concept clearly.Until observed, the cat inside the box is neither alive nor dead but exists in a superposition of both states. It sounds strange, but this is the reality modern physics presents.
Similarly, when diagnosing a patient, we do not simply label insomnia as one fixed condition. The patient could be suffering from heart deficiency (心虛), liver fire rising (肝火上炎), or phlegm stagnation (痰鬱).
That is, the patient exists in a possibility space with multiple overlapping pathological states. Treatment narrows and organizes this overlap step by step.
4️⃣ A Philosophical Dialogue with Buddhist Impermanence and Non-Self
Just as quantum physics says even the electron’s position is uncertain, Buddhism long ago taught the concept of the self without substance.
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Impermanence (無常): All things change.
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Non-Self (無我): There is no fixed, enduring self.
Similarly, Oriental medicine views the body not as fixed ‘normality’ or ‘disease’ but as a dynamic balance between harmony and disharmony. This is very much aligned with impermanence and non-self.
5️⃣ Is ‘I’ a Fixed Substance?
If even the electron has no fixed substance, and the cat’s state is undecided until observed, then is the self a fixed substance?We always feel a sense of “I,” but it is a fluid flow of emotions, memories, experiences, even influenced by the weather.
“Today, I don’t feel like myself.”
“Why am I so irritable?”
Such feelings are existential proof that the self is not fixed.
In Oriental medicine, especially in mental illness, attention is paid to the relationship between the heart (心) and kidney (腎). The mind (精神) is not a single entity but a state temporarily formed by the balance of essence (精氣), qi and blood (氣血), and the zang-fu organs.
🔚 Summary – Non-Substantial Existence Is Not Nihilism but Open Possibility
The question “Where is the electron?” is not just about locating a particle.It asks what existence really means and on what basis we say something “exists.”
Quantum physics, Oriental medicine, and Buddhism all follow different paths but focus on relational flow and interaction patterns rather than fixed substance.
Lack of substance does not mean meaninglessness — it means openness to possibility.
This is why Eastern medicine has built its system around the concept of change for thousands of years.
📌 Coming Next
There Is No One Who Is Truly “Me” – Rethinking the Concept of Self
Next time, we will dive deeper into the question of the self.
Why do we feel a sense of “I,” how is that “I” constructed, and under what conditions does it change?
We will explore Buddhist non-self, psychological structures of the ego, Descartes’ philosophy, and moments of ego collapse encountered in clinical practice.
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