<p>In secular ideology, it is called 'probability'.</p>
<p>Buddhism (<a href="https://suttacentral.net/sn14.15/en/sujato?layout=linebyline&amp;reference=none&amp;notes=asterisk&amp;highlight=false&amp;script=latin" rel="nofollow noreferrer">SN 14.15</a>) says beings of similar dispositions come together and converge because of an element (dhatu).</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-06-07T02:16:50.643Z
2023-06-07T02:16:50.643Z
Dhamma Dhatu
<p>Coincidence and noting coincidence is mental proliferation and conceptualization, <em>papanca</em>.</p>
<p>Also, please read &quot;<a href="https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/q/26819/471">What is papañca?</a>&quot;</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Venerables, dependent on the existence of an eye and a visible
object, eye-consciousness arises. The combination of the three is
sense-contact. Because of sense-contact, there is feeling. What one
feels, one identifies; what one identifies, one thinks about; what one
thinks about, one proliferates about; what one proliferates about,
with that as its source, identification and conceptualization based on
proliferation beset a man in regard to visible objects cognizable by
the eye in the past, present, and future.<br />
<a href="https://suttacentral.net/mn18/en/suddhaso?reference=none&amp;highlight=false" rel="nofollow noreferrer">MN 18</a></p>
</blockquote>
<p>There are a billion things happening at the same time, but you only notice the things that are important or interesting to you.</p>
<p>Ven. Thanissaro explains that in his footnote to <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.4.14.than.html#fn-1" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Snp 4.14</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The perception, &quot;I am the thinker&quot; lies at the root of these
classifications in that it reads into the immediate present a set of
distinctions — I/not-I; being/not-being; thinker/thought;
identity/non-identity — that then can proliferate into mental and
physical conflict. The conceit inherent in this perception thus forms
a fetter on the mind. To become unbound, one must learn to examine
these distinctions — which we all take for granted — to see that they
are simply assumptions that are not inherent in experience, and that
we would be better off to be able to drop them.</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-06-14T03:13:54.537Z
related post: https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/41084/the-meaning-concept-of-ma%C3%B1%C3%B1assav%C4%81-dhatu-vibhanga-sutta-mn-140
blue_ego
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-06-08T05:06:10.637Z
2023-06-08T05:06:10.637Z
ruben2020
<p>Is the world itself intelligent?  They say everything happens for a reason. Coincidences are prevalent. Is nothing private?  The world seems godless but there are all these hints.  Perhaps the human has created a way for this to occur.  Is it magic? are coincidences a <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an04/an04.170.than.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">corruption of insight</a>?  what does Buddhism have to say about this?</p>
<p>example of coincidence per request:</p>
<p>two customers in a pizza shop:
the first customer says to the cashier while paying, &quot;get your tips&quot;. the next customer in line <strong>does</strong> tip on his order and although he overhead the previous customer's comment, he <strong>did not</strong> notice the first customer giving tip. finding it slightly strange, since he was already planning on giving a tip.  a strange feeling overcame the customer and cashier as he leaves the shop.</p>
<p>example 2:
is it not a coincidence that Buddha sculpture made from stone is like the real ones, like very still and stuff?</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/GRBNm.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/GRBNm.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>

<philosophy>
what is the cause for coincidence?
# what is the cause for coincidence?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2023-06-06)

Is the world itself intelligent? They say everything happens for a reason. Coincidences are prevalent. Is nothing private? The world seems godless but there are all these hints. Perhaps the human has created a way for this to occur. Is it magic? are coincidences a [corruption of insight](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an04/an04.170.than.html)? what does Buddhism have to say about this?

example of coincidence per request:

two customers in a pizza shop:
the first customer says to the cashier while paying, "get your tips". the next customer in line **does** tip on his order and although he overhead the previous customer's comment, he **did not** notice the first customer giving tip. finding it slightly strange, since he was already planning on giving a tip. a strange feeling overcame the customer and cashier as he leaves the shop.

example 2:
is it not a coincidence that Buddha sculpture made from stone is like the real ones, like very still and stuff?

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/GRBNm.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/GRBNm.jpg)

**Tags:** philosophy


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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2023-06-08. Score: 1 | Accepted answer

Coincidence and noting coincidence is mental proliferation and conceptualization, *papanca*.

Also, please read "[What is papañca?](https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/q/26819/471)"

> “Venerables, dependent on the existence of an eye and a visible
> object, eye-consciousness arises. The combination of the three is
> sense-contact. Because of sense-contact, there is feeling. What one
> feels, one identifies; what one identifies, one thinks about; what one
> thinks about, one proliferates about; what one proliferates about,
> with that as its source, identification and conceptualization based on
> proliferation beset a man in regard to visible objects cognizable by
> the eye in the past, present, and future.  
> [MN 18](https://suttacentral.net/mn18/en/suddhaso?reference=none&highlight=false)

There are a billion things happening at the same time, but you only notice the things that are important or interesting to you.

Ven. Thanissaro explains that in his footnote to [Snp 4.14](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.4.14.than.html#fn-1):

> The perception, "I am the thinker" lies at the root of these
> classifications in that it reads into the immediate present a set of
> distinctions — I/not-I; being/not-being; thinker/thought;
> identity/non-identity — that then can proliferate into mental and
> physical conflict. The conceit inherent in this perception thus forms
> a fetter on the mind. To become unbound, one must learn to examine
> these distinctions — which we all take for granted — to see that they
> are simply assumptions that are not inherent in experience, and that
> we would be better off to be able to drop them.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: related post: https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/41084/the-meaning-concept-of-ma%C3%B1%C3%B1assav%C4%81-dhatu-vibhanga-sutta-mn-140  

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### Answer by username_1 on 2023-06-07. Score: 1

In secular ideology, it is called 'probability'.

Buddhism ([SN 14.15](https://suttacentral.net/sn14.15/en/sujato?layout=linebyline&reference=none¬es=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin)) says beings of similar dispositions come together and converge because of an element (dhatu).


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