nonseparate

Nonseparate is a term used to describe a state or relation in which elements are not distinct or separable from one another. It is applied across philosophy, spirituality, science, and everyday discourse to signify unity, interdependence, or indivisibility that challenges the assumption of independently existing parts.

In philosophical contexts, nonseparateness is often linked to monism—the view that reality is a single substance or principle. In Advaita Vedanta, for example, the ultimate nature of reality is regarded as non-dual, with the sense of a fundamentally separate self considered an illusion. In Buddhist thought, the doctrine of dependent origination emphasizes that phenomena arise through interdependence and lack inherent, separate essences, a form of non-separation that underpins many interpretations of reality.

In science, nonseparability refers to a property of quantum systems where the state of the whole cannot be decomposed into independent states of its parts. Quantum entanglement is the best-known example: measurements on one part of an entangled system instantaneously affect the state of another, regardless of distance. This empirical nonseparability contrasts with classical assumptions about independently existing components.

The term also appears in everyday use to describe relationships or processes that cannot be meaningfully separated, such as ecological networks, social communities, or complex systems where properties emerge only through interaction. Some critics caution that appeals to nonseparateness can obscure practical distinctions or lead to overgeneralization if misapplied.

See also: nonduality, entanglement, interdependence, inseparability, holism.