Hello there -
If everything is ultimately empty of a self, then there really is no difference between a human, a dog, an insect, a tree and a stone. Is that correct? Thank you in advance for your response.
All things are impermanence and dependent originated and thus empty of a self; it is a common trait that is share by all things. As everything is dependent originated and come about due to different in circumstances, environmental factors and/or karmas, all things are different from each other.
Asking questions with an 'if' is often a lovely approach in chan buddhism.
In one translation of the Vimalakirti Nirdesa, 'The Dharma is omnipresent, because it is like infinite space. It is without color, mark, or shape, because it is free of all process. It is without the concept of "mine," because it is free of the habitual notion of possession. It is without ideation, because it is free of mind, thought, or consciousness. It is incomparable, because it has no antitheses. It is without presumption of conditionality, because it does not conform to causes.'
'If' there is a presumption of conditionality, the 'if' perhaps may keep the TS running around in another circles that at best is different from the circles that I suffer in.