Impermanence: The Only Permanence in Our Life

“The root cause of suffering is attachment. Nothing is forever except change. Do not look for a sanctuary in anyone except yourself. If you have no one to support you on the spiritual path, walk alone.” 

 

Buddhist monks make use of mandalas made of sand to symbolise impermanence.

 Buddhists believe that death is not the end and each colour on the mandala has a special meaning. Buddhists view impermanence (Anicca or Anitya) as one of the essential doctrines that posits “Everything changes and nothing lasts forever.’ This doctrine affirms that all of the ‘conditioned existence’ is nothing other than transient, inconstant and evanescent. 

 

This really means that all our feelings, moods, desires and wants are constantly shifting and therefore so do our relationships with people. Nothing can remain the same forever. Life is a river of change, loss and rebirth. 

 

It is also known as the first dharma seal (i.e., primary characteristic/principle) in Buddhist philosophy. It teaches that everything of relative or material existence is impermanent. There is always a beginning, a middle and an ending to everything in our lives. It is only when we realise this that our gratitude, appreciation and ability to value what we have when we have it can increase. We understand how to treasure every aspect of life and how to completely live our lives with no glances in our rearview window. 

 

When we realise how fragile life is and how ‘impermanence’ is such a crucial aspect we can then learn to view life as a sandcastle. Anything and everything can change in the blink of an eye. Feelings such as resentment, anger, bitterness or even worry are all impermanent. In the book, Who Dies: An Investigation of Conscious Life and Conscious Death’ by Stephen Levine and his wife Ondrea; the book tells us about the intrinsic wisdom in the impermanent nature of things. 

 

“Every existing thing is impermanent,

When you begin to observe this

With deep understanding and direct experience

Then you remain detached from suffering

That is the path of purification.”

 

Dhammapada     

 

Loss and pain are inherent in existence; life cannot exist without them both. At a crossroads when we know both loss and pain are intrinsic parts of our existence how can we find security in anything when we can’t count on anything being the way we want it to be? At such times we have to refer back to stories from the past and seek solace or solutions from them. For instance, if we just look at a glass that is broken, what do we see? Do we see it as merely a broken glass or do we look beyond that and see it as a container that holds water in it despite the same? In the same way, can we look at ourselves as also broken?

 

Our bodies are impermanent, in such a state of flux that we need to value how precious life is and value our time. Each moment has a whole life in it and a universe in itself. We need to let go of any sort of clinging, stubbornness and inflexibility.            

So, impermanence is the only thing in life that is permanent.