Everything is changeable

[RedLantern]

What exists is changeable and what is not changeable does not exist.Looking at life ,we notice how it changes and how continually moves between extremes and contrasts.We notice rise and fall,success and failure,loss and gain;we experience honor and contempt,praise and blame;and we feel how our hearts respond to all the happiness and sorrow,delight and despair,disappointment and satisfaction,fear and hope. These mighty waves of emotion carry us up,fling us down,and no sooner we find some rest,then we are carried by the power of a new wave again.How can we expect a footing on the crest of the waves?
The Buddha describe the world as an unending flux of becoming.Everything exist from moment to moment.Life is a continuous movement of change towards death.This teaching of the impermanent nature of everything is one of the main pivots of Buddhism.
Today, scientists have accepted the law of change that was discovered by Buddha that there is nothing substantial,solid and tangible in this world.
Where shall we the building of our live in the midst of this ever-restless ocean of existence?

[diablo1974]

Everything changes. Impermanence is the absolute nature to things existing as long as its has a substance, it bounds to change. When conditions gather, it changes. Unveil the Buddha nature in us stops all these changes and stop samsaric sufferings but is a long journey. Everybody has more or less recognizing impermanence in their own way of understanding but most are holding on to grudges and sadness and failures and unable to move forward....but if they apply the theory of impermanence things wouldn't be so bad.

[yontenjamyang]

The four seals of Buddhism, Impermanence, Suffering, Emptiness and Nirvana defines the Buddhist path which makes Buddhism valid. It starts with the first seal; that is impermanence. Impermanence is why things can change from good to bad, bad to good and everything in between. It can change from neutral to neutral from mundane things like the mountains, sea, oceans, the chair, table etc, to feelings, perceptions, formations and even our consciousness (ie when one dies).
It is the reason for our suffering and also the reason why we have a chance for Nirvana. It is the basis of suffering yet also for Nirvana after which one is not subject to impermanence.

Everything is changeable is an understatement. Every changes is more apt, for not only everything is able to change but everything MUST changes. That is the truth of nature.

[fruven]

It is also means things can get better, improve, from bad to good. If everything is static it doesn't make sense that we are here to experience suffering. A static entity shouldn't be able to feel and experience because things wouldn't change. But it doesn't make sense that things doesn't change because without change there won't be enlightenment. Unfortunately the majority think that suffering is the norm and there is no escape from suffering.

[dondrup]

If we observe carefully, we will notice every phenomenon around us changes moment to moment.  There is no single moment where we experience the same phenomenon.  All phenomenon arises and then ceases in dependence upon its causes and conditions.  When the causes and conditions cease to apply, the phenomenon disintegrates or ceases. Since beginningless time sentient beings had accumulated countless karmas.  These karmas will ripen when suitable causes and conditions come together.  Hence we will experience a stream of continuous karmas ripening before us.  However, as it is very subtle and difficult to observe with our naked eyes, we felt there is no change in our experience as objects appear solid and permanent to us!  It is due to our ignorance that we failed to see things as they really are. If we realise things are impermanent, we do not grasp at and become attached to things in this existence. Similarly we avoid being indifferent and aversed to things in this life. Even our life is impermanent! We need to remind ourselves that we are merely traversing through this life.  There are three things that Lord Buddha had taught us to do - accumulate merits, purify our karma and transform our mind.  With that in mind, then only we live our life meaningfully and with direction.

[Dondrup Shugden]

The essential learning from Buddhism is that every phenomena arises dependant on causes and effects.  If the causes and effects disappear then changes occur.

The acceptance of changes, will assist to eliminate our ignorance in grasping on to things.  Such grasping is also attachments which is the root of us evolving continuously in Samsara.

Although we think that there had been a lot of changes in the simple aspect of communication, and for this era the modes for communication is tremendous and efficient, do we say that there is no longer misunderstanding?

Not true, there is still constant misunderstanding so therefore the change is now only about external phenomena but rather internally within ourselves. Once we can change, then all else will and accepted in our minds.

[RedLantern]

Yes, it is very easy to prove that everything is changing. We can even say that everything is changeable. But suffering comes to our minds even when we know it. We have to see this reality through our wisdom. When we cultivate wisdom, this suffering does not come into our minds. Understanding and wisdom are two things. We have to see it the proper way. To say is easier than to practice.

Uncertainty exists in many aspects of our daily lives; thus, we use probability predictions to mitigate and prepare for uncertain events. For example, we may wonder if air quality will be acceptable tomorrow, if the stock market will continue to rise, if a hurricane will occur in a specific place, etc. We need to be able to predict the probability of uncertain events to guide our decisions.

There are two views on uncertainty. One view indicates that uncertainty is changeable, whereas the other view states that uncertainty is predetermined and changeless. Both views can be traced back to religious perspectives on destiny and life, including Buddhism . Buddhism views life as a dynamic and ever-changing process, in which beings experience a succession of lifetimes as one of many possible life forms. In this dynamic process, individuals' fate changes according to their karma (the actions or deeds conducted by an individual in their life). Good karma leads to good fortune, while bad karma results in bad fortune. “A butcher becomes a Buddha the moment he drops his cleaver” is an example of Buddhism's emphasis on the changeable nature of uncertainty.

[yontenjamyang]

Changes are definite as according the 4 Seals, "All that is conditioned is impermanent". It is a sea of change. That is samsara. But in samsara we have different types of karma in terms of the time it takes to pan out. The throwing karma of a human life may be as long as 1 mins to 100 years or more. An accident may take only seconds.

Karma is also complex and multi dimensional. Normally we only said when something happened that it is karma. But it is actually pervasive. Everything that we experience arises from karma. Not just events outside of us, but also what's inside in the form of feeling, perception and our mental formations.

So in the scheme of things because of the differences in the the period of time that karma can play out, we can have the time to make decisions to affect the results of events. So it this case, we can say "Everything is changeable". But only if we have the time and the opportunity to do it.

[psylotripitaka]

Red Lantern, your beginning statement is incorrect:

"What exists is changeable and what is not changeable does not exist." Also, the title of this thread is also incorrect.

Everything that exists is either a conventional truth or ultimate truth. Emptiness exists, but it is not a changeable phenomena. Therefore you should specify that you are specifically referring to the impermanence of conventional truths and not ultimate truths.

[cookie]

For most of us, we are struggling at the most basic changes in our lives. We cannot even cope without complaining on issue like changes in our body conditions caused by illnesses, bodily changes caused by ageing, or changes in climate, changes that take place in our loved ones, losing our loved ones, changes in our economic situations etc. The very mundane changes causes havoc in our lives. We spent lots of time struggling with these changes, not realising that they are the perfect tests or jewels in our Dharma practice. These changes gives us a chance to practice Lojong, Mind Transformation. When mind is transformed changes will affect us less and eventually not anymore. At this point in our spiritual journey, embrace change and use it as a tool to propel us to higher attainments.

[Dondrup Shugden]

Red Lantern, your beginning statement is incorrect:

"What exists is changeable and what is not changeable does not exist." Also, the title of this thread is also incorrect.

Everything that exists is either a conventional truth or ultimate truth. Emptiness exists, but it is not a changeable phenomena. Therefore you should specify that you are specifically referring to the impermanence of conventional truths and not ultimate truths.

I like this clarification which rings true to my mind.  Yes emptiness exists and it is not changeable and that is the ultimate truth.

True too is that conventional truths changes as it is dependant arising due to causes and conditions. 

[yontenjamyang]

Dondrup,

Emptiness is not a separate thing. Emptiness is nature of things or phenomena. A chair is said to be emptiness of inherent existence because its existence is dependent on cause and condition ie the carpenter, the wood, the tree, the earth etc and will not be a chair anymore one day when it is broken and become fire wood for example.

For as long as a chair is a chair we say the nature of the chair is empty. When the chair cease to exist, we say the emptiness of the chair also cease to exist.

On a more macroscopic level, Lama Tsongkhapa in his 3 Principal Aspects said that if we regard Emptiness as Dependent Arising, we understand what is Emptiness. This means on one level that everything is impermanent an is in constant flux. This includes all our aggregates of what we consider our "Self" or sense of the "I". Our form, feeling, perception, karmic formations and consciousness. So why do we need to be attached to it?

[psylotripitaka]

Yontenjamyang,

Your response to Dondrup is excellent, and an important addition, but ultimate truth and conventional truth are nominally distinct. Though they are the same entity and arise simultaneously, the purpose of my previous explanation and Dondrup's subsequent understanding is the clarification that impermanence is not emptiness of inherent existence. Although we say they are the same entity or that for example form is the emptiness of form appearing as form, emptiness is always only the mere absence of the inherent existence of form, not all the conventions ascribed to form. Dependent-relationship and impermanence prove conventional truths are empty, and they are the same entity as their emptiness because they arise simultaneously, and exist because of each other, but the emptiness of form is only the mere emptiness of form, it is not the qualities of impermanence, color, shape, texture, materials, name, function and so forth.

[Dondrup Shugden]

Dear Yontenjamyang and Chokyi Dorje,

I am reflecting on what both of you have explained and if there is something else, I will post again on this. 

I am also reading the book "Introduction to Emptiness" by Guy Newland.  It is important to understand emptiness and impermanence in order to rid me of attachments. Thank you.