'What is the true meaning of impermanence? It is that any phenomenon that depends for its origination on causes and conditions must be impermanent, for the reason that the very causes and conditions that give rise to its existence are also the causes for its disintegration and cessation. All these phenomena are momentary, in the sense that they all go through a process of change moment by moment, and they do not require secondary conditions for their disintegration. They very fact that the causes and conditions which produce them are adequate causes and conditions for their disintegration shows that these phenomena must be, by nature, momentary and impermanent.
'Look at external matter, for instance. Take an object like this plant by my side. In terms of its continuity, it appears to us to be something which is enduring, in the sense that we saw this plant yesterday and we see it again today. We assume that it is the same plant today as it was yesterday, but if we analyze it more deeply, and get down to the level of elementary particles, we find that the plant has been going through a constant process of change. The plant that we look at today is not the same plant that was here yesterday. In fact it is only because this plant is by nature momentary that it is possible for it to have gone through the whole cycle of sprouting from the seed, growing, flowering, and finally dying.
'The same is true of our own inner experiences, that is, for our mind and mental processes. It is difficult for us to recognize and identify what mind or consciousness is, yet from our own experience we know that our mind goes through a process of change, and we all experience different levels of consciousness. This shows that the mind is momentary. It also shows that there is a possibility for us to change and transform our own minds.
'So not only external matter, but also our own internal phenomena, are subject to change. Anything that is dependent on causes and conditions for its production and existence is transitory and impermanent.'
- His Holiness the Dalai Lama, in ‘Dzogchen: The Heart Essence of the Great Perfection.’
'Look at external matter, for instance. Take an object like this plant by my side. In terms of its continuity, it appears to us to be something which is enduring, in the sense that we saw this plant yesterday and we see it again today. We assume that it is the same plant today as it was yesterday, but if we analyze it more deeply, and get down to the level of elementary particles, we find that the plant has been going through a constant process of change. The plant that we look at today is not the same plant that was here yesterday. In fact it is only because this plant is by nature momentary that it is possible for it to have gone through the whole cycle of sprouting from the seed, growing, flowering, and finally dying.
'The same is true of our own inner experiences, that is, for our mind and mental processes. It is difficult for us to recognize and identify what mind or consciousness is, yet from our own experience we know that our mind goes through a process of change, and we all experience different levels of consciousness. This shows that the mind is momentary. It also shows that there is a possibility for us to change and transform our own minds.
'So not only external matter, but also our own internal phenomena, are subject to change. Anything that is dependent on causes and conditions for its production and existence is transitory and impermanent.'
- His Holiness the Dalai Lama, in ‘Dzogchen: The Heart Essence of the Great Perfection.’