The pattern printed in my breathing here
Has not been seen before.
Let the moment’s condensation vanish without trace:
The cherished pattern no one can efface. Osip Mandelstam
In Buddhist teaching impermanence (anicca) is one of the three universal characteristics, sometimes referred to as the Three Marks of Existence, along with no-self (anata) and suffering (dukkha).
It is important to remember that the Buddha emphasized practical tools for change, and steered away from metaphysics and theoretical speculation. “I teach one thing.” he said, “suffering and freedom from suffering.” In addition, he recommended that we question and test received beliefs and teachings—including the ones that came from him.
In the West, however, we are not used to challenging beliefs, especially in a religious context. Despite many signs to the contrary, we have a deeply conformist tendency. Challenging authority is still associated with heresy. So teachings that are intended as practical instructions become inadvertently turned into fixed principles.
This distinction may seem subtle, but it is an important one. It is not hard to understand that everything does indeed change, and that everything is impermanent. But when you turn Impermanence into a fixed principle you limit your ability to actually assess your experience of impermanence, and you miss some important distinctions.
The article from which this is taken can be found at
http://www.sweepingzen.com/Article_by_Caitriona_Reed.html
The pattern printed in my breathing here
Has not been seen before.
Let the moment’s condensation vanish without trace:
The cherished pattern no one can efface.
Osip Mandelstam
In Buddhist teaching impermanence (anicca) is one of the three universal characteristics, sometimes referred to as the Three Marks of Existence, along with no-self (anata) and suffering (dukkha).
It is important to remember that the Buddha emphasized practical tools for change, and steered away from metaphysics and theoretical speculation. “I teach one thing.” he said, “suffering and freedom from suffering.” In addition, he recommended that we question and test received beliefs and teachings—including the ones that came from him.
In the West, however, we are not used to challenging beliefs, especially in a religious context. Despite many signs to the contrary, we have a deeply conformist tendency. Challenging authority is still associated with heresy. So teachings that are intended as practical instructions become inadvertently turned into fixed principles.
This distinction may seem subtle, but it is an important one. It is not hard to understand that everything does indeed change, and that everything is impermanent. But when you turn Impermanence into a fixed principle you limit your ability to actually assess your experience of impermanence, and you miss some important distinctions.
Replay of Imagination Awake Teleseminar
This podcast is from our ten day NLP training. It’s a brief overview on the formation of parts when innate wholeness is fragmented by negative emotions, values conflicts, incongruities, limiting beliefs and limiting decisions.
There’s no such thing as Buddhism. There is however a metaphor and instructions towards the sort of focus that can transform your life. How we choose the stories and how we use capacity our capacity to focus are key, and we can become, and do, and have, all we dream.
