One of my favorite quotes of all time comes from the pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus: “No one ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river, and they are not the same person.”
The notion of impermanence (or nothing lasts) is stressed across wisdom traditions. It is often viewed as a foundational perspective or universal truth. Heraclitus called “change” the only thing that is constant. Although it seems we can often overestimate our understanding of impermanence.
How many of us believe that we actually change from one day (or moment) to the next? Are you making decisions as the person you are today (or a past version of yourself)?
The Buddha stressed, “One moment can change a day, one day can change a life.” In truth, the past (and future) has little to do with the direction we choose and the choices we make at this moment. To come to this realization, philosophers and spiritual thinkers throughout history focused on the question — How does the world work?
According to Massimo Pigliucci (author of A Field Guide to a Happy Life and a previous podcast guest), a philosophy of life has three components: metaphysics (how the world works), ethics, and a set of exercises or practices. However, most of us spend more time and effort on ethics and practices than on shaping our perceptions (or views and beliefs) about the world.
Contemplate this passage from Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations:
“Is change something to fear? But can anything happen without change? Is there anything that’s nearer and dearer to universal nature? What about you personally? Can you take a warm bath unless the firewood undergoes a change? Can you be nourished unless your food undergoes a change? Can anything else worthwhile take place without change? So don’t you see that the changes you experience are no different and are similarly necessary to universal nature?”
For Heraclitus, understanding that “nothing endures but change” is central to living a good life. “Everything flows, and nothing abides;” according to Heraclitus, “everything gives way, and nothing stays fixed.”
It is easy for us to perceive ourselves as fixed beings. In my recent interview with Skye Cleary (the author of the new book How to Be Authentic), we discussed how Simone de Beauvoir’s philosophy can help us to realize we are constantly becoming. Cleary writes,
“For Beauvoir, there is no fixed essence to our being since we are always becoming something other than what we are today. ‘Existence precedes essence,’ meaning that we exist first and then spend the rest of our lives creating who we are (our essence).”
To quote Heraclitus a final time, “The sun is new every day.” Each day (and moment) is an opportunity to begin again. None of us can step in the same river twice.
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Are you interested in a deeper dive into Heraclitus (and the topic of impermanence)? Sign up for my upcoming talk (Aug 18th at 6:00 pm EST) for The Walled Garden Philosophical Society titled The Poetic Genius of Heraclitus (delivered live over Zoom and free to register).
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Thank you for reading; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
JW
P.S. Feel free to ask questions or leave a comment.