Greetings Friends,
A quick note before we begin:
Our free Wisdom 101 Course (register for free here) begins today with the email meditation below and a live meetup every Wednesday at Noon EST (recording available for those unable to attend). For the first two weeks, I’ll share the email meditation here on Substack — after that, it will only go to those who register.
This week’s meetup includes a brief overview of the course and discusses the topic of Impermanence. Here are the details:
When: 18 Jan at Noon EST (Wednesday)
What: Overview & Introduction
Where: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJckc-mqpzkrEt11WIvXovye_ZFhsHaUoSli
How does the World Work?
The notion of impermanence (or nothing lasts) is stressed across wisdom traditions. It is often viewed as a foundational perspective or universal truth. Although it seems we can often overestimate our understanding of impermanence.
A philosophy of life has three components: metaphysics (how the world works), ethics (or virtues), 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.
But people like the ancient pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus (and the Buddha) stressed that understanding “nothing endures but change” is central to living a good life. Heraclitus called “change” the only constant thing, emphasizing that everything flows, and nothing abides; everything gives way, and nothing stays fixed.
Similarly, Marcus Aurelius wrote to himself in 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?
“No one ever steps in the same river twice,” Heraclitus famously said, “for it is not the same river, and they are not the same person.”
But how many of us actually see ourselves as constantly changing? 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 have little to do with the direction we choose and the choices we make now. But it is not only Heraclitus and the Buddha stressing this point. The Existentialists also urge us to realize that we are constantly becoming.
My conversation with Skye Cleary (the author of How to Be Authentic) discussed how Simone de Beauvoir’s philosophy and the notion of 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. The wisdom of impermanence is about understanding that nothing lasts. We are perpetually dying every day and becoming every day.
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Additional Resources:
How the World Works - Three Eternal Truths on the Art of Living (Read)
The Suffering of Certainty (The Wisdom of Uncertainty) (Read)
Life is Short - Buddhist Teaching (Listen)
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Thank you for reading; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
P.S. Feel free to comment, ask questions, or make suggestions.