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Talk on Impermanence and Grief
The sudden passing of a close friend, Michel Mounet, brings shock and a confrontation with the nature of loss. The pain of such an event can be soothed by invoking a fresh image from the depths of consciousness, such as the memory of a child named Bé Trúc. Preserving beautiful images in the subconscious, the alaya vijnana, is essential to save us and establish balance during difficult situations.
Impermanence is often understood theoretically rather than as a reality of each second. It is a positive, crucial factor for life; without it, a seed could not become a plant. There are two kinds of impermanence:
- Gradual impermanence, or sát na vô thường.
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Abrupt impermanence, or nhất kỳ vô thường, such as a sudden accident.
Action, or karma, involves both cause and fruit, manifesting as individual retribution and collective retribution. No karma is entirely individual; joy, sorrow, and actions like pollution or drunk driving affect the collective.
The story of Patacara, who lost her husband, two children, and parents in forty-eight hours yet attained enlightenment, illustrates the capacity to transform misfortune into practice. While Victor Hugo viewed man as a helpless reed bending under the wind, the Buddhist answer to insecurity is to live each moment fully in mindfulness. By living deeply now, regret is avoided when impermanence strikes. The person is an assembly of seeds, or bijas, and amassing a treasure of beautiful seeds allows one to establish balance and touch the wondrous things of life.