Suffering of Change | Setting in Motion the Dharma Wheel

The second aspect of suffering is the suffering of change. The dominant feature of existence is constant flux. The Chinese Book of Change, the I-jing, says that all things are constantly in the state of becoming. By contrast Buddhism says that things arise and perish simultaneously–in the very midst of birth there is both creation and extinction. It is not that after birth the process of dying begins, but that in the very midst of being born there is death. In the midst of creation there is extinction; in the midst of extinction there is birth. The only constant is change–impermanence.
We can view impermanence in ways that correspond with the three aspects of suffering. First is impermanence with respect to the individual’s direct experience of birth, living, and death. Second is impermanence with respect to suffering accompanied by constant change as a fact of existence. Third is impermanence with respect to the conditioned arising and extinction of all phenomena. If we can understand these dimensions of impermanence in suffering, we can also recognize the truth of emptiness and no-self.

The Chinese character hua means ‘suffering of change’ but also has the nuance of ‘destructible.’ Something here today may not be around tomorrow. This is so even with the working of our minds from moment to moment. One thought leads to the next, thought after thought, in constant flux. This is the meaning of ‘suffering of change.’ It may appear that in life we have attained certain results or goals, but these too are constantly changing. Ultimately, there is no such thing as some objective result or goal that has been truly attained, because whatever it is will lack permanence. Rather, we need to understand that the world is a never-ending process, without beginning or end. When we look at our accomplishments from this perspective, we see that the fruits of our endeavors are themselves the product of change. Something had to change in order to get from our starting point to where we are now.When we finally get what we want, why should the process of change suddenly stop? For this reason we should not try to hold on to our gains as something set forever in stone. Success is nothing like a fixed or even stable reality, and can be very fleeting.

I met a fellow who had recently become a professor. I said, “Congratulations on becoming a professor.” This is what he had attained, what he had planned for his life. Next I told him, “It’s unfortunate that one day you will be retired or even fired.” (Laughter) I was not trying to pour cold water on his accomplishment; I was trying to encourage him to gain a deeper insight into the way of existence–that things change and nothing is permanent. So, I encourage you to get a deeper level of insight into your own being and the way of the world, because with this penetrating wisdom, you can start to be free from the suffering of change, the suffering of impermanence.

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