Impermanence is at the heart of all things:Mortality from Buddhist Perspective

One needs to steer the mind towards true detachment

Contemplating impermanence and death helps to prevent the emergence of temporal negative mental states such as greed, ignorance, hatred, pride, jealousy, and other negative states of mind that cause suffering, dissatisfaction and confusion. Reflection on death and impermanence enables you to put an end to delusion, ignorance and all other mental obscurations

In Buddhism, the concept of death is intricately connected to the fundamental teaching of impermanence or Annica. This principle asserts  that all compounded things are in a constant state of change and eventually cease to exist. Reflecting on death and impermanence is a central aspect of many spiritual practices.This contemplation is not intended to invoke despair, but  rather to inspire  a more mindful and meaningful life, acknowledging the uncertainty of how much time we have left.  Contemplating death helps us detach from our attachment to temporary things and instead focus on the spiritual practice, for wealth and loved ones cannot help us at the time of death. 

 Buddhist teachings encourage awareness of the fact that we could die at any moment. This helps us recognise awareness of the preciousness of life and aid in sorting out our priorities. From the Buddhist perspective, the root cause of all our suffering lies in our failure to understand ourselves truly. Buddhism encourages us to discover our true nature. 

Reminding ourselves of our eventual death has been used as a meditative practice since the time of the Buddha. Many people go about their lives, assuming they have all the time in the world. They think it is pointless to contemplate old age, sickness and death now, until those experiences occur. Till then, they believe they should eat, drink and be merry. They want to maximise their pleasure by living life to the fullest, a hedonistic lifestyle that does not align with the Buddhist perspective, as it leads to clinging. However, they must think time swiftly passes by, regardless of whether they consider themselves young or old.  Much of our life has gone forever irretrievably. Instead of letting our lives unfold by chance or be shaped by aversion, delusion or grasping, it is always better to live with consciousness of our mortality, as it helps us prioritise the many competing demands or possibilities in our lives, remembering the preciousness of this moment. 

Contemplating impermanence and death helps to prevent the emergence of temporal negative mental states such as greed, ignorance, hatred, pride, jealousy, and other negative states of mind that cause suffering, dissatisfaction and confusion. Reflection on death and impermanence enables you to put an end to delusion, ignorance and all other mental obscurations. 

Life’s fragility

Life’s fragility is a testament to its transient nature. Death is not just an inevitable phenomenon;  It is a natural and inescapable aspect of life. 

Death is an ever-present reality of impermanence, and it is all around us. It is the ultimate loss. This is a fundamental truth of existence. Some people refuse to acknowledge the impermanent nature of their lives, and  keep pushing it out of their lives, trying to pretend that they  are not going to die, that they will not grow old, that they will be healthy and wealthy until the last moment, From conception in a mother’s womb, our years begin to run out, and with each passing moment of our lives, we draw closer to death.   Only the time of death and the circumstances of its occurrence remain uncertain. Although the time of death is uncertain, the truth of death is certain.   All mortals who are born one day will perish and die. Some die in their prime, others in their old age, but all must inevitably die. Death can strike us at any moment. 

Lord Buddha once declared, “Death will take away a man though he is attached to his children and his possessions, just as a great flood takes away a sleeping village”. Transience is the universal law of all phenomenal things, and it teaches us that nothing remains the same for two consecutive moments. The Buddha observed, “Impermanent are all things. They arise and cease, that is nature; They come into being and pass away. Release from them is bliss supreme” (D 157). “Everything that the nature of arising has the nature of ceasing.”

The great American novelist Thomas Wolfe, summing up the lot of mankind on earth, declared: “Man is born to live, to suffer, and to die, and what befalls him is a tragic lot. There is no denying this in the end.”

In the Anguttara Nikaya, the Buddha offered the following simile to explain human life’s limited and fleeting nature. “Just as a dewdrop on the tip of a blade of grass will quickly vanish at sunrise and will not last long, so is human life, like a drop of dew, it is limited, brief and fleeting, and it has much suffering, full of tribulation…. none who is born escapes death. Therefore, given human life’s limited and fleeting nature, it becomes important for Buddhists to develop “mindfulness of death”. 

King Pasenadi of Kosala at Savatthi asked Lord Buddha once, “Venerable Sir, is there anyone who is born free from ageing and death?” Then Lord Buddha replied, “Oh, great King, no one who is born is free from ageing and death. Even those affluent, rich, with great wealth and property, with abundant gold and silver, and abundant treasures, because they are born, are not free from ageing and death.” 

In Buddhism,  flowers hold profound symbolic meaning to the nature of existence, beauty, and impermanence, serving as a powerful reminder of life’s transient nature, the uncertainties of our lives and the pursuit of spiritual growth. The practice of offering flowers to Buddha, reciting “Pujemi buddham kusmenena, punnena metana labami mokham puppham milayati  yatha idam me kayo thathyati vinasa bhavacvam”, holds profound significance in Buddhism.

Moreover, the Pali stanza, ‘Annicca vata sankhara Uppadavaya dhammino uppajittova nirujhanti thesam vupasamo,’ recited by monks whenever Buddhist funeral rites are performed, reflects on the impermanence of all things conditioned as they bestow merit on the departed one.

Fixated on appearances

People often fail to notice the subtle changes in their physical bodies, although, they  are primarily aware of the more significant transformations that occur daily, such as widespread destruction, loss of life, and decay. In a society fixated on appearances, some try to conceal their subtle signs of  ageing, both physical and psychological by seeking  cosmetic procedures  However, no superficial intervention can alter the fundamental realities of the ageing process. With each passing second, minute, hour, day, month, and year, our lives gradually diminish, inevitably bringing us closer to death. 

We should contemplate our mortality regularly so that we live fully in the present moment and make the most of our life on earth. Accepting our finite lifespan makes us mindful of the preciousness of life. Regular contemplation of death helps us prioritise what truly matters in life and align our lives with our values.

 Some people feel comfortable thinking about death while others find it morbid and unsettling to dwell on mortality, yet acknowledging the transience of life can lead to profound transformations. Embracing the inevitability of death can inspire us to confront our fears and anxieties, enriching our experiences. It prompts us to live authentically, pursue our dreams, and take risks that we might otherwise avoid. This perspective encourages gratitude and inspires us to express love and appreciation toward others more openly and to seek reconciliation in strained relationships.

Buddha built his discourse on the issue of suffering. According to Buddhism, our life is characterised by duuka (suffering), all living beings suffer in one way or another. Suffering may be physical or mental or both. Suffering is brought about by all conditioned things that depend on causes; they continue to change with the changes of causes and conditions, and they do not have a permanent form. Mahaparinnibba sutta states, “Impermanent are all component things, they arise and cease, that is their nature”. They come into being and pass away, Release from them is bliss supreme”. (Annica vata sankara uppada vaya dhaminno , Uppajitva nirujhanti tesam vupasamosukkho). 

Buddhism offers a unique perspective on mortality, viewing death not as a definitive end but as a transition. According to Buddhist teachings, the physical body may perish, but the spirit continues on a journey influenced by our actions—our karma. The rebirth can lead us through various realms based on the choices we make in life, whether that be in heaven, as a human, an asura (demigod), a ghost, an animal, or even hell. This cyclical nature of life emphasises the importance of mindful living, as every action shapes our future existence.

Buddhism teaches that any good or bad act one does during one’s lifetime or immediately before one’s dying moment determines the next birth. It is a wholesome or unwholesome thought. If the dying man had committed one of the five heinous crimes (garuka kamma), such as parricide, matricide, murder of an arhant,wounding of the Buddha, or causing schism. These actions are so weighty that they totally eclipse all other actions and appear very before the mind’s eye. In Buddhism, garuka kamma is a term for one of the five heinous crimes, such as parricide. Ripening of kamma vipaka, or the ripening of volitional actions, is a central belief in buddhism. Weighty or serious kamma, which can be either good or bad  

Moreover, embracing the inevitability of death can inspire us to confront our fears and anxieties, enriching our experiences. It prompts us to live authentically, pursue our dreams, and take risks that we might otherwise shy away from. This perspective encourages gratitude; living with an awareness of mortality inspires us to express love and appreciation toward others more openly and to seek reconciliation in strained relationships.

According to Buddhism, the concept of impermanence is empirically verifiable and observable throughout the entire universe. No other religious teacher or philosopher has articulated the reality of impermanence as profoundly as the Buddha. It is a sublime truth and the crux of Buddhist philosophy. Everything in this world transforms and ultimately perishes. Nothing remains constant, even for a single moment. 

What is built eventually crumbles and falls, whoever is born will eventually die, and what comes together will ultimately separate and fall apart.  All things change, nothing ever stays the same. Change is the essence of life and the essence of existence. It is the inescapable reality. In other words, nothing—divine or human, animate or inanimate, organic or inorganic is permanent, stable, unchanging, or everlasting. 

The Buddhist concept of the transitory nature of all things is encapsulated in the phrase “sabbesankhārāanicca,” which means that all conditioned things that arise as an effect of causes and in turn give rise to effects are transient or impermanent. It is this notion of impermanence that inspired Buddha, as Prince Siddharatha, to embark on a spiritual journey in search of liberation from the suffering that all people endure in life.