“‘All conditioned things are impermanent’ — when one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.” The Buddha
This is a genuine Buddha quote. It’s from the Dhammapada, verse 277.
“‘All conditioned things are impermanent’ — when one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.” The Buddha Click To Tweet
We are all one. As so, we do not harm self
Hi there,
I don’t understand this quote, would you be able to explain what “All conditioned things” are, with specific reference to the word “conditioned”?
Please and thank you 😀
Hi, Dominic.
In Pāli it’s sabbe saṅkhārā aniccā. Saṅkhārā means made (kṛ) together (sam-). It could also be rendered as compounded or confected.
You could even paraphrase “conditioned” as “created” (although not in a theological sense), because that language is more concrete and easier to understand. So “all created things are subject to dissolution” would be a way of paraphrasing this quote.
This can be applied on many different levels in our lives. People who are important to us are impermanent things, because they result from many conditions coming together, and those conditions are constantly changing. Our relationships with them are impermanent things for exactly the same reason. What’s the importance of this? Well, most of us are in denial about the reality of death, which means that bereavement comes as a shock. We interpret it as something having gone wrong with the world, when in fact it’s the world behaving in the only way it can. It’s important also because when we don’t recognize something’s transience, assuming it’s going to be around forever, we don’t value it as we should. We take it for granted. And so the Buddha said words to the effect that there are those who don’t realize that we’re all headed to death, but that those who do realize this don’t waste their time arguing.
Our lives are created from conditions, and are therefore impermanent. Knowing this, what’s important in life? How do you want to spend your time? How do you want to use your energy?
I hope this helps!
All the best,
Bodhipaksa