Life is Impermanent

“Some infants still crawling meet with death. Some youths meet with death. For some, death comes when they are old, frail, and decrepit. Others may not even have the opportunity to take medicine….There are many conditions for death. The power of life is comparative weak, like a butter lamp in a windstorm. Even today at this very moment, death can happen suddenly. By this time tomorrow, you could already be reborn as an animal with horns or with a beak. The time of death is extremely uncertain as well as the future of your rebirth.” From “Words of My Perfect Teacher” by Paltrul Rinpoche.

Wow! That one really hit me! I try to be aware that life is impermanent and that we do not know when death may come. I try to understand that our mind continues. I try to contemplate that I will (most likely) be reborn in future lives. However, it all seems quite foreign and strange.

I may die even at this moment. Before my body is even laid to rest, before distant friends and relatives are even made aware of my death, before others read these words; I may already be reborn in another life. I could already have been born a baby animal living in some far away field. I might be cold, hungry, scared, and confused. I will have lost the opportunity to train in the Dharma.

Then again, with training and practice, tomorrow at this time, I could be traveling on to a pure land or heavenly realm with great Bodhisattva by my side….

Many Dharma Blessings,

Geoff