Evanescent, shimmering, impermanent.
It seems to be easier to relate to persons and phenomena if they appear solid, but in fact it will become easier to relate to them when you see them as evanescent, because their evanescence is a display of their impermanence, and by seeing this you won’t be surprised by their changes, you won’t lock people into certain patterns of behavior and then, because you see them as solid, influence them to stay in those patterns. You will see potential for change, and others may experience your own presence as pleasantly open, because you aren’t superimposing fixed patterns contrary to reality onto them.
Reflection on impermanence reveals the gap between how we conceive ourselves and how we actually are.
The more we reflect on impermanence, the deeper and more forceful our compassion becomes.
Jeffrey Hopkins – Cultivating Compassion
