Of all footprints, the elephants’s are outstanding;
Just so, of all subjects of meditation for a follower of the Buddhas, the idea of impermanence is unsurpassed.
Maitreya4:
Just as there are no good smells in a cesspit,
There is no happiness among the five classes of beings.5
Guru Rinpoche:
It is said that in this samsara there is not as much
As a pinpoint’s worth of happiness to be found.
But should one happen to find just a little,
It will contain the suffering of change.6
Jetsün Milarepa:
In short, without awareness of death
All Dharma practice is useless.
The master of Mahamudra, Gampopa, said:
The suffering that leads to disgust for the cycle of existences
must be seen as a spiritual master.
Nagarjuna:
Accumulating wealth, protecting it, and using it is exhausting.
So understand that it is the source of endless problems!
Gyelse Thogme Zangpo in The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas7:
The practice of all the bodhisattvas is to leave behind one’s homeland,
Where our attachment to family and friends overwhelms us like a torrent,
While our aversion towards enemies rages inside us like a blazing fire,
And delusion’s darkness obscures what must be adopted and abandoned.
The practice of all the bodhisattvas is to take to solitary places,
Avoiding the unwholesome, so that destructive emotions gradually fade away,
And, in the absence of distraction, virtuous practice naturally gains strength;
Whilst, with awareness clearly focused, we gain conviction in the teachings.
Atisha:
So long as you have not established stability
Distractions will harm your practice.
Abide in the solitude of forests and mountains.
Far from disturbing activities, you can thus fully devote yourself to Dharma practice,
And at the moment of death, you will have no remorse.
Manjushri’s teachings on mind training, called Freeing Oneself from the Four Attachments, state:
If you are attached to this life, you are not a Dharma practitioner.
If you are attached to the cycle of existences, you are not a renunciant.
If you are attached to your own benefit, you have not manifested enlightened mind.
If attachment persists, you are not endowed with the view.
The Four Dharmas of Gampopa constitute a concise instruction for practicing Mahamudra:
Grant your blessing so that my mind may become one with the Dharma.
Grant your blessing so that Dharma may progress along the path.
Grant your blessing so that the path may clarify confusion.
Grant your blessing so that confusion may dawn as wisdom.
In The Supplication to the Past Lineage of the Mahamudra, the Kagyü master Bengar Jampel8 also says:
It is taught that detachment is the legs of meditation.
Accord the great meditator who has cut off the bonds of this life—
Without desire for food or wealth—
The grace of indifference to gain and honor!
We can also cite The Chapters Stated with Intention9:
All that is living is impermanent and disappears at the moment of death;
All that is accumulated is impermanent and ends by dissipating;
All that is composite is impermanent and ends by separating;
All that is built is impermanent and ends by collapsing;
All that rises is impermanent and ends by descending;
Friend and enemy; happiness and suffering; good and bad;
All thoughts that cross the mind—everything is impermanent.
In short, if we truly want to obtain stable happiness—profound inner tranquility; perfect peace—we must take great care of the causes that lead to it:
Ethical humanism.
Nonviolence.
Contentment.
Confidence in the law of karma and the Three Jewels.
Moral ethics.
Impermanence.
These elements give meaning to our lives and are essential for accomplishing all spiritual practice. Without them, it is difficult to attain nirvana.
When we abide in a nonviolent state—ahimsa10—hostility around us ceases.
When we speak only truthful words, listeners adopt our point of view.
The precious gems of positive qualities accumulate around those whose honesty is unshakeable.
If we respect moral ethics, shila,11 in all circumstances, we obtain spiritual strength.
Supreme happiness is the fruit of contentment.
When we trust in the law of karma and we respect it, our life goes from positive circumstance to positive circumstance.
When love
