Download THE 1st UNIVERSAL TRUTH:IMPERMANENCE

1
THE THREE UNIVERSAL TRUTHS:[1] IMPERMANENCE
Once the Buddha overcame his own suffering and became enlightened, he started
teaching others how they could become free from their unhappiness and suffering.
What he taught was that the main reason people suffer is because they are constantly
craving things to make them happy. He said that this was because they didn’t
understand the truth about the person that does the craving (themselves!) as well as
the things that they crave for, and that if they did understand the truth about these
things the craving would stop and suffering would come to an end.
To help people get rid of their misunderstanding and stop craving, he taught the
THREE UNIVERSAL TRUTHS; they are called universal truths because Buddhists
believe they are true for every single thing in the universe.
The Three Universal Truths are ‘Impermanence’ (Pali-Anicca, pronounced
‘Aneecha’), ‘Selflessness’ (Pali-Anatta, pronounced ‘Anatter’), and ‘Suffering’
(Pali-Dukkha, pronounced ‘Ducker’). Pali is an ancient Asian language that some of
the Buddhist scriptures are written in.
THE 1st UNIVERSAL TRUTH:IMPERMANENCE-ANICCA
The Buddha taught that everything that exists, from all of the infinite universes down
to the tiniest atoms is constantly changing-nothing is fixed. Even our thoughts and
feelings do not stay the same from one moment to the next. Things only appear to stay
the same because something similar arises to replace them, like the stream of a
waterfall.
TASKS
In silence, sit and watch a candle flame for five minutes. Then answer the following
questions:
v Is the flame you watched at the beginning of the exercise the same as the one
at the end or has it changed?
v If you think it has changed, when did this change happen?
v Make a detailed list of the changes that took place in the candle, you, the room
and the world outside during the five minutes.
v Is there anything in the universe that is the same as it was when you started the
task?
v What does the term ‘Anicca’ mean?
v Put the teaching on IMPERMANENCE into your own words, using examples
to illustrate the meaning.
KS3 Buddhism, lesson 5
G Beesley & the Dechen Community
2
v According to medical experts, in the space of a few years every single cell in
the body has died and been replaced by new cells. In light of this, do you think
you are the same person as you were 5 years ago? What has changed?
v Describe all of the things that make up ‘you’. Among all of the things, are any
of them permanent?
v Does thinking about the fact that everything is changing all the time make you
feel different? In what way?
KS3 Buddhism, lesson 5
G Beesley & the Dechen Community