མ་རྟག་པ་ཉད་ཀྱ་མད intro.3

intro.3

The Sūtra on Impermanence is a short work, which may be separated into fifteen sections. It begins with the very brief opening half of its narrative frame . This opening frame gives little information apart from indicating that the Buddha was staying at the Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park, in Śrāvastī. There is no interlocutor. The Buddha addresses the monks in his presence by declaring that all conditioned states are impermanent and therefore should be rejected , noting that “life indeed concludes with death, has its limit in death, for there is nothing that is born that will not die,” the refrain of the sūtra . He then goes on to present various examples of types of beings, starting with wealthy people of high social status who, despite their status, will ultimately die . He continues with further examples of beings ascending in importance: kings , sages , gods in the realm of desire , gods in the form realm , and gods in the formless realm . All such beings will die. Moving beyond this general hierarchy within Buddhist cosmology, the Buddha continues to the three vehicles and declares that even those who have realized awakening and are free from further births, that is, arhats , pratyekabuddhas , and buddhas , have bodies that will eventually come to an end. The Buddha then reiterates his refrain that there is nothing that is born that will not die, using a simile of clay pots that are created and eventually destroyed . Following this, the Buddha recites a series of verses on the transitory nature of life designed to inspire one to soteriological pursuits .¹ The sūtra ends with the concluding half of the narrative frame, which is even more brief than the opening half, stating the delight of those who heard the Buddha’s discourse .