This is Lesson 28 from A Comprehensive Commentary on the Words of My Perfect Teacher, opening the chapter on the impermanence of life. The lesson begins with Patrul Rinpoche's homage prayer to his root guru Jigme Gyalwai Nyugu — a master who saw the three realms as fleeting illusion, cast aside all worldly concerns like spittle, and followed past masters through austere practice — held up as the very embodiment of what impermanence practice produces. The teacher then introduces the first of seven meditations: the impermanence of the outer universe. Drawing on both Buddhist cosmology and modern science, he describes how even the vast structure of Mount Meru, the continents, oceans, and heavens will be consumed by seven suns and dissolved by flood and wind, leaving nothing but space. The story of King Ashoka and the unlearned monk illustrates how a single line — "The earth and the mountains will all perish, let alone your throne" — can, with faith, precipitate genuine realisation. The lesson closes with an urgent call to practice now, comparing diligence to a woman putting out fire in her hair, and warning that without impermanence as a living conviction, all empowerments and instructions remain merely words on a page.
Practice Guide
To practice the meditation related to this teaching, please refer to:
