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The first three discourses of the Buddha all end with people awakening, or “opening the Dhamma eye.” Throughout these stories, the opening of the Dharma eye refers to a single insight, which is stated as “Everything that has a beginning has an end.” This is the insight into impermanence.

How would we practice if coming to this insight were the heart of our spiritual search?

We usually talk about impermanence with several implied caveats, mainly to not neglect your health/relationships/engagement/service. In so many ways, the caveats all seem to pull us back into relationship—which reveals a common delusion. Impermanence suggests that the way to be free is to not crave. It is. But we fall into this trap of thinking that to be in relationship/connection/engagement either implies craving or that ending craving automatically means ending relationship/engagement. But it’s a red herring.

Although there is certainly a strong solitary push in the Buddha’s instructions, it’s clear that his ideal was community, not isolation. Community-building, which was the backdrop for all of the early discourses, depends on creating wholesome structures that will last. And in fact the Buddhist monastic Saṅgha is one of the most durable institutions in the history of the world—by some estimates the MOST durable. So we have a beautiful inquiry here: how to build community and respond to changing conditions with an intention toward preservation of the good, all while practicing toward—and within—the insight that nothing lasts. As a hint, this is the same dialectic we engage in meditation as we endeavor to sustain wholesome states of heart and mind amid an ever-changing internal and external ecosystem.

SEAN OAKES
Sean Feit Oakes, PhD (he/they, queer, Puerto Rican & English, living on Pomo ancestral land in Northern California), teaches Buddhism and somatic practice focusing on the integration of meditation, trauma resolution, and social justice. He received Insight Meditation teaching authorization from Jack Kornfield, and wrote his dissertation on extraordinary states in Buddhist meditation and experimental dance. Sean holds certifications in Somatic Experiencing (SEP, assistant), and Yoga (E-RYT 500, YACEP), and teaches at Spirit Rock Meditation Center, East Bay Meditation Center, Insight Timer, and elsewhere.

LINKS
Website: seanfeitoakes.com
Community Page: In It To End It
YouTube channel: In It To End It
Spirit Rock: spiritrock.org/teachers/sean-oakes
Insight Timer: insighttimer.com/seanoakes

GIVING
All of Dr. Oakes’ independent teaching is offered on the model of Gift Economy, in the Buddhist tradition of dāna, inspired giving. Support of our teaching and community is gratefully received. Thank you for your generosity.

Donate:
seanfeitoakes.com/gift-economy

Blessings on your path.