Change Agent

by Daniel Suarez

But you must realize that all of humanity is 99.8 percent genetically identical. Just one-fifth of a percentage point is all that comprises our individual genetic identity.”

“Craving leads to disappointment and sorrow. This we call dukkha. Suffering. It is one of the two characteristics of sankhara—‘conditioned phenomena’ through which we perceive the physical world.”

“Theravada Buddhism follows the Pāli Canon—a collection of the oldest Buddhist texts. They teach us that life has but three characteristics, the first of which is anicca—impermanence. All conditioned phenomena are subject to change: physical characteristics, assumptions, theories, knowledge. Nothing is permanent because all things are bound together, recursively, and as one changes, so, too, do the others. It is the longing to stop this change that causes the second characteristic—dukkha. Suffering.”

“Anatta—the third characteristic of life. The not-self. There is no permanent atta—or self. From the moment we begin, all entities—including living beings—are subject to a process of continuous change.”