Etiquette, etc.

When we attach to impermanent objects — sensations, thoughts, feelings, people, places, things — we are always left with the stress and grief of loss, because everyone around us is always changing; it is always being pulled beyond our reach. Our grasping, our fighting against impermanence, results in loss and the suffering that comes with trying to hold on to the constantly changing reality. It’s rather like trying to play tug-of-war with a much stronger opponent: when we begin to lose, as we always will, we can choose to let go or to hold on and receive the “rope burns” of attachment. The survival instinct tells us to hold on; the Buddha urges us to let go.