All Dharmas Are Impermanent

All dharmas are impermanent, and emotions are also impermanent; all have the developmental stages of arising, abiding, changing, and ceasing. Whether good or bad, none of them can endure unchanged or exist forever. If the emotions of joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness arising from the afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion could exist forever unchanged, imagine what would become of sentient beings? The result would be mental breakdown, and ultimately death. Even if a mind delighting in joy that lacked the nature of afflictions were to remain forever unchanged, such a person would still not attain profound meditative concentration (dhyāna).

The worldly law of impermanence is what suits the survival of sentient beings. If that dharma were to become permanent, sentient beings could not endure it. Although impermanent dharmas cause sentient beings suffering, permanent dharmas would likewise cause suffering. Therefore, the world is suffering.