Cycles of Ups and Downs
How to embrace them to uncover your spiritual evolution
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Cycles of Life and Human Suffering
Do you ever feel stuck, wishing life could return to how it once was?
What if every ending you resist is the start of something essential for your spiritual evolution?
Life unfolds in cycles. From the blossoming of spring to the decay of autumn, from the triumphs of success to the humbling depths of failure, the ebb and flow of existence are inescapable.
And yet, we resist this cycle of change.
At the heart of human suffering lies our inability to embrace impermanence. We cling to what was, fearing the unknown of what might come. We wish to halt the inevitable and preserve a moment, a relationship, a success, as if doing so might freeze time.
But time is indifferent to our protests.
Changing Life Situations:
A job that no longer fulfills us.
A loss of a loved one or a relationship that leaves you feeling alone.
A condition that once brought joy now turns out to be painful.
A possession that defined us may vanish.
The love of a wedding day may sour into the pain of divorce or an unhappy coexistence.
A success that once brought joy can transform into a hollow pursuit.
A long-time friendship that has quietly drifted apart.
A passion that has run its course.
Yet, we continue, holding on to what we’ve invested, finding it hard to Let–Go.
When the mind attaches to something and builds its identity around it, any change or loss feels unbearable. It resists the shift, clinging tightly, as though losing that condition is like losing a part of yourself. In extreme cases, this resistance can lead to despair—some might even take their own lives after losing money or status. For others, major losses bring profound unhappiness or even physical illness.
Every-Thing is Impermanent
The mind’s inability to accept impermanence blurs the line between your life and your life’s situation. Yet these are not the same. Life, your inner essence, remains untouched by the ever-changing conditions around it.
The question is whether we can see through the mind’s attachments and remember what is deeper, unchanging, and truly who we are.
"You are not your mind, body, thoughts, emotions, or the experiences that come and go; you are the space in which all these phenomena occur. You as an awareness remain untouched by everything."
The Buddha spoke of impermanence as the essence of existence. Every condition, every circumstance, is transient.
Jesus echoed this truth: "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume."
To attach ourselves to what cannot last is to invite pain.
But what if we embraced these endings?
What if we saw the closing of one chapter as the opening of another?
What if, instead of clinging, we allowed the currents of life to carry us forward?
The Life Cycles That Shape Us.
Life's highs and lows are not opposites but partners in the dance of existence. Growth cannot happen without dissolution, and success contains the seed of failure. Even in our greatest triumphs, impermanence subtly reminds us that this, too, shall pass.
Our physical energy ebbs and flows. There are days of boundless creativity and seasons of stagnation where everything feels dormant. These low cycles are not failures; they are periods of necessary regeneration. To resist them is to fight against the intelligence of life itself. Often, our refusal to rest or let go manifests as illness, forcing us to stop and heal.
The universe itself mirrors this rhythm.
Stars are born and die.
Civilizations rise and fall.
Every form, from the tiniest flower to the mightiest mountain, is subject to the law of impermanence.
And yet, beneath this ceaseless flux lies a stillness, a deeper dimension untouched by change.
When we stop resisting the cycles of life, we can glimpse this unchanging presence within ourselves — the joy of Being.
And that is God itself.
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