The other day I was meditating and an image of a flower came to mind, complete with its lovely fragrance. Once I inhaled deeply to savor the aroma, the flower suddenly changed to a dead animal, complete with the odor of decomposition.
I realized that in fact neither state should necessarily be preferred over the other. Everything changes. Nothing permanently remains as it is.
But I also realized something else. That awareness of detaching oneself, of being indifferent to the changes, brought up a sense of great compassion.
It seems paradoxical to talk about indifference and compassion as being intimately linked, but I think they are. When you experience indifference to the inevitable cycle of change, you also experience compassion for the system as a whole, a kind of universal compassion that's inaccessible while you're holding onto an egoistic desire to hold onto things as you want them to be.
