when practicing meditation, contemplate one of these four thoughts, when mind wanders, redirect mind to one, then rest in the mind with no-thought
Intellectually understanding impermance is the basis for right view. When we do mindfulness meditation, we see that one moment arises then fades from view. One thought arises and disappears, a feeling arises and eventually disappears, and our bodies came into being (origination) and will one day disappear (cessation/death). These "impermanent" features are dependent on something else to cause them. They are not independent. They did not arise on thier own accord, but conditions came together to create them. Confusion is impermanent. Conditions arose to cause confusion. Thus confusion will not last forever. We can start to create new conditons which will lead to happiness instead.
Meditating on impermance will help and is the entry to Lam-Rim, the Gradual Path to Enlightenment.
Spend some time thinking about impermance:
Listen to the sound of a bell arising and falling away.
Watch the leaves on the ground disappear from fall until summer.
Notice how a dead animal carcas is eventually cleared away by nature.
Watch your thoughts blossum and fade away.
Feel your feelings arising and watch them fall away.
Know that your lifespan will come to an end.
Know that all suffering eventually comes to an end.
Know relativity. What is so important in this moment, what is so permanent that you cling to it in suffering?
First Contemplation: Countless living beings take rebirth as animals, hungry ghosts, and hell beings. Because these beings experience continuous, unimaginable suffering in the lower realms, none of them has the opportunity to practice Dharma. Among those born as human beings there are many who have no opportunity to practice Buddha's teachings. Millions of people live in countries where religion is not tolerated. Some people hold wrong views denying rebirth, the law of karma, or the existence of enlightened beings. Many people are physically or mentally handicapped, or incapacitated by accidents. Others suffer extreme poverty and deprivation, or are caught up in wars or natural disasters. None of these people have the opportunity to follow the spiritual path. Realizing this, we should think 'Unlike all these poor beings, I am free from all these impediments. I am very fortunate. I have an opportunity to listen to instructions on Buddhadharma and put them into practice. I have faith in these instructions. I have complete mental and physical faculties, and it is easy for me to find all the other conditions that are necessary for practicing the Dharma.
The First Meditation: We contemplate these points until we generate a feeling of deep appreciation for the preciousness of our human life, seeing that it provides all the conditions necessary for spiritual practice. We think 'I am very fortunate', and then meditate in this feeling single pointedly. from The Meditation Handbook' by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso (Tharpa Publications)
