#1 and #2: It is not quite right to say “..things that do not really exist in reality more than a figment of the imagination of the mind”
- Things do exist in a sense, but they all have finite existences, i.e., death (destruction) is built-in with the birth of living or inert things. Furthermore, they undergo unexpected changes during their existence.
- The correct interpretation is the following: It is incorrect to say things don’t exist, but it is also incorrect to say things don’t exist; things exist as long as the sustaining dhammas (with a long a) have not run out of energy.
- See “Kaccānagotta Sutta (SN 12.15)“
#3 is correct.
