Three Lakshanas/marks Of Existance Flashcards
What are the three Lakshanas ?
Anicca and dukkha and Anatta
What are they about?
They are fundamental characteristics of existence they are the truth of what it means to be human, the idea that everything is impermanent and has no inherent self and everything and everyone is affected by suffering
What is Anicca ?
Anicca is impermanence Everything in the universe is impermanent, for example mountains build up and then erode clothes are made and wear out and all beings are born and then die, the human body itself is constantly changing particularly thoughts, feelings and moods and ideas evening applying to pain and even the pain and torture of the hell relm will not last forever, the Buddha teaches that nothing is permanent.
What is dukkha ?
Dukkha means suffering, wanting things to be permanent leads to dukkha, suffering is a vital and unchangeable part of life
What are the three types of dukkha?
. Dukkha- dukkha
. viparinama dukkha
. Sankhara dukkha
What is dukkha- dukkha ?
This ordinary or physical suffering, things like illness pain death frustration desires not achieved this is the sort of suffering we see all time just by looking around us its is simply human life.
What is viparinma dukkha?
The suffering that comes from an inability to accept change people cling to pleasant experiences and suffer when they end and the inability to let go causes viparinma dukkha, like an amazing holiday coming to an end they cannot accept that everything is impermanent.
What is sankhara dukkha?
Dissatisfaction with life itself rather then any distinct problem, a sense of frustration at the limits of being human feeling that it is all pointless and will just end in death a general insecurity in life and angst.
What is anatta?
Anatta means ‘no self’ or no soul the Buddha said that nothing in out experience corresponds to the concept of an unchanging immortal soul, the five hand has are what makes a person, the physical and emotional bits all come together at birth and fall apart at death no individual part is the soul. There can be no fixed and separate soul because nothing is permanent or independent so how can the soul be.
What did Stevan laumakis define Anatta as?
The denial of a fixed permanent unchanging self or soul, the Buddha denied any fixed or permanent nature within any object or thing in the universe. Everything lacks inherent existence because all things arise dependant on impermanent causes and conditions.
Story behind Siddhartha and the four sights back story?
Siddhartha had lived a very sheltered life he had never seen anyone age or change or suffering and even illness, he had been sheltered by his farther because the was a prophecy that he would either become a great king and warrior or a holy man, one day he left the palace he saw the four sights.
What are the four sights ?
. An old man
. A sick man
. A corpse
. A wandering holy man
What did this do Siddhartha?
The shock of seeing so much suffering cased Siddhartha to question his whole life and made him resolve to finding out why such suffering exists and what caused it.
Quote from the Buddhas first serman ?
“Birth is suffering , sickness is suffering, ageing is suffering”
