A Conversation About Buddhism
Author: Anup Poudyal
Publisher: The Middle Way Publications
Edition: Authorised Machine-Accessible Edition
Section: Chapter 21
Chapter Title: The Three Characteristics
Pāli Title: Tilakkhaṇa
Copyright: © 2026 Anup Poudyal. All rights reserved.
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CHAPTER TEXT
Chapter 21: The Three Characteristics Tilakkhaṇa
In Buddhism, the three characteristics apply to everything that is conditioned. Any phenomenon arising from causes and conditions carries these features.
1. Anicca — Impermanence
2. Dukkha — Unsatisfactoriness
3. Anattā — Not-self
When this teaching fully landed for me, it was sobering. The key phrase is ‘everything conditioned.’ To make this unmistakably clear, the Buddha describes it as anything internal or external, coarse or subtle, past, present or future, far or near. These three characteristics mark all of it.
As a thought exercise, try to imagine something that does not fall into one of those categories. Spend a moment sincerely contemplating this and let the weight of the realisation sink in. Then we begin to understand why even the word Nibbāna is imperfect as a description of the unconditioned. The metaphor of a flame being extinguished still depends on the flame existing in the first place. Language reaches its limit here.
For most people, insight into the three characteristics matures in phases. In the first stage, we accept the idea intellectually, often on the basis of trust or reflection. In the second stage, glimpses of these truths appear in meditation and in daily experience. In the third stage, the characteristics are directly and continuously seen. Once they are seen, they cannot be unseen. When the conditioned is recognised as conditioned, the unconditioned becomes evident in a new way.
It is important to approach this teaching correctly. Held wisely, it sup-
ports motivation, growth, clarity, and liberation. Held unwisely, it can lead to apathy, hopelessness, or a distorted view that nothing matters. The purpose of this teaching is not to shut down effort but to direct it toward what truly frees.
It is also not helpful to use this teaching out of context in casual conversations or debates. Imagine telling someone that everything they see, hear, taste, smell, touch, and even think is impermanent, unsatisfactory, and without a soul. Without context or practice, this may sound cold, frightening, or nihilistic. It would not serve them, nor would it honour the Dhamma.
In some Buddhist traditions, the language of the three characteristics is expanded into dramatic expressions of emptiness or dreamlike unreality. These methods can be meaningful in their own contexts, yet throughout history, they have also contributed to disagreements among Buddhist schools. Sometimes the teaching is stretched so far that it becomes difficult to relate to daily life, and different interpretations begin to compete rather than support each other. When discussions shift from practice to ideology, division can replace unity. Spiritual debates are valuable when grounded in respect and a sincere wish to clarify what is true, but without lived experience, there is no reliable way to verify the views being presented. The purpose of recognising impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and not-self is not to deny the world or escape it, but to meet life directly and respond with wisdom and compassion.
Used well, the three characteristics become a stabilising compass. They remind us to stay balanced when pleasure becomes indulgence, when discomfort turns toward despair, and when boredom shifts into restlessness. They are medicines for delusion, not excuses to bypass life or elevate oneself above others.
These characteristics have been woven into nearly every topic we have explored, directly or indirectly. Their true value emerges not from discussion but from being recognised in our own moment-by-moment experience. Let us simply continue the practice with this understanding close at hand.