The Dhamma and the Three Marks of Existence

What Is the Dhamma?

The word Dhamma (Sanskrit: Dharma) is one of the most important concepts in Buddhism. It refers both to the way things truly are — the underlying nature of reality — and to the body of teachings the Buddha gave to help people understand and live in accordance with that reality. When Buddhists talk about “taking refuge in the Dhamma,” they mean committing themselves to the Buddhist path and the truths the Buddha discovered at his Enlightenment.

The Dhamma is one of the Three Jewels (also called the Three Refuges) alongside the Buddha and the Sangha (community). Buddhists in Britain today, whether practising in a Theravada vihara in London or a Tibetan centre in Cumbria, chant “I take refuge in the Dhamma” as a central act of commitment to their faith.

Dependent Arising

Dependent arising (Pali: paticcasamupada) is a foundational insight at the heart of the Dhamma. It teaches that nothing in the universe exists independently or by its own fixed nature — every phenomenon arises because other conditions give rise to it, and when those conditions change or cease, the phenomenon changes or ceases too. This applies to physical objects, mental states, relationships, even the sense of “self” we experience.

The teaching is sometimes summarised as: “When this arises, that arises. When this ceases, that ceases.” For example, suffering arises because of craving; when craving is removed, suffering is removed. Understanding dependent arising is considered essential to liberation in Buddhism because it dismantles the illusion that things — including “me” — are solid, permanent and separate from everything else.

Anicca — Impermanence

Anicca is the Pali word for impermanence. The Buddha taught that everything that arises through causes and conditions — every thought, feeling, physical object, relationship and mental state — is in constant flux and will eventually cease. Even what feels most solid and reliable is subject to change.

For Buddhists, recognising anicca is not meant to lead to despair but to wisdom. When a practitioner understands impermanence deeply — not just intellectually but through meditation — they stop clinging so tightly to experiences, people or possessions, knowing that holding on to what must eventually change is itself a cause of suffering. Many Buddhist teachers point to the changing of the seasons, the ageing of the body, or the passing of emotions as everyday reminders of anicca.

Anatta — No Fixed Self

Anatta is often translated as “no-self,” but this requires careful explanation. The Buddha did not simply deny that experience exists — he denied that there is a fixed, permanent, independent “self” standing behind our experiences. What we call “I” or “me” is, in the Theravada analysis, a constantly changing flow of the Five Aggregates (skandhas) — form, sensation, perception, mental formations and consciousness. None of these aggregates, individually or together, constitutes a permanent, unchanging self.

Dukkha — Unsatisfactoriness and Suffering

Dukkha is the third mark. It is often translated as “suffering,” but the Pali term carries a richer meaning: it includes obvious suffering (pain, illness, grief), the suffering of change (pleasures that cannot last), and the pervasive unsatisfactoriness of conditioned existence as a whole — the background sense that nothing quite delivers the lasting fulfilment we seek.

The Buddha identified three types of dukkha. The first is ordinary pain and distress (dukkha-dukkha) — physical and emotional suffering. The second is the suffering of change (viparinama-dukkha) — the way pleasant experiences are impermanent and turn into loss. The third is the suffering of conditioned existence itself (sankhara-dukkha) — the underlying restlessness of a life not yet liberated. Understanding dukkha motivates Buddhists to seek the path that leads beyond it.