The Three Marks of Existence Flashcards
What are the three marks of existence?
Anicca, dukkha and anatta
What are the two levels of change?
- Gross level of change
- Momentary change
What is gross-level change?
Change observed with senses. Doesn’t require scientific method to observe it
Examples of gross-level change
Weather, seasons, decay and withering
What is momentary change?
Change unaware of subtle change that is constant from moment to moment. Requires scientific process to allow observation
Examples of momentary change
Atomic, molecular level
Do abstract concepts (time, space,eternal dharma etc) correspond to something that objectively exists?
- Concepts- ways of interpreting our experience of the world- giving MEANING
- Concepts are made up “HUMAN CONSTRUCT”
- Buddhists concepts are not real, only conventional
What is the problem of the relationship between continuity and change?
- Buddhists argue that everything is changing
- Momentary change is like a film reel
- A continuum of causally linked moments; gives the appearance of a continuous sequence
Why does failure to understand and accept change (anicca) cause suffering (dukkha)?
- People attachments and crave or desire for things to remain the same
- People cannot ‘let go’ of cravings and so when things do end or change they aren’t ready and will suffer more
- Accepting the change is a natural part of life will make us happier because we can then go with the flow
What are the main benefits of meditating on change?
- If we know things will change,wither, decay, end or die we are less likely to be attached and can ‘let go’ more easily when the time comes
- Let go- desire, grasp, selfishness
What are the reasons of meditating on change?
1) To understand is an experimental way not intellectual, how impermanence is part of life
2) Helps free the mind from attachments & dukkha
3) To gain enlightenment
4) To become aware of temporary nature of life
What objects do some Buddhists meditate on to help them understand change?
Flowers are often used as a focus of meditation because their beauty does not last long and therefore symbolise impermanence. The other image that is often used is that of the Buddha lying on his right side passing into parinirvana because this is a reminder that everything are subject to death.
What are the three types of dukkha?
- Dukkha-dukkha
- Viparinama-dukkha
- Samkhara-dukkha
What is dukkha-dukkha?
Al kind of suffering e.g. birth, old age, sickness, death etc
What is viparinama dukkha?
Suffering produced by change. Pleasant and happy feelings or conditions in life are not permanent. They will change.
What is samkhara-dukkha?
A combination of ever-changing mental and physical forces which can be divided into five aggregates
What are the 4 types of craving?
- Kama
- Bhava
- Vibhava
- Dhamma
What is kama tanha?
Thirst for sense pleasures
What is bhava tanha?
Thirst for existence and becoming. To want something or be someone
What is vibhava tanha?
Thirst for non existence or to get rid of the unpleasant experiences in life
What is dhamma tanha?
Thirst for ideas and ideals, views, opinions, theories, concepts and beliefs
Why is finding a solution to dukkha important to the Buddha?
To find inner happiness and end the cycle of samsara so one is truly free
How did the Buddha say that dukkha could be stopped?
To find the cessation of dukkha and by doing this follow the noble eightfold path
What was the lesson learnt in the parable of the mustard seed?
That in order to stop the suffering one must ‘let go’ and follow the noble eightfold path
What is anatta?
no fixed self, no soul
What are the 5 skandhas?
- Body or form
- Feelings or sensations
- Perceptions
- Mental formations
- Consiousness
What is form?
- Physical factor
- Refers to the material aspect of existence; physical factor
- Made up of 4 elements:
1) Solidity/matter
2) Cohesion
3) Energy
4) Motion - From the interaction of these- body of flesh, blood
What are feelings & sensations?
- Sensations are experienced through the contact of our sense organs with the external world
- Hedonic tone or ‘taste’ of any experience
- Includes sensations arising from the body and mental feelings
What are perceptions?
Faculty of identifying objects as mental and physical. Perceptions recognise, identify and classify and put sensory experience into words.
What are mental formations?
Mental conditioning, compulsions and complex ideas that results from karma accumulated in this life and from previous lives.
What is volition?
Refers to constructing activities (will power, intention or determination) and is identified with KARMA (the moral effects of our actions are determined primarily by the intentions behind the action). Some volitions are ethically neutral, many states are ‘skilful’ (kusula) and ‘unskilful’ (akusala).
What is consciousness?
Awareness. It plays a coordinating role between sense faculties. It helps to make overall sense of what we perceive.
How Body leads to dukkha?
- Diseases of the body
- Don’t develop inner qualities
- Stay young not old age
- Addicted to tattoos, dying hair
- Attached to objects
- Not wanting to die
- Craving sexual pleasures- food, sex, shelter
- Unhappy with physical appearances- plastic surgery
- Walking if lame or paralysed
How Sensations lead to dukkha?
- Attached to drug
- Obsessed in love
- Clinging to marriage during divorce
- Sight (if blind)
- Places, people, events which give pleasure
- Sensual pleasures
How Perceptions lead to dukkha?
- Experiences can shape perceptions
- Become part of character
- OCD, homophobia
- Feelings can shape perceptions
- Oneself; looks and appearance
- Tastes, preferences, opinions and ideas
- Basic of racism, prejudice and discrimination
- Perceptions of events; past, memories ‘attached to objects’
How Consciousness lead to dukkha?
- Losing consciousness
- Paranoia
- Consciousness of the physical world can lead to attachment
- Dreams e.g. nightmares
- Not wanting to die
- Addiction to drugs
- Sleeping; can’t face reality
- Blindness, deafness
- Not knowing what consciousness is; who am I?
What are the two truths (Mahayana)?
1) Conventional
2) Ultimate
What is conventional?
Deluded (samsara)- social & cultural conditioning, resulting in habits, conditioned states
What is ultimate truth?
Enlightened, reality (nirvana), mind free the clutter of conditioned states or habits
Thoeries of self in Christianity & Buddhism
- Buddhism; no personal or permanent soul can survive death because this is the point when the 5 skandhas separate, so the consequences causing that person cease to be
- Christianity; the soul is permanent moral9 intellectual agent that is subject to the divine judgement following death of the physical body. The soul is the ‘real’ self
Compare atman (Hinduism) and anatta (Buddhism)
- Atman; permanent essence of ‘self’, reincarnated from body to body, presence of Brahman within each individual
- Anicca; teaches impermanence
