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Dear Dhamma friends,
I’ve been listening to many desanā by Theros who follow Waharaka Thero, and reading PureDhamma.net has been incredibly helpful in connecting the dots. I would be truly grateful if you could help me confirm whether my current understanding aligns with the true meaning of Anicca, Dukkha, and Anatta.
Here is an example I’ve been reflecting on deeply:
🌼 First Scenario: Wanting my hair to stay
- Anicca: My hair doesn’t stay the way I wish — it falls or changes.
- Dukkha: Because I craved for it to remain, I experienced suffering.
- Anatta: Even though it feels like “my” hair, I have no control over it — so it cannot truly be mine.
🌾 Second Scenario: Wanting my hair to fall
- It falls — I get what I want, which appears as nicca.
- But then someone criticises the new look, and I feel upset.
- Even when things seem to go “my way,” the pleasure fades and turns into discomfort.
- Again, I see Anicca, Dukkha, and Anatta — nothing to hold as ‘mine.’
🌿 I believe this is real vipassanā — observing how:
- Assāda (pleasure) → taṇhā (craving) → upādāna (clinging) → dukkha.
- Even when expectations are met, Anicca breaks the illusion.
- There’s truly no refuge in any saṅkhāra.
Have I understood this correctly? Kindly let me know if any part of this is off-track. I’m here to learn and correct myself if needed.
Teruwan Saranai 🙏
— AniccaSeeker
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Yes. It is a simple yet good example to get the basic idea.
- Of course, we can extend to deeper issues.
- For example, if you like to eat ice cream, it seems that it is an action of “nicca nature” while eating it. Then you keep eating ice cream every day to get “more of it.” Eventually, it will have adverse health consequences.
- Going a bit deeper, sensual pleasures, in general, seem to provide a sense of “nicca” or “satisfaction.” Yet, seeking sensual pleasures will keep one away from Nibbana; it is, thus, of anicca nature in the long term. Furthermore, if one engages in immoral deeds to obtain more sensory pleasures, it will have negative consequences even in this life.
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Dear Lal,
Thank you so much for your kind reply. I truly appreciate how you extended the ice cream example to show the deeper implications of anicca, especially how something that feels “nicca” in the short term can lead to suffering in the long run. That really clarified a lot for me.
Thank you again for creating such a helpful space for Dhamma discussion.
Theruwan Saranai 🙏
AniccaSeeker
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It’s much deeper than that, but it is a good start – kinda. Anicca Dukkha and Anatta are the focal point, applying it to hair makes no sense because you can still have your hair the way you want it/like (at least to the extent it is possible), but have no problem with it. If you try to apply it to everything, you will get tired easily. It applies to everything, as long as you can understand it you do not need to go one by one.
One thing may lead to all things too – there are certain examples in suttas when bhikku could not understand Dhamma so Buddha used example so he can grasp the nature of Anicca, Dukkha and Anatta and this is important to understand to focus on nature of it, not hair.
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Dear Christian,
Thank you very much for your response and for pointing me back to the deeper essence of Anicca, Dukkha, and Anatta.
I truly agree that the focus shouldn’t be on the object itself — like hair — but on the nature of how all conditioned things behave. My intention wasn’t to analyse external things for their own sake, but to use a simple, personal example to reflect on how expectation, attachment, and identity lead to dukkha.
As Waharaka Thero often explains,
“Yamak saṅkhatai, paṭicca samuppannai” —
All things that arise are conditioned by causes and are therefore unstable and impermanent.So even something as ordinary as hair, a thought, a feeling, or a dream — all are saṅkhata dhamma, and thus anicca, dukkha, and anatta. If I can see that nature clearly in one, it helps reveal the same in everything. That was the approach I was experimenting with — not to over-analyse, but to reflect with yoniso manasikāra.
Your reminder not to get caught up going item by item is valuable — I will take care to stay focused on the underlying nature, not the surface detail.
Thank you again for helping me reflect more clearly.
Teruwan Saranai 🙏 -
Theruwan Saranai,
I’ve been reflecting on paṭicca-samuppāda and Waharaka Thero’s explanations.
He often says: if things were nicca, we could arrange them as we wish. But since they don’t work that way, they are anicca. Everything we experience is saṅkatha — already conditioned, running on causes and effects.
This makes me wonder:
- The world (nāma-rūpa, saḷāyatana, phassa, vedanā) comes out of past avijjā and taṇhā.
- It feels like a process that keeps running on its own, like a wheel that’s already spinning.
- We only add “fuel” when new avijjā and taṇhā arise.
So my question is: Is this unstoppable, conditioned continuation itself the anicca nature?
Because we can’t hold it, stop it, or bend it to our will → it leads to dukkha → and shows there’s no self (anatta).
Would love to hear others’ thoughts. 🙏
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You wrote: “The world (nāma-rūpa, saḷāyatana, phassa, vedanā) comes out of past avijjā and taṇhā.”
- That is not correct. The correct way to say is: “The world (nāma-rūpa, saḷāyatana, phassa, vedanā) has origins in avijjā and taṇhā. The trigger for the arising of avijjā and taṇhā is saññā.”
- In the case of kama loka (where we live), the trigger is kāma saññā. In general, for kama, rupa, and arupa lokas, I call it “distorted saññā.” P.S. In the suttās, this is also referred to as “saññā vipallāsa.” Here, “vipallāsa” means “confusion/distortion.”
- You can read about it in the following section: “Sotapanna Stage via Understanding Perception (Saññā).”
- The current, in-depth series: “Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta – New Series”
- Understanding this requires a real effort. Don’t expect to read a post or two and understand it.
- Perhaps you could start with the post “Fooled by Distorted Saññā (Sañjānāti) – Origin of Attachment (Taṇhā)” to get the general idea.
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Dear Lal,
Bohoma pin for your explanation. I took the time to read your articles, and this is the way I now understand it:
- The world indeed arises out of past avijjā and taṇhā. Why? Because everything is built from suddhāṭṭhaka — four elements (pathavi, āpo, tejo, vāyo) formed by avijjā, and the other four (vaṇṇa, gandha, rasa, ojā) made meaningful through taṇhā.
- I now see more clearly what distorted saññā means. We confuse our vipāka vedanā with permanent reality.
- Example: cake tastes sweet. That “sweetness” is distorted saññā, not a fixed truth. In fact, it’s only my vipāka sukha vedanā manifesting.
- Without knowing this, I build taṇhā over that saññā — I think the taste is “mine,” controllable, available on demand.
- This is how avijjā and taṇhā keep extending saṃsāra, leading to repeated dukkha.
- I also came to see the difference between anicca and anitya more clearly:
- Anitya (impermanence) is just one small part, like the tail of the elephant — it points to the fact that things arise and pass away.
- Anicca is the whole elephant — because these things arise and pass away beyond our control, they cannot be held according to desire. That’s why clinging to them inevitably leads to dukkha, and shows anatta.
🙏 Bohoma pin again for guiding me to see this connection between vipāka vedanā, distorted saññā, taṇhā, and anicca.
If I am misunderstanding any part of this, please kindly correct me.
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Dear Lal,
Bohoma pin for your kind words of encouragement. I also want to express my deepest gratitude for the tremendous effort you put into building the Pure Dhamma website and distributing the true Dhamma so freely.
I have already received so much help from your writings, and I know I will continue to gain more guidance in the future.
May you always have the strength and blessings to continue this noble work 🙏
Theruwan Saranai 🙏🙏
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The means to get the Dhamma really understood, get craving, suffering, defilements, understood, see the first Noble truth rightly, is to steady associate with Dhamma, eg. dukkha. If not building up a firm border, fence, at first place, so that one does not steady “escape” wrongly from dukkha, there is no change to get it seen rightly. This face for purificasion is Sila, virtue, right conduct.
As long as building fake fences out of merely philosophical ideas, there is no way to come and stay in proper association, no way to develop Saddha and by it the path.
(Samana Johann)
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The means to get the Dhamma really understood, get craving, suffering, defilements, understood, see the first Noble truth rightly, is to steady associate with Dhamma, eg. dukkha. If not building up a firm border, fence, at first place, so that one does not steady “escape” wrongly from dukkha, there is no change to get it seen rightly. This face for purificasion is Sila, virtue, right conduct.
As long as building fake fences out of merely philosophical ideas, there is no way to come and stay in proper association, no way to develop Saddha and by it the path.
Venerable Bhante,
I fully understand your point, based on sīla → samādhi → paññā. I would like to share from my own experience.
From childhood, I was encouraged to keep sīla. I tried my best to protect the pañca-sīla, even keeping a journal to track myself. But without knowing the true Dhamma, it was very difficult — often it felt like just forcing myself.
Now, as I gradually realise the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta, I find that sīla and samādhi arise naturally. I no longer have to force them. For example, I cannot imagine killing, stealing, or lying — not because I am holding external rules, but because before I even act, my citta itself shows me the ādīnava. With wise attention I stop. If I slip due to assāda, guilt immediately arises, which again reminds me of the truth.
So I feel: when true understanding is present, one does not need to cling to sīla and samādhi by force — they happen on their own.
As you beautifully said: “At first, beginners protect sīla with effort (fence). But when one sees anicca clearly, greed, hatred, and delusion weaken — and sīla begins to hold on its own.”
This is what I am beginning to see in my own life.
With gratitude for your guidance.
Theruwan Saranayi. 🙏
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