What is Suñyāta or Suññatā (Emptiness)?

Suññatā (suñyāta in Sanskrit) means the world is empty of anything useful. One believes that the world offers anything substantial or lasting happiness only because one’s mind is defiled with rāga, dōsa, and mōha. One attains Nibbāna upon realizing that.

Revised December 28, 2015; rewritten on November 1, 2025

Suñyāta in Mahāyāna Buddhism

1. In Mahāyāna Buddhism, there are books written about suñyāta (it is suññatā in Pāli) or emptiness. Mahāyāna Buddhism makes a big deal out of suñyāta because its founders (the founders of the Mahāyāna tradition) could not understand the concept of Nibbāna. Unfortunately, many people who are introduced only to Mahāyāna teachings (and are unaware of the Buddha’s original teachings) believe that Nibbāna is an abstract concept.

  • In an online discussion forum in 2014, I saw a comment saying that emptiness describes Paṭicca Samuppāda. This was a surprise, as Paṭicca Samuppāda is not explained in Mahāyāna texts.
  • I have not seen the Paṭicca Samuppāda explained in even a remotely sensible way in a text of Mahāyāna, Zen, or Vajrayana. If you know of such a book, please post a comment on the forum with the book’s name (or any other source), and I would appreciate it.

2. However, if one understands pure Buddha Dhamma, Nibbāna is a simple concept; see, “Nibbāna – Is it Difficult to Understand?“.

What is emptiness?

3. When entity A is devoid of entity B, it can be said that entity A is devoid of B or empty of B. That is the emptiness or suññatā.

  • For example, if we take a water bottle and pour the water out, we say the bottle is empty. But in reality, there is air in the bottle, so the bottle is empty only of water; it is not empty of air.
  • Emptiness is relative. One has to say what it is empty of. There is no absolute “emptiness.” It is meaningless to say, “This is emptiness,” because there may be something we are unaware of.
  • For example, until recently, scientists thought deep space was “empty.” But now they know that it is full energy. Still, one could say that “deep space is empty of tangible matter” to a good approximation.
Suññatā in Buddha’s Teachings

4. The Buddha said when the mind becomes empty of greed (rāga), hate (dōsa), and ignorance (mōha), it becomes empty of those defilements: “rāgakkhayō Nibbānan, dosakkhayaō Nibbānan, mohakkhayō Nibbānan,” and that mind has attained Nibbāna. That is emptiness (suñyāta) regarding defilements. It is a simple explanation, even though it is not easy to get there.

  • When one attains the Arahant phala, one’s mind becomes empty of rāga, dōsa, and mōha. But one still has saññā (perception), vēdanā (feelings), etc., and lives like a normal human being until death.
  • But his/her mind is devoid of greed, hate, and ignorance so that he/she will not do any immoral act under any circumstance.
  • At the death of an Arahant, “this world of 31 realms” becomes devoid of any trace of that Arahant‘s lifestream, except for the Arahant‘s nāmagotta (memory records for previous lives); there is no rebirth. So that is another suññatā.

5. One could also say that the world is empty of anything substantial or permanent (other than those nāmagotta or memory records). 

  • The world of 31 realms (with sentient beings and their environments) is maintained by the ‘mental energy’ (or kammic energy) generated by those sentient beings.
  • That ‘mental energy’ runs out over time, and thus those sentient beings get new rebirths (and their environments are also renewed over long periods). That is why nothing in this world can be ‘maintained to one’s satisfaction,’ and the efforts of those who try are in vain. That is the ‘anicca nature’ of the world.
  • Sentient beings (including puthujjana among humans) generate kammic energy based on their actions, influenced by raga, dosa, and moha/avijja due to their built-in distorted sanna, which gives them an innate feeling that there are ‘mind-pleasing things’ in the world.  
  • Until they learn from a Buddha or a disciple of the Buddha about that distorted sanna (which is kama sanna for humans), all sentient beings are trapped in the cycle of rebirth.
Cula Suññata Sutta

6. There is a sutta in Tipiṭaka that is about suññatā (emptiness) called the “Cūḷasuññata Sutta (MN 121).”

  • It describes how one can overcome various types of distorted sanna associated with the world and attain Arahanthood or Nibbana.
  • This is a sutta at a deeper level, but we have recently covered enough material to understand its gist.

7. In the “Cūḷasuññata Sutta (MN 121),” the Buddha tells Ven. Ānanda, that he often spends time in ‘suññatā vihāra.’  

  • Here, ‘vihāra‘ indicates how one spent the time, and by ‘suññatā vihāra‘, the Buddha meant he often spent time without even a trace of agitation in the mind.
  • You may say: “But I thought the Buddha’s mind is free of agitation at all times (since it is free of raga, dosa, moha).”
  • Even the Buddha (who was born a human) feels the ‘kama sanna‘ as we have discussed. Any mind runs in the ‘auto mode’ in the ‘purana kamma‘ stage and especially at the ‘kama dhatu‘ stage. Even the mind of a Buddha can be a ‘bit agitated’ by the ‘kama sanna.’
  • In the “Nibbānadhātu Sutta (Iti 44),” the Buddha describes the state of mind of an Arahant in daily life as follows: “Their five sense faculties still remain. So long as their senses work, they continue to experience the agreeable and disagreeable, to feel pleasure and pain..” The critical point is that they not only experience ‘kama sukha‘ (colorful world, tasty foods, etc) and bodily pains, but also getting a cheerful or a depressed mindset upon seeing a person liked or disliked, for example. 
  • Buddha’s encounter with a yakkha (spirit/ghost) is a good example. It is described in the “Sūciloma Sutta (Snp 2.5).” The Buddha pulled away from that nasty spirit because its touch was disagreeable (like being touched by a skunk). 
  • There are several ways the Buddha could have lived in ‘suññatā vihāra:’ in Arahant-phala samāpatti, nirodha samāpatti, or in the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi with Ānāpānasati samādhi. All those are devoid of the ‘kama sanna.’

8. Anything in this world of 31 realms arises due to avijjā (ignorance of the real nature of that world): This is the step, “bhava paccayā jāti” in Paṭicca Samuppāda. See the Paṭicca Samuppāda section for details.

  • When avijjā is dispelled through the removal of greed, hate, and ignorance via comprehending Dhamma, NOTHING in this material world can arise because it all starts with “avijjā paccayā saṅkhāra,” i.e., via thinking, speaking, and doing things with avijjā.
  • At Arahanthood, even the slightest bondage to anything material in the 31 realms is discarded, and all causes for anything material (which is the cause of suffering at a deeper level) to arise. This is emptiness or Nibbāna. Also see “What Are Rupa? (Relation to Nibbāna)“.

9. “Yo Paṭicca samuppādam passati, so Dhammam passati” or, “One who understands Paṭicca Samuppāda understands Dhamma”

  • The Mahāyāna sects have moved so far away from the Buddha Dhamma that I cannot fathom why they still call it Buddha’s Dhamma.
  • It is very easy to get the idea behind Paṭicca Samuppāda because it is in the words; see, “Paṭicca Samuppāda – “Pati+ichcha”+”Sama+uppada”, and follow-up posts. Buddha Dhamma is all about cause and effect and that is what is described in Paṭicca Samuppāda.

10. There is a deeper way to analyze Suññata. However, one needs to know the meanings of the Three Characteristics of Nature (Tilakkhana or anicca, dukkha, anatta) first. It is not possible to attain Nibbāna without knowing Tilakkhana or the fundamental nature of this world; see “Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta“.

  • One can get to Nibbāna (also called vimokkha) via contemplating on anicca, dukkha, or anatta (of course, they are interrelated).  Contemplation of anicca leads to animitta vimokkha. Contemplation of dukkha leads to appaṇihita vimokkha. Contemplation of antta leads to suññata vimokkha.
  • However, regardless of the path taken, the result is the same: one gets to Nibbāna, release (or freedom) from this world.

11. Finally, at the fundamental level, Nibbāna means eliminating greed, hate, and ignorance. That REQUIRES comprehension of anicca, dukkha, anatta, or the fundamental nature of this world.

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