Anicca

Impermanence. One of the three characteristics of existence (tilakkhaṇa), together with dukkha (dissatisfaction) and anattā (no-self).

Everything conditioned is anicca: it arises from causes and conditions, endures for a time, and ceases to be. No exceptions — bodies, sensations, thoughts, emotions, relationships, civilizations. Impermanence is not a problem to solve but a fact to comprehend.

The Buddha taught anicca not as abstract philosophy but as direct observation. In vipassanā meditation, one contemplates how each sensation appears and disappears, with no “someone” controlling the process. Seeing this clearly (yathābhūta ñāṇa) loosens attachment: if everything changes, what is there to cling to?

In Patañjali’s yoga, impermanence (pariṇāma) is recognized as a source of duḥkha (YS 2.15). Both traditions converge: suffering arises from seeking permanence where there is none.