The three lakshanas

• Dukkha - suffering or unsatisfactoriness
• Anicca - impermanence
• Anatta - non-self

In Buddhism, the origins of the three marks of existence appear to be with Gautama's distress on encountering the Four Sights, however, the marks in themselves appear to be viewed in an optimistic frame as dispelling ignorance and leading to liberation from false views that bind human beings

To truly understand the teachings is far beyond simply acknowledging a label or identifying them as part of a system that fits together nicely so we can make sense of it

• Sumedho: 'The Four…