Anatta
Buddhism
Print
verified
Cite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Thank you for your feedback
Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.
Join Britannica's Publishing Partner Program and our community of experts to gain a global audience for your work!
External Websites
Alternative Title:
anatman
Anatta, (Pali: “non-self” or “substanceless”) Sanskrit anatman, in Buddhism, the doctrine that there is in humans no permanent, underlying substance that can be called the soul. Instead, the individual is compounded of five factors (Pali khandha; Sanskrit skandha) that are constantly changing. The concept of anatta, or anatman, is a departure from the Hindu belief in atman (“the self”). The absence of a self, anicca (the impermanence of all being), and dukkha (“suffering”) are the three characteristics of all existence (ti-lakkhana). Recognition of these three doctrines—anatta, anicca, and dukkha—constitutes “right understanding.”
Read More on This Topic
Indian philosophy: The concepts of anatta and nibbana
Two key notions, even in early Buddhism, are those of anatta (Sanskrit anatman; “no-self”) and nibbana. The Buddha...
Learn More in these related Britannica articles:
-
Indian philosophy: The concepts of anatta and nibbanaTwo key notions, even in early Buddhism, are those ofanatta (Sanskritanatman ; “no-self”) andnibbana . The Buddha apparently wanted his famed doctrine ofanatta to be a phenomenological account of how things are rather than a theory. In his discourse to… -
Christianity: Evidentialist approach…soul is challenged by theanatta (“no soul”) doctrine, with its claim that the personal mind or soul is not an enduring substance but a succession of fleeting moments of consciousness. And yet Buddhism, teaching as it does doctrines that are radically different from those of the Christian faith, also… -
Buddhism: Suffering, impermanence, and no-self…the concept of no-self (anatman ), Buddhists set forth the theory of the five aggregates or constituents (khandhas ) of human existence: (1) corporeality or physical forms (rupa ), (2) feelings or sensations (vedana ), (3) ideations (sanna ), (4) mental formations or dispositions (sankhara ), and (5) consciousness (…
History at your fingertips
