Editing Essence (section)

==Religion==
{{Philosophy of religion sidebar}}

===Buddhism===
Within the [[Madhyamaka]] school of [[Mahayana]] [[Buddhism]], [[Candrakirti]] identifies the [[Atman (Buddhism)|self]] as "an essence of things that does not depend on others; it is an intrinsic nature. The non-existence of that is [[Anatta|selflessness]]."<ref>{{IAST|''Bodhisattvayogacaryācatuḥśatakaṭikā''}} 256.1.7. Translations from "The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path of Enlightenment", Vol. 3 by Tsong-Kha-Pa, Snow Lion Publications {{ISBN|1-55939-166-9}}.</ref> [[Buddhapālita]] adds, while commenting on [[Nagarjuna|Nagārjuna]]'s ''[[Mūlamadhyamakakārikā]]'', "What is the reality of things just as it is? It is the absence of essence. Unskilled persons whose eye of intelligence is obscured by the darkness of delusion conceive of an essence of things and then generate attachment and hostility with regard to them."<ref>{{IAST|''Buddhapālita-mula-madhyamaka-vrtti''}}, P5242, 73.5.6-74.1.2.</ref>

For the [[Madhyamaka]] Buddhists, '[[Shunyata|Emptiness]]' (also known as [[Anatta|Anatta or Anatman]]) is the strong assertion that:
* all phenomena are empty of any essence;
* anti-essentialism lies at the root of Buddhist praxis; and
* it is the innate belief in essence that is considered to be an afflictive obscuration which serves as the root of [[Samsara|all suffering]].
However, the [[Madhyamaka]] also rejects the tenets of [[idealism]], [[materialism]] or [[Cārvāka#No life after death|nihilism]]; instead, the ideas of ''truth'' or ''existence'', along with any assertions that depend upon them, are limited to their function within the contexts and conventions that assert them, possibly somewhat akin to [[relativism]] or [[pragmatism]]. For the [[Madhyamaka]], replacement paradoxes such as [[Ship of Theseus]] are answered by stating that the Ship of Theseus remains so (within the conventions that assert it) until it ceases to function as the Ship of Theseus.

In [[Nagarjuna]]'s ''[[Mulamadhyamakakarika]]'' Chapter XV examines essence itself.

===Christianity===
Essence, nature, or substance in Christianity means what something is in itself and is distinguished from something's accidents (appearance). For example, according to [[transubstantiation]], the eucharistic bread and wine appear to be bread and wine, but are in essence - Jesus' body and blood.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church |url=https://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html#The+Seven+Sacraments+of+the+Church |website=vatican.va}}</ref> Another example is Jesus' teaching "Stop judging by appearances, but judge justly."<ref>{{Cite web |title=John, CHAPTER 7 {{!}} USCCB |url=https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/7 |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=bible.usccb.org |language=en}}</ref> A third example is the [[Beatific Vision]]: the angels and saints in [[Heaven]] see God's essence.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1334 |title=Benedictus Deus On the Beatific Vision of God - Papal Encyclicals Online |url=https://www.papalencyclicals.net/ben12/b12bdeus.htm |access-date=2025-03-10 |language=en}}</ref>

===Hinduism===

In understanding any individual personality, a distinction is made between one's ''Swadharma'' (essence) and ''Swabhava'' (mental habits and conditionings of ego personality). Svabhava is the nature of a person, which is a result of his or her samskaras (impressions created in the mind due to one's interaction with the external world). These samskaras create habits and mental models and those become our nature. While there is another kind of svabhava that is a pure internal quality – [[Simran (Sanskrit word)|smarana]] – we are here focusing only on the svabhava that was created due to samskaras (because to discover the pure, internal svabhava and smarana, one should become aware of one's samskaras and take control over them). [[Dharma]] is derived from the root ''dhr'' "to hold." It is that which holds an entity together. That is, Dharma is that which gives integrity to an entity and holds the core quality and identity (essence), form and function of that entity. Dharma is also defined as righteousness and duty. To do one's dharma is to be righteous, to do one's dharma is to do one's duty (express one's essence).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kaipa Group: Igniting the Genius Within Organizations and Individuals |url=https://www.prasadkaipa.com/blog/archives/2005/07/svabhava_and_sv.php |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=www.prasadkaipa.com}}</ref>