In Abhidhamma thought, “momentariness” (kṣaṇikatva) is the doctrine that all conditioned phenomena exist only for an extremely brief instant and then cease completely, giving way to new, distinct phenomena. What seems to be a stable world of things and persons is, from this perspective, a rapid succession of discrete mental and material events (dhammas) arising and vanishing in dependence on conditions. No phenomenon remains the same for two consecutive moments, and nothing possesses enduring substance or inherent existence. This is a radical refinement of the teaching of impermanence (anicca), pressing the insight that change is not occasional but constant at the most fundamental level of experience.

Abhidhamma analysis further articulates each moment of existence as having three analytically distinguishable phases: arising (uppāda), a brief presence or stasis (ṭhiti), and dissolution (bhaṅga). These are not extended durations but aspects of a single, fleeting occurrence. All conditioned formations (saṅkhāra)—including consciousness moments (citta), mental factors (cetasikas), and material phenomena (rūpa)—are understood to follow this pattern. The apparent continuity of a “stream” of consciousness or of a living being is thus explained as a causal series (santati) of such momentary events, each conditioning the next through dependent origination.

From this vantage point, what is ordinarily called a “person” is only a conceptual designation applied to this fast-flowing stream of conditioned dhammas. There is no underlying permanent entity or self that endures through change; rather, there is only the dynamic interplay of arising and ceasing phenomena. Insight into this momentariness undermines deeply held notions of stability, ownership, and identity—“this is mine, this I am, this is my self.” By directly seeing that all experiences are momentary, conditioned, and without an enduring core, the mind is guided toward a liberating understanding of impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and not-self, which stands at the heart of the Abhidhamma’s analytical and philosophical vision.