yathā-bhūta

(Sanskrit). The way things are in actuality; a term used to designate the true nature of phenomena or direct experience unmediated by the superimposition of false concepts such as the idea of an inherent and permanent identity or self (ātman). As such, the term is used in Mahāyāna synonymously with emptiness (śūnyatā), actuality (tattva), suchness (tathatā), and so forth.