The Four Noble Truths
1. Life means suffering.
2. The origin of suffering is
attachment.
3. The cessation of suffering is
attainable.
4. The path to the cessation of
suffering.
1. Life means suffering.
To live means to suffer, because
the human nature is not perfect
and neither is the world we live
in. During our lifetime, we
inevitably have to endure
physical suffering such as pain,
sickness, injury, tiredness, old
age, and eventually death; and
we have to endure psychological
suffering like sadness, fear,
frustration, disappointment, and
depression. Although there are
different degrees of suffering
and there are also positive
experiences in life that we
perceive as the opposite of
suffering, such as ease, comfort
and happiness, life in its totality
is imperfect and incomplete,
because our world is subject to
impermanence. This means we
are never able to keep
permanently what we strive for,
and just as happy moments pass
by, we ourselves and our loved
ones will pass away one day, too.
2. The origin of suffering is
attachment.
The origin of suffering is
attachment to transient things
and the ignorance thereof.
Transient things do not only
include the physical objects that
surround us, but also ideas, and -
in a greater sense- all objects of
our perception. Ignorance is the
lack of understanding of how
our mind is attached to
impermanent things. The
reasons for suffering are desire,
passion, ardour, pursuit of
wealth and prestige, striving for
fame and popularity, or in short:
craving and clinging. Because the
objects of our attachment are
transient, their loss is inevitable,
thus suffering will necessarily
follow. Objects of attachment
also include the idea of a "self"
which is a delusion, because
there is no abiding self. What we
call "self" is just an imagined
entity, and we are merely a part
of the ceaseless becoming of the
universe.
3. The cessation of suffering is
attainable.
The cessation of suffering can be
attained through nirodha.
Nirodha means the unmaking of
sensual craving and conceptual
attachment. The third noble truth
expresses the idea that suffering
can be ended by attaining
dispassion. Nirodha extinguishes
all forms of clinging and
attachment. This means that
suffering can be overcome
through human activity, simply
by removing the cause of
suffering. Attaining and
perfecting dispassion is a
process of many levels that
ultimately results in the state of
Nirvana. Nirvana means freedom
from all worries, troubles,
complexes, fabrications and
ideas. Nirvana is not
comprehensible for those who
have not attained it.
4. The path to the cessation of
suffering.
There is a path to the end of
suffering - a gradual path of self-
improvement, which is described
more detailed in the Eightfold
Path. It is the middle way
between the two extremes of
excessive self-indulgence
(hedonism) and excessive self-
mortification (asceticism); and it
leads to the end of the cycle of
rebirth. The latter quality discerns
it from other paths which are
merely "wandering on the wheel
of becoming", because these do
not have a final object. The path
to the end of suffering can
extend over many lifetimes,
throughout which every
individual rebirth is subject to
karmic conditioning. Craving,
ignorance, delusions, and its
effects will disappear gradually,
as progress is made on the path.
