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,
ardor, pursue 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.