This is an explanation on the Four Noble Truths. The Four Noble Truths cover the first up to the last part of the entire Buddhism.
by Khenpo Tashi
All individuals need Buddhism, at least some form of it. What the Buddha talked about in his teachings is reality. He is not talking about what he likes or what he has theorized or created by himself.
Buddhism is not like a philosophical, social or an economic theory that we randomly think of to try to explain something. What the Buddha said is reasonable. What he taught is summarized in the Four Noble Truths.
The word ‘reasonable’ in Buddhism, rig pa in Tibetan, means “based on logic or according to reality”.
The Buddha started with – “there is suffering”. Do we agree with this?
Actually, we can say that Buddhism is very vast, non-quantifiable and difficult to talk about. But with this first truth that he spoke about – “there is suffering” – this first truth allows us to relate to the whole of Buddhism.
First Noble Truth: Presence of Suffering
Suffering is what we can feel and experience. It is something that we have felt and experienced. And it is something that we will keep on feeling and experiencing. This concept is very basic and very relateable. Yet, even this concept alone is already very vast.
This is why it is called ‘Noble’ because it is very true and very profound. “There is suffering” – This is the “First Noble Truth”.
We have heard that Buddhism talks about past lives, future lives, and uncountable past and future lives. If we move that aside for now, within just a day, we will already meet the First Noble Truth. Within one day, the Buddha’s teaching is already applicable to us.
From waking to sleeping time, we encounter suffering or experience happiness through our actions, speech and mind. If we encounter suffering through the physical, the verbal or mental aspects, this is foremost due to our mind.
This is why it is called ‘Noble’ because it is very true and very profound.
Second Noble Truth: The Source of that Suffering
The second of the Four Noble Truths that the Buddha said is “suffering has a cause”. Our suffering does not come from fire burning, water rising from below, or from the external elements. It does not truly come from the outside.
Our suffering mainly comes from our side. We feel pain because we have a body. We feel hurt because we have emotions. We feel depressed because we have negative mental states.
Suffering is based on our craving, on our anger and our delusion. Craving, anger and delusion are based on our “ignorance”. Ignorant of what? Ignorant of reality!
Through the strength of our “ignorance”, we create a lot of mental, verbal and bodily actions, or Karma. These Karma are the causes for us to suffer. These Karma create our present body, our negative emotions, and our negative mental states. (READ: Pride in Buddhism)
Karma means cause and result. There is mental, verbal and action-based Karma. We have a mind filled with extreme happiness – this is the cause. Our thoughts, words and actions follow. They are also happy – this is the result. Karma also applies to the opposite of happiness, which is suffering.
Through the strength of our “ignorance”, we create a lot of mental, verbal and bodily actions, or Karma. These Karma are the causes for us to suffer.
We may not admit that we believe in “Karma”, but we do. Avoiding killing or harming others is already believing in the concept of Karma. Somehow, we know that this negative action – such as killing or hurting others – has its results. We know this from waking to sleeping.
In other words, we have some belief in Karma. However, our actions and habits throughout the day are still mostly ‘selfish’ – we feel angry, jealous, envious, suspicious and so on. These also create negative Karma. This is true.
Fourth Noble Truth: The Method to End Suffering
To summarize, there is suffering and there is a cause to it.
We know the sickness and the cause of the sickness. It is like the heat from fever. This heaty, prickly feeling of the sickness is the Karma, or the actions, due to ignorance. Nobody wants this heaty feeling. So, what is the method for curing this heat and the sickness? Medicine.
Normally, a patient cannot prescribe the cure for her own sickness. A doctor who is more knowledgeable is needed. This is the Buddha. What is the medicine that he prescribes? The method of ‘accumulation’ and ‘abandonment’. This is the Fourth Noble Truth – “the method to end the suffering”.
The word ‘accumulation’ means to ‘collect‘. ‘Abandonment’ means to ‘let go‘, ‘avoid‘ or to ‘leave behind‘. With full confidence in Karma, we apply restraint to our negative actions as much as possible. That is the meaning of ‘avoiding’ the negative Karma.
For example, we avoid killing, we avoid causing pain. We are ‘letting go’ and ‘leaving behind’ something negative.
Besides this, we also collect good actions, words and thoughts, or good Karma. That is the ‘accumulation’ part. (READ: The Ten Virtues)
Third Noble Truth: Cessation, or Bringing to an End
Through restraint in actions, words and thoughts, restraining will slow down and stop the negative. This is the beginning of the Truth of Cessation – the Third Noble Truth. Leaving behind all self-centeredness will result in the full stopping of our suffering.
That is the solution. The solution is about the curing of the sickness. Leaving behind that sickness results in recovery or getting well. This is the truth in the Third Noble Truth.
The Benefits
We do not know how beneficial the Buddha’s teachings are. Why? This is because we have not studied them properly and extensively.
Some people only believe that Buddha’s teachings will calm their anger or emotions. Actually, Buddhism is much, much more than that.
A Teaching Based on Reality
Normally, there are two ways to judge an honest man. First is if his words are correct for us, or his words are true. Second is if his actions are honest and true.
Using the first reasoning, if we investigate other belief systems, is there proper reasoning in them, without gaps and faults? How about the Buddha’s teaching on the Four Noble Truths? Does it apply to us and to our situation? Are there gaps in the Buddha’s teachings?
In any case, since the Buddha has investigated phenomena to its furthest limits, what he said should be accurate and true. We can investigate this.
Some people are stubborn, even some Buddhists. They say, “I’m a Buddhist, I’m a member of this religion. I believe in this Buddhist faith”. But they just believe in any weak reasoning that they have come up with or that someone has told them. This won’t do. This will result in unstable faith. What we call blind faith.
This – the Four Noble Truths – may be the most basic of the Buddha’s teachings. Yet, this is very, very special wisdom from the Buddha. Very few individuals have spoken about this.