Siddhartha Gautama, commonly referred to as Buddha, was born around 567 B.C.E. He lived most of childhood years in South Asia where he served as a religious teacher. At the age of 29 years, Buddha abandoned the comfort of his home in search of deeper clarity and the meaning of suffering. He spent the next 6 years participating in yogic training, which helped him eschew the way of self mortification – “the infliction of pain on oneself” (Hane & Perez, 2018, p. 57).
As explicated further by Hane and Perez (2018), Buddha “sat in a mindful mediation beneath a bodhi tree” (p. 55). He was determined in his quest to understand the mystery of the world’s sufferings. Consequently, he completed his mission and Siddhartha Gautama became Buddha. Therefore, this paper seeks to provide an in-depth discussion of the four nobles of truth which were the foundation of Buddha’s teachings and understanding of suffering.
The first noble truth reinforces the idea that life is full of suffering. Life, as explicated by Sayrak (2019), is conditioned to undergo multiple challenges right from birth. They include diseases, sorrow, grief, wish, and despair – “all that is born of attachment is suffering” (Sayrak (2019, p. 28). Buddha, as cited in Sayrak (2019), stated that life is full of suffering. The authors added that even ordinary happiness has a long chain of problems associated with it (Sayrak, 2019).
Duhkha, which represents unhappiness, holds that there is something wrong in the universe (Sayrak, 2019). The second noble truth argues that there is a cause to human suffering – it is due to attachment. Attachment is one of the many translations of trishna – others include thirst, lust, carvings and desire (Sayrak, 2019). It can also be viewed in terms of avoidance or hatred. Buddha described the true cause of pain and anguish as destructive and constructive behavior.
Buddha’s teachings revolved around the chain of 12 links in the cause and maintenance of suffering. These chains, as elucidated further by Deroche (2021), are the main cause of the immense suffering experienced around the globe. This form of pain is linked to birth – the willingness to be born, which is further connected to mental clinging to objects. This clinging occurs as a result of thirst or desire for an object developed from sense-object-contact (Deroche, 2021). Ideally, the 12 chains strive to show that suffering is endless and is bound to happen at any given time.
The third noble truth holds that suffering can be stopped or extinguished. All the pain and anguish can be eliminated in Nirvana, “the state of being wherein all clinging” (Sayrak, 2019, p. 28). Buddha pointed out that bondage seizes to exist if individuals work without attachment, hatred, and infatuation (rāga, dveṣa, and moha) (Sayrak, 2019). Practically, one can achieve true cessation, which points to the fact that it is possible to get rid of the confusion.
For instance, by getting rid of the confusion identified as a true cause of suffering, then an individual is able to overcome true problems associated with uncontrollably recurring rebirth, samsara (Sayrak, 2019). The last noble truth about suffering is that there is a true path (marga) (Sayrak, 2019). Buddha followed this path in an effort to reach a state of freedom from misery. Deroche (2021) described this state as “the Eightfold Path to liberation” (p. 20). This state of mind, if developed successfully, can lead one to the path of liberation.
The eightfold path, astangika-marga, as described above, gives an overview of the eight key segments of Buddha ethics. As cited in Deroche (2021), the path is open to everyone, including monks and laymen. The first two segments referred to as prajña, meaning wisdom – right views about why suffering happens in the first place (Deroche (2021). People tend to understand the nature of all things as imperfect, and that anguish is founded in clinging, hate and ignorance. All it requires is having the right resolve where one has the desire or determination to separate themselves from attachment and hatred.
The next three segments focus on a detailed overview of the moral perspective of sila – it comprises of five precepts, among them, refraining from killing and sexual misconduct. Sila is regarded as the foundation of the eightfold path and its practice relate to three Rs – “Right to speech, action and livelihood” (Deroche (2021, p. 21). Firstly, right speech encourages individuals to refraining speaking ill of others and gossiping. Speech, as observed by Deroche (2021) “is often our ignorance made manifest, and is the most common way in which we harm others” (p. 20). Secondly, Right action is defined in terms of the Pancha-Sila’, – it comprises of five vows for refraining from killing, stealing, sensuality, lying and intoxication (Deroche (2021). Lastly, the Right to livelihood emphasizes the individuals to live an honest life.
The last three segments of the eightfold path, relate to Samadhi or meditation. However, Suriyankietkaew and Kantamara (2019) cautioned that meditation is pointless without wisdom and morality. It is important for individuals to strive and take control of their minds and come up with the right approach to developing good mental habits. For instance, individuals should try and suppress bad thoughts and impulses. One way of doing this is by approaching the thought without attachment – recognizing it for what it is and allowing it to fade slowly. On the other hand, positive thinking should be cultivated and reinforced. Right mindfulness is also critical during meditation as it involves developing awareness of the surrounding. Mindfulness can be defined as “bare attention” to these events without attachment” (Deroche (2021, p. 21).
Besides being practiced daily, it should act as a guiding principle for developing a clear awareness of light. Finally, having the right concentration helps free one from all passions and evil thoughts, thus, leading to total cessation of suffering.
In conclusion, Siddhartha Gautama commonly referred to as Buddha, was determined in his quest to understand the mystery of the world’s suffering. He acquired the name Buddha after successfully completing the mission, which saw the development of four noble truths. As discussed above, these truths are: life is full of suffering, there is a cause to human suffering, suffering can be stopped, and there is a true path (marga). According to Buddha, life is full of suffering, and even what is considered ordinary happiness has a long chain of problems associated with it. Similarly, the cause of human suffering is as a result of attachment, trishna. However, the good news is that there is a way of stopping the pain – through the eightfold path which gives an overview of the eight key segments of Buddha ethics.
References
Deroche, M. H. (2021). Mindful wisdom: The path integrating memory, judgment, and attention. Asian Philosophy, 31(1), 19-32. Web.
Hane, M., & Perez, L. G. (2018). Modern Japan: A historical survey. Routledge.
Sayrak, I. O. (2019). Mindfulness beyond self-help: The context of virtue, concentration, and wisdom. Journal of Communication & Religion, 42(4).28-38
Suriyankietkaew, S., & Kantamara, P. (2019). Business ethics and spirituality for corporate sustainability: A Buddhism perspective. Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, 16(3), 264-289. Web.