Four Noble Truths Summary
From the readings presented through the unit content along with the article, Four Noble Truths by J.S. Strong, I believe, “dukkha” can be qualified as suffering rather than stress. Strong gave detailed examples in the article such as, “birth is stressful, old age is stressful … association with what is disliked is stressful; being dissociated from what is liked is stressful; not obtaining what is searched for is stressful” (Strong, 2015, 250). The Buddha further clarifies and states that these five examples express the totality of our time in this world as being stressful. However, stress is an emotion, a form of misery, which can be qualified differently for every individual. For example - some may experience stress before an exam while
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In the four truths of life in Buddhism, the initial two phrases, “everyone suffers, we cry in pain when we emerge into the world and death involves suffering” and “suffering occurs because we, lust, desire, and crave” elaborate that life, death and re-birth is a constant cycle of suffering. Furthermore, the third truth states, “If you end your cravings, you will end your suffering”, which explains that if one can resolve their cravings, they can end their suffering. Dukkha can be explained and understood as a state of undergoing pain on a larger scale with things such as overall dissatisfaction however, when we try to analyze that statement and focus on dukkha as pain, it could portray that one is only looking at a small possibility of outcomes instead of all the possibilities. For example – there is every possibility of an individual experiencing stress, even if they are not stressed. Stress is constant part of the cycle of life and it appears in diverse forms at different stages in life. In the course readings’, suffering is described in the form of desire, pleasure, lust and etc. These emotions provide a temporary feeling. However, to eliminate suffering and achieve a long-term feeling of nirvana, one must follow the last and the fourth truth called, the eightfold path. This eightfold path consist of the right understanding, right intention, right speech, right action, right work, right effort, right meditation, and right contemplation which must be practiced
In the four truths of life in Buddhism, the initial two phrases, “everyone suffers, we cry in pain when we emerge into the world and death involves suffering” and “suffering occurs because we, lust, desire, and crave” elaborate that life, death and re-birth is a constant cycle of suffering. Furthermore, the third truth states, “If you end your cravings, you will end your suffering”, which explains that if one can resolve their cravings, they can end their suffering. Dukkha can be explained and understood as a state of undergoing pain on a larger scale with things such as overall dissatisfaction however, when we try to analyze that statement and focus on dukkha as pain, it could portray that one is only looking at a small possibility of outcomes instead of all the possibilities. For example – there is every possibility of an individual experiencing stress, even if they are not stressed. Stress is constant part of the cycle of life and it appears in diverse forms at different stages in life. In the course readings’, suffering is described in the form of desire, pleasure, lust and etc. These emotions provide a temporary feeling. However, to eliminate suffering and achieve a long-term feeling of nirvana, one must follow the last and the fourth truth called, the eightfold path. This eightfold path consist of the right understanding, right intention, right speech, right action, right work, right effort, right meditation, and right contemplation which must be practiced