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The Life Buddha And The Four Noble Truths

Y

Yip Hon

Guest
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Noble_Truths





Four Noble Truths



The Four Noble Truths (or The Four Truths of the Noble Ones[1]) (Sanskrit: catvāri āryasatyāni; Wylie: 'phags pa'i bden pa bzhi; Pali: cattāri ariyasaccāni) is one of the most fundamental Buddhist teachings. This Dharma Enlightenment makes ordinary person become the Buddha (Khun Weera Boontanorm, 2000). In broad terms, these truths relate to suffering (or dukkha), its nature, its origin, its cessation and the path leading to its cessation. They are among the truths Siddhartha Gautama is said to have realized during his experience of enlightenment.[2]

The Four Noble Truths appear many times, throughout the most ancient Buddhist texts, the Pali Canon. The early teaching and the traditional understanding in Theravada is that the Four Noble Truths are an advanced teaching for those who are ready for them.

The Sanskrit and Pali words satya and sacca, respectively, mean both "truth" and "real" or "actual thing." With that in mind, one scholar argues that it is important to recognize that the four noble truths are not asserted as propositional truths or creeds, but as "true things" or "realities" that the Buddha experienced.[3] The original Tibetan Lotsawas (Sanskrit: locchāwa; Tibetan: lo ts'a ba), who studied Sanskrit grammar thoroughly, used the Tibetan term bden pa, reflects this understanding.


Background
Why the Buddha is said to have taught in this way is illuminated by the social context of the time in which he lived. The Buddha was a Śramaṇa – a wandering ascetic whose "aim was to discover the truth and attain happiness."[4] He is said to have achieved this aim while under a bodhi tree near the River Neranjana; the Four Noble Truths are a formulation of his understanding of the nature of "suffering",[5] the fundamental cause of all suffering, the escape from suffering, and what effort a person can go to so that they themselves can "attain happiness."[4]

These truths are not expressed as a hypothesis or tentative idea; rather, the Buddha says:

These Four Noble Truths, monks, are actual, unerring, not otherwise. Therefore, they are called noble truths.[6]
The Buddha says that he taught them...

...because it is beneficial, it belongs to the fundamentals of the holy life, it leads to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation of suffering, to peace, to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to Nirvana. That is why I have declared it.[7]
This teaching was the basis of the Buddha's first discourse after his enlightenment.[8] In early Buddhism this is the most advanced teaching in the Buddha's Gradual Training.


Pali and Chinese canon text

1.The Nature of Suffering (Dukkha):
"This is the noble truth of suffering: birth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering, death is suffering; sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief and despair are suffering; union with what is displeasing is suffering; separation from what is pleasing is suffering; not to get what one wants is suffering; in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering."[8][9]

2.Suffering's Origin (Samudaya):"This is the noble truth of the origin of suffering: it is this craving which leads to renewed existence, accompanied by delight and lust, seeking delight here and there, that is, craving for sensual pleasures, craving for existence, craving for extermination."[8][9]

3.Suffering's Cessation (Nirodha):"This is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: it is the remainderless fading away and cessation of that same craving, the giving up and relinquishing of it, freedom from it, nonreliance on it."[8][9]

4.The Way (Magga) Leading to the Cessation of Suffering:
"This is the noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering: it is the Noble Eightfold Path; that is, right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration."[10][11]
 
Y

Yip Hon

Guest
http://buddhism.about.com/od/thefournobletruths/a/fournobletruths.htm






The Four Noble Truths

The Foundation of Buddhism


The Buddha's first sermon after his Enlightenment centered on the Four Noble Truths, which are the foundation of Buddhism. The truths are:

1.The truth of suffering (dukkha)
2.The truth of the cause of suffering (samudaya)
3.The truth of the end of suffering (nirhodha)
4.The truth of the path that frees us from suffering (magga)
Let's look at one truth at a time.




The Truth of Suffering
The First Noble Truth often is translated as "Life is suffering." Many people new to Buddhism tune out as soon as they hear this. But the Pali word dukkha also refers to anything that is temporary, conditional, or compounded of other things. Even something precious and enjoyable is dukkha, because it will end.

Related to the nature of life is the nature of self. Are we not also temporary, conditional and compounded of many parts? We can understand that life is impermanent but are we, also, impermanent? The Buddha taught that before we can understand life and death we must understand the self.



The Truth of the Cause of Suffering
The Second Noble Truth teaches that the cause of suffering is craving or thirst (tanha). We continually search for something outside ourselves to make us happy. But no matter how successful we are, we never remain satisfied.

The Buddha taught that this thirst grows from ignorance of the self. We go through life grabbing one thing after another to get a sense of security about ourselves. We attach not only to physical things, but also to ideas and opinions about ourselves and the world around us. Then we grow frustrated when the world doesn't behave the way we think it should and our lives don't conform to our expectations.

The Buddha's teachings on karma and rebirth are closely related to the Second Noble Truth.



The Truth of the End of Suffering
The Buddha's teachings on the Four Noble Truths are sometimes compared to a physician diagnosing an illness and prescribing a treatment. The first truth tells us what the illness is, and the second truth tells us what causes the illness. The Third Noble Truth holds out hope for a cure.

The Buddha taught that through diligent practice, we can put an end to craving. Ending the hamster-wheel chase after satisfaction is enlightenment (bodhi, "awakened"). The enlightened being exists in a state called Nirvana.


The Truth of the Path That Frees Us From Suffering
Here the Buddha as physician prescribes the treatment for our illness: The Eightfold Path. Unlike in many other religions, in Buddhism there is no particular benefit to merely believing in a doctrine. Instead, the emphasis is on living the doctrine and walking the path.





http://buddhism.about.com/od/thefournobletruths/a/fournobletruths.htm


Read More: The Eightfold Path


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•The Three Marks of Existence
•What Buddhists Believe
•Buddhism: Religion or Philosophy?
Suggested Reading
•What Is Buddhism - An Introduction to Buddhism for Beginners
•What Is a Buddha - Who Was the Buddha
•Reincarnation - Buddhism and Reincarnation or Rebirth
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•Buddhism and Morality - Introduction to the Buddhist View of Morality
•Eight Awarenesses of Enlightenment - Buddhist Teaching on Enlightenment
•Parinirvana - How the Buddha Entered Nirvana
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•What Is Buddhism - An Introduction to Buddhism for Beginners
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Y

Yip Hon

Guest
Re: The Life Of Buddha And The Four Noble Truths

The Fourth Noble Truth Is the Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path is the means by which enlightenment may be realized. The historical Buddha first explained the Eightfold Path in his first sermon after his enlightenment, preserved in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta.

The Eightfold Path is:

1.Right View
2.Right Intention
3.Right Speech
4.Right Action
5.Right Livelihood
6.Right Effort
7.Right Mindfulness
8.Right Concentration
The Path is divided into three main sections: wisdom, ethical conduct and mental discipline.

Wisdom: Right View and Right Intention are the wisdom path. Right View is not about believing in doctrine, but in perceiving the true nature of ourselves and the world around us. Right Intention refers to the energy and commitment one needs to be fully engaged in Buddhist practice.

Ethical Conduct: Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood are the ethical conduct path. This calls us to take care in our speech, our actions, and our daily lives to do no harm to others and to cultivate wholesomeness in ourselves. This part of the path ties into the Precepts.

Mental Discipline: Through Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration we develop the mental discipline to cut through delusion. Many schools of Buddhism encourage seekers to meditate to achieve clarity and focus of mind.
 
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