By Victor M Fontane
After enlightened, Prince Sidharta Gautama, then Lord Buddha, gave his first discourse to his disciples, the Dhammacakkappavattana sutta (The Discourse of the Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma). The Buddha gave this discourse to his five former companions at the Deer Park in Isipatana near Benares, India, on the Āsālha- full moon day (July), two months after his enlightenment. In it, the Buddha expounded the Middle Path which he discovered after being very wealthy and looking for the truth of the ultimate reality became ascetic, almost dying of hunger realized it, nor luxury not total austerity, which forms the essence of his teaching.
Then, within the first discourse gave the teachings on The Four Noble Truth.
The Four Noble Truths are the central doctrine of Buddhism; they are said to provide a conceptual framework for all of Buddhist thought in a simple and practical way.
The four noble truths are:
The truth of dukkha (suffering, anxiety, unsatisfactoriness)
The truth of the origin or cause of dukkha (desire)
The truth of the cessation of dukkha (Nirvana)
The truth of the path leading to the cessation of dukkha
The first noble truth is that there is suffering in the world. Every day thousand of people are suffering, getting old, getting sick an dying but the system we created is designed to hide this reality so we don’t see it reason why we get some kind of immunized and isolated from the pain caused by these events in a day to day life. So, most of the time we don’t get identify or even concern about suffering unless it happens to e relative or very close person and this is the very nature of life and from the buddhist perspective suffering is universal and pervasive.
In his sutta Buddha described suffering in three phases.
-Explained suffering.
-What is suffering in our lives and how affects us.
-When the spiritual seeker internalize it, knowing that the real nature of samsara (life) is suffering everywhere.
Three levels of suffering:
Suffering of suffering. Sorrow and misery we all face, physical and mental pain. All living and sentient beings face suffering. In higher evolved beings like humans there is also mental pain like anxiety, emotions, etc. Of course there some sort of cures at this level.
Suffering of change. We reach out in to the world just for pleasure or satisfaction but the object of pleasure and satisfaction changes as everything change in the Universe and then loses its attractiveness as well as our expectations. Change is pervasive and is a source of unhappiness because change is interdependent, things depend on other things to exist. But ultimately is our not enlightenment state that makes suffering of change to happen as we don’t see, live and realize the ultimate reality of things.
Pervasive suffering. Believing that our non enlighten body-mind is what we really are, clinging to body-mind, in buddhism the five aggregates. It is also our not enlightenment state that makes Pervasive suffering happens as we don’t see, live and realize the ultimate reality of things.
Tibetan Master Tsongkhapa (founder of the Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism) also describe eight types of suffering.
Suffering of birth.
Suffering of old age.
Suffering of illness.
Suffering of death.
Suffering of encountering what is unpleasant.
Suffering of separation from what is pleasant.
Suffering of not getting what one wants
Suffering of the five appropriated aggregates, being attached to body-mind.
Characteristics of the first noble truth, suffering (dukkha).
Impermanence-everything is continuously changing.
Suffering itself-all in life is suffering, even in happiness there is, at one point, suffering as everything is impermanent.
Emptiness-apart from body-mind there is nothing.
Selflessness-there is no self either in body-mind.
The second noble truth is that there is a cause for suffering (dukkha), desire, thirst for the pleasures of the world and even more for the attachment to the form or the physical body which equals to ignorance so, all action based on desire is based in ignorance. Suffering originates in the mind as a causal result and if you remove the cause then eliminate suffering, like a doctor eliminating the source of illness.
The third noble truth is that there is a cure for suffering (dukkha), cessation of sorrow (nirvana), a method.
There are three levels of nirvana.
Temporary nirvana. Is possible to overcome suffering in deep meditation but temporarily like yoga.
Nirvana with residue. After enlightenment you can stay in the physical body but just because of past karma. You continue as an enlighten being in the body-mind with residual karma. Just staying at this level to help others to achieve also Nirvana.
Nirvana without residue. Entering into permanent nirvana.
The fourth noble truth is The Way (eightfold path) to follow to eliminate suffering.
Right view. Means exactly The four Noble Truth. A true understanding of how reality and suffering are intertwined. Intellect obstruct the right view.
Right resolve. After understanding suffering and the cause of suffering I have to resolve to do something. The aspiration to act with correct intention, doing no harm. Next three are when you take charge of your life.
Right speech. Abstaining from lying, and divisive or abusive speech and hold on to the truth.
Right action. Acting in ways that do not cause harm, such as not taking life, not stealing, and not engaging in sexual misconduct.
Right livelihood. Making an ethically sound living, what we do for a living and being honest in business dealings.
Right effort. Endeavoring to give rise to skillful thoughts, words, and deeds and renouncing unskillful ones.
Right mindfulness. Being mindful of one’s body, feelings, mind, and mental qualities.
Right concentration. Practicing skillful meditation (Samadi) informed by all of the preceding seven aspects. A focus clear mind can reveal the secrets of the Universe and oneself.
All these takes us to enlightenment.
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