RIGHT VIEW
Understanding the Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering
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What is the cessation of
suffering? It is the remainderless fading away and ceasing, the giving
up, relinquishing, letting go, and rejecting of craving. (MN 9)
When one knows and sees bodily sensations as they actually are, then one
is not attached to bodily sensations. When one abides unattached, one
is not infatuated, and one’s craving is abandoned. One’s bodily and
mental troubles are abandoned, and one experiences bodily and mental
well being. (MN 149)
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Since craving
is the cause of suffering, the ending of craving will bring about the
end of suffering. This is both a general principle and a dynamic that
happens in every moment of lived experience. We are aware of something
different every moment, and when we either hold on to that object or
push it away, we feel discontent. Observing it with equanimity takes
away the affliction, and everything simply becomes interesting.
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Sensations flow
through your body in a constant stream. Some you like, some you don’t
like. It is natural to feel attached to the ones that feel good and to
resist and resent the ones that don’t, but this itself is the cause of
suffering—attachment and aversion. Practice just observing each
sensation without attachment, without infatuation, and see for yourself
how mindful equanimity results in bodily and mental well being.
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Tomorrow: Cultivating Appreciative Joy
One week from today: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Way to the Cessation of Suffering
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