Via Dhamma Wheel | Right View: Understanding the Noble Truth of Suffering

 

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RIGHT VIEW Understanding the Noble Truth of Suffering When people have met with suffering and become victims of suffering, they come to me and ask me about the noble truth of suffering. Being asked, I explain to them the noble truth of suffering. (MN 77) What is suffering? (MN 9) Not to get what one wants is suffering. There comes the wish: “Oh, that we were not subject to birth, aging, sickness, death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair! Oh, that birth, aging, sickness, death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair would not come to us!” But this is not to be obtained by wishing, and not to obtain what one wants is suffering. (MN 9)

Reflection What exactly does psychological suffering feel like? It is the raw experience of craving itself, the yearning for something that you cannot have, the desperate need for something to go away that is afflicting you, the primal fear of the existential fragility of the human situation. The noble truth of suffering acknowledges all this, but also recognizes that this suffering can be understood and resolved, and thus holds out hope. Daily Practice Allow yourself to feel and explore the psychological pain of not getting what you want. It is not just the yearning for something you feel you need, like thirsting for water, but includes the desperate urge to get free of something afflicting you. Notice also that wishing to get what you want or for what you hate to go away is never effective. There is no escape from suffering except by going directly through the craving that causes it. Tomorrow: Cultivating Lovingkindness One week from today: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel Questions? Visit the Dhamma Wheel orientation page.

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