The Four Noble Truths

The Foundation of Buddhist Thought, Volume 1

Tashi Tsering, Gordon McDougall, Gordon McDougall

• Editorial: Wisdom Publications
• Año: 2005
• ISBN:
  9780861719648
• Categoría: Teología y religión
• Categoría: Budismo

The four noble truths are well known as the Buddha's first and most essential explanation of his enlightened realizations. The truths diagnose the human existential crisis--suffering and its origin--and prescribe a solution--cessation and the path. To understand the four noble truths is to understand Buddhism as a whole.In The Four Noble Truths, Geshe Tashi draws on his decades of training in Tibetan Buddhism to illuminate these truths for a modern audience. His respectful engagement with Buddhists outside his own tradition and his insights into Western culture make this book refreshing. It will reward even those already acquainted with the fundamentals of Buddhism. The Four Noble Truths is the first of six stand-alone volumes in the Foundation of Buddhist Thought series.

1

SETTING THE WHEEL OF DHARMA IN MOTION

The Four Truths

I HAVE BEEN A BUDDHIST all my life. My childhood, my monastic schooling, and now my work have all been steeped in the teachings of the Buddha. While I have questioned many philosophical points within my training—debate being a significant element of Tibetan Buddhist education—I have never questioned the essential message of the Buddha or wondered whether it was still relevant.

Since coming to the West and teaching students who demand logical explanations for the most basic Buddhist concepts, I have had to reassess my own core beliefs. But the more I see Western students integrating Buddhist principles and practices into their lives, the more I understand just how universal the Buddha’s message is. Although you will doubtless come across many foreign terms and concepts in this book, everything the Buddha taught has the power to go straight to your heart. My job is to make sure what you read is meaningful and intelligible so you can fully appreciate its relevance.

The Four Noble Truths Sutra is the Buddha’s first and most essential teaching. It contains the framework of all the many discourses he gave during his forty-year teaching career. If the language and style hinder the clear understanding of his meaning, then hopefully, by the time you have finished this book, you will have a much better grasp of this all-important sutra.

In Tibetan monasteries, as in most traditions within Mahayana Buddhism, the sutras (the discourses of the Buddha) and the shastras (the canonical commentaries) that are studied originate from the Sanskrit-language canon. In this case, however, we are using the sutra translated from the Pali language. Although it differs slightly in style and structure from the Sanskrit, the differences are minor, and in the West this is the better-known version.

The four noble truths are:

1. The noble truth of suffering

2. The noble truth of the origin of suffering

3. The noble truth of the cessation of suffering and the origin of suffering

4. The noble truth of the path that leads to the cessation of suffering and the origin of suffering

The first two noble truths, the noble truths of suffering and of the origin of suffering, really reflect the nature of our present life—they function continually within each of us. The truth of cessation and the truth of the path that leads to cessation are the methods to eliminate suffering and its origin. We need to cultivate them within ourselves in order to overcome our difficulties. Thus, these four noble truths show us not only the nature of our present life in its entirety, but also the possibility of moving beyond this very limited existence into an existence that is free from suffering and its origin.

The first noble truth, the noble truth of suffering (dukkha in Pali), refers to the pain, distress, suffering, anxiety, and dissatisfaction that physically and particularly mentally exist within us. After teaching the first noble truth, the Buddha then explains that the cause of suffering—the second noble truth—is craving, desire, and attachment. With the third noble truth the Buddha shows that there is a means by which suffering can be eradicated forever, and through the fourth noble truth he demonstrates the way to do this. The path that the Buddha lays out to enable us to achieve this eradication of suffering is called the noble eightfold path, which we discuss in chapter 5. Within the four truths we find two distinct sets of cause and result. Suffering is a result and the origin of suffering is its cause. Similarly, the truth of cessation, or peace, is a result, and the path that leads to cessation is its cause.

The four noble truths lay down the blueprint for the entire body of the Buddha’s thought and practice and set up the basic framework of the individual’s path to enlightenment. They encapsulate all of Buddhist philosophy. Therefore studying, meditating, and fully understanding this teaching is very important, because without an understanding of the four noble truths it is impossible to fully integrate the concepts and practices of Buddhism into our daily lives.

We all have an instinctive wish to have happiness and avoid suffering. This feeling does not arise as a result of training, education, or culture; it is innate. The teaching on the four noble truths presents an effective means to achieving this end. The suffering we want to overcome does not come from nowhere. It arises from its own particular causes and conditions. In this teaching the Buddha details the suffering that we experience in everyday life, from the very coarse forms of suffering to the very subtle forms of which we are not even consciously aware. He also explains the causes of that suffering with equal precision.

Similarly, the happiness that we all want does not come from nowhere but arises from its own causes and conditions. Happiness in this case has nothing to do with temporary sense pleasures but refers to the higher states of happiness—the happiness that remains unaffected despite changing external circumstances. Although the cessation of suffering is not in itself a feeling, achieving that kind of cessation through the right path is the highest form of happiness. The path that will lead to the fulfillment of our most basic aspiration to overcome suffering and achieve happiness is explained in this teaching very clearly.

The two main Buddhist traditions, Theravada and Mahayana, have different sets of scriptures. The Theravada is an earlier tradition whose teachings are recorded in the Pali texts, while the Mahayana is based on Sanskrit texts that were written down later. The countries that follow the Theravada tradition strongly emphasize reading, reciting, and learning the actual discourses of the Buddha. In the Tibetan monasteries, which follow the Mahayana tradition, we study the four noble truths on many occasions over the course of our education, but we do not typically study the sutra itself. Usually we study this topic in conjunction with the teachings that emphasize the bodhisattva aspiration for enlightenment for the sake of all other beings. For example, one of the main texts that we study in the monastery is Maitreya’s Ornament of Clear Realization (Abhisamayalamkara), and the main topic of that text is the way bodhisattvas train their minds on the path. The four noble truths is a key subject in illustrating this training. Similarly, in the Mahayana, the noble eightfold path is taught only implicitly within the teachings on the bodhisattva conduct rather than laid out explicitly.

In Tibetan monasteries, study of the four noble truths is combined with the examination of what we call the sixteen characteristics of the four noble truths. Each noble truth is explained, studied, and meditated on by focusing on four defining characteristics. For instance, the first noble truth, the noble truth of suffering, is studied by analyzing its four characteristics of impermanence, suffering, selflessness, and emptiness.

Although the sutra is the main source of all of this, in the Tibetan system the main focus of our study on the four noble truths is the commentaries, which include extensive and elaborate explanations about each of the truths.

THE STRUCTURE OF THE SUTRA

As you can see from the Four Noble Truths Sutra, the Buddha describes each noble truth in a slightly different way. He says that the first noble truth should be understood, the second noble truth should be abandoned, the third noble truth should be realized, and the last noble truth should be developed. This indicates that although the four noble truths are one subject, the way we study and meditate on each truth differs slightly.

The Buddha says that we must understand the truth of suffering. We will overcome suffering eventually as we practice the other noble truths, but first we must understand what suffering is. This is logical. Before taking medicine, we must understand our illness; before abandoning suffering, we need to really understand it. Therefore, at this stage, understanding the truth of suffering is the most important thing we can do, and this requires a clear recognition of its importance and a systematic study of the steps we must take to complete our task.

The Buddha says that the second noble truth, the truth of origin, should be abandoned. So here we have to diligently search for the best method to totally abandon the origin of suffering. This requires a different way of studying and meditating. The truth of cessation, on the other hand, should be realized or attained. Therefore, to begin, we must definitely come to understand that this can be achieved and that we ourselves are capable of achieving it. And naturally we now come to the fourth noble truth, the truth of the path, which we need to develop in order to overcome suffering.

In the first section of the sutra the Buddha very clearly presents the task ahead of us. In the next section he repeats each noble truth three times, each time with a slightly different emphasis and a slightly different flavor. This repetition represents the three phases of understanding that the Buddha himself acquired in his ever-deepening realization of these four truths. The three phases are as follows: knowing the nature of the truth, knowing what needs to be done in connection with that truth, and finally accomplishing what needs to be done.

In regard to the noble truth of suffering, in the first phase the Buddha explains what suffering is, and in the second phase he explains that this suffering should be understood. Then, in the final phase of realizing this noble truth, he explains complete attainment—the fact that when someone has understood suffering fully and completely, this is all that needs to be accomplished.

It is the same with the other noble truths. In relation to the origin of suffering, the Buddha explains what it is, that it needs to be abandoned, and that once abandoned, there is a state of complete attainment and suffering can never return. For the cessation of suffering, the Buddha again explains what it is, that it needs to be realized, and that once it is realized, that is the final point, which can never reverse into noncessation. In fact, this point is liberation or enlightenment. Finally, the Buddha presents the truth of the path in the context of the noble eightfold path, explaining that it must be developed, and that once it is developed, there is nothing that remains to be done.

At the end of the sutra, after explaining the three phases of each noble truth, making twelve aspects in all, the Buddha says, “So long, bhikkhus, as my knowledge and vision of these four noble truths as they really are in their three phases and twelve aspects was not thoroughly purified in this way, I did not claim to have awakened to the unsurpassed perfect enlightenment….” Only after each noble truth has been realized in its own unique way is complete attainment possible.

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THE ORDER OF THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS

The Buddha taught the four noble truths in a very specific order, and this has nothing to do with the order in which things arise in reality. In reality, the cause must naturally come first and be followed by the result; it cannot be the other way around. There is a cause that produces suffering, and there is a path that leads us to the end of suffering. However, in both sets of cause and effect that comprise the four noble truths, the order is reversed—the result of suffering is presented first followed by the cause of the origin of suffering. The second set presents the result of cessation and then the cause of the path.

In his Great Stages of the Path (Lamrim Chenmo) the Tibetan master Lama Tsongkhapa explains that despite not following the natural sequence, this is the particular order that the student should be taught because it represents the way each truth is psychologically established within us. For example, when we start to work with the first two noble truths, it is natural that we first realize that there is suffering. That realization will then lead us to search for the causes of that suffering. It is the same with the second set. When we see that there is suffering and that it has an origin, the next step is to ask if there is any way that suffering can cease. In so doing, we establish that cessation is possible, and then we look for methods that can lead to it.

Say, for example, the sink in my apartment is full of cups and pots, but when I turn on the hot water tap to wash them, nothing happens; there is no hot water. Seeing the flashing red light on the boiler, I phone someone to come and fix it. That is the natural process. When we discover a problem, we go back and try to find its origin. When we see the result, naturally we look for the cause, so the result of identifying a problem is a motivation that starts us off toward the solution. Our minds naturally operate in that way, which is why the Buddha taught the four noble truths in this unique sequence. Therefore, for the Buddhist practitioner who wants to pursue the spiritual path, the realization of this particular sequence is psychologically very natural and helpful. Maitreya’s Sublime Continuum (Uttaratantra) compares these four stages to overcoming an illness.

Just as disease needs to be diagnosed, its cause eliminated, a healthy state achieved and the remedy implemented, so also should suffering, its causes, its cessation and path be known, removed, attained and undertaken.²

It is not until we notice we are sick that we begin to look for the source of our sickness, and seeing that there is a cure, try to obtain it. This is suffering, origin, cessation, and path.

THE ETYMOLOGY OF THE TERM FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS

It may be useful to clarify what a noble truth actually is, because truth has different meanings in different contexts. In Buddhism there are many truths—the two truths, the four noble truths, and so on—and we need to be very careful and not assume that truth always means the same thing.

The modifier noble means truth as perceived by arya beings, those beings who have had a direct realization of emptiness or selflessness. Noble means something seen by arya beings as it really is, and in this case it is four recognitions—suffering, origin, cessation, and path. Arya beings see all types of suffering—physical and mental, gross and subtle—exactly as they are, as suffering. For people like us, who do not have the direct realization of emptiness, although we may understand certain levels of physical and mental experiences as suffering, it is impossible for us to see all the levels of suffering for what they are. Instead we may see some things as desirable when in truth they are suffering. This may sound counterintuitive, but if you examine society it is fairly easy to see what I mean. What most of us chase after thinking it is happiness actually has the potential to bring just the opposite.

It is the same with the other three subjects, all of which are seen by the arya beings as they are, on all levels of subtlety. We ordinary beings cannot see them in the same way because we lack the direct realization of the nature of reality.

The Benefits of Studying the Four Noble Truths

What prompts us to embark upon a spiritual journey? As we first become interested in Buddhism, I think this is a question we need to ask ourselves. His Holiness the Dalai Lama says that our interest in the spiritual life is “somet...

Índice

• Cover
• Acknowledgements
• Foreword
• PREFACE
• EDITOR’S PREFACE
• THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS SUTRA
• 1 - SETTING THE WHEEL OF DHARMA IN MOTION
• 2 - THE TRUTH OF SUFFERING
• 3 - THE TRUTH OF ORIGIN
• 4 - THE TRUTH OF CESSATION
• 5 - THE TRUTH OF THE PATH
• NOTES
• GLOSSARY
• BIBLIOGRAPHY
• INDEX
• ABOUT THE AUTHORS
• FOUNDATION OF BUDDHIST THOUGHT
• ABOUT WISDOM
• Copyright Page