The Four Noble Truthes

Dukkha is the first of the Four "Aryan" or Noble Truths. The Buddha's teaching of the Four Noble Truths was contained in the first ever discourse or teaching that he gave after his enlightenment. The Four Noble or Aryan Truths are not meant to be a kind of theory about the way things are, it is more like a doctor giving a diagnosis for action. In fact the Four Noble Truths follow the traditional method of Indian medicine. The Buddha is presenting a therapeutic programme to deal with the problem of human suffering. He is identifying the nature of the illness, the cause of the illness, the state of health that would constitute being cured, and the therapy that is to be used to bring about that cure.

1. The symptom

Dukkha is our reaction to the fact of impermanence and the way that things are conditioned. Dukkha is the symptom, our experience of suffering or anguish, and it is the first of the Four Noble Truths. Dukkha is our psychological reaction. But according to Buddhism we don't have to react this way, we can change the way that we react to life. The key here is to understand how we respond to the world around us. Understanding and naming the state of mind helps us to counter its effects.

2. The Cause

The cause of our experience of suffering or anguish is what the Buddha called thirst or clinging or craving. Samudaya is therefore the second truth and it means "cause". Because of impermanence, we feel vulnerable and insecure, so we cling to things to support us, we crave things to try to give us a sense of security and fullness. We cling to or crave anything, power, food, wealth, relationships, material objects °© cars or homes, an image of ourself, even our bodies. What we need to do, according to the Buddha, is to just let go of craving. This means that we must neither indulge nor deny our craving, we just let go of it. We allow ourselves to feel the energy of it, to see what it is we are craving, but we don't go along with it, or allow ourselves to be hooked up.

3. The Healthy State

If we manage to let go of craving, allow it to cease, we can enter into a state of calmness and clarity. This third truth is called Nirodha, the cessation of suffering and craving. This is a glimpse of what Buddhism aims at, the experience of Nirvana. It may be a momentary thing, but the more we manage to free ourselves from craving, the more established we can be in that sense of clarity and peace.

4. The Treatment

The treatment is called Magga in Pali or Marga in Sanskrit, both these words mean "path". To help us to achieve the ability to stop clinging to experience, the Buddha set out a path known as the Eightfold Path. Not a path of eight steps but a path with eight aspects, the practice of which can assist us in our growth and help us to let go of craving.