The Four Noble Truths Research Paper

582 Words2 Pages

3/15/2015
Midterm Essay
Richter
The Four Noble Truths Most people try to prevent suffering in their life because it is the mental or physically feeling of pain, hardships, or distress. There are many cultures that believe that suffering is necessary for the understanding of life. In the religion of Buddhism, their teachings are based on the idea of human suffering. In Buddha’s first sermon, after his enlightenment, he explained the Four Noble Truths. The Four Noble Truths are: the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. It is evident that everyone experiences suffering at some point in his or her life and that there is a cause …show more content…

This truth is dukkha, which means “ the truth of suffering.” The second noble truth is the “truth of the cause of suffering.” In Buddha’s sermon, he explained what cause of suffering is tanha. Tanha means craving or thirst. Once tanha is extinguished, a person is released from the cycle of life.
According to the book the cycle of life is “birth, suffering, death, and rebirth” (Hopfe 134). According to Buddhism, people’s wants are what causes their sufferings. People are never satisfied with the things they have because they always want more or better. People in general want happiness, material goods, and satisfaction. For example, people want bigger homes, want higher paying jobs, want money, want to look better, want to be popular, etc. The problem is that desiring so many things causes suffering because it is not possible to be completely satisfied. The third noble truth is the truth of the end of suffering. In other words, what is the cure to suffering? Buddha teaches that through practice, people can end their cravings. Reaching the end is either ending their spiritual life, Nirvana, or ending their suffering in this life one

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