The 1st Noble Truth on Suffering ... !!!

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The First Noble Truth: This & such indeed is Suffering!!!

 

The blessed Buddha once said:One should dwell reflecting on all phenomena as mental states in the light of these Four Noble Truths. How does one do so? Here, one sees, understands, and knows it as it verily is:

 

This and such is suffering! This craving is the cause & origin of all suffering!This absence of craving is the ceasing of all suffering!This Noble 8-fold Way is the method to terminate all suffering!

And what, bhikkhus, is this 1st Noble Truth of Suffering? Birth is suffering, ageing is suffering, decay is suffering, death is suffering, sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and discontent are suffering, being joined with any disliked is suffering, being separated from any liked is suffering, not getting what one wants is suffering, & getting what one not wants is suffering, in short, the five clusters of clinging are suffering ... !!! ... !!! And what, bhikkhus, is birth? In whatever being & group of individuality, there is birth, coming into being, emergence, appearance, manifestation of the 5 clusters of clinging, development of the ability to sense & experience, that, bhikkhus, is called birth...And what, bhikkhus, is ageing? In whatever being & group of individuality, there is ageing, decaying, broken teeth, grey hair, wrinkled skin, shrinking & fading away, weakening of the ability to sense, that, bhikkhus, is called ageing...And what, bhikkhus, is death?In whatever being & group of individuality, there is a passing away, cutting off, disappearance, death, dying, an ending, a breaking-up of the clusters, a loss of the body, a loss of the mind, that, bhikkhus, is called death... And what, bhikkhus, is sorrow? Whenever, by any kind of tragedy, anyone is feeling pain, sorrow, frustration, distress, internal misery, or internal sadness, that bhikkhus, is called sorrow...And what, bhikkhus, is lamentation?Whenever, by any kind of misfortune, anyone is affected by something painful and there is crying out, grieving, moaning, wailing and weeping, that, bhikkhus, is called lamentation...And what is pain? Whatever bodily painful feeling, bodily unpleasant feeling, painful or unpleasant feeling resulting from bodily contact, that, bhikkhus is called pain... And what, bhikkhus, is sadness? Whatever mental painful feeling, mental unpleasant feeling, painful or unpleasant sensation resulting from mental contact, that, bhikkhus, is called sadness...And what, bhikkhus, is discontent? Whenever, by any kind of anguish, anyone is affected by some disappointment,dissatisfaction, discomfort, dismay, uneasiness, frustration, that, bhikkhus, is called discontent... And what bhikkhus, is being joined with the disliked? Here whoever has unwanted, undesirable and disliked sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches or mental states, or whoever meets enemies wishing them unhappy insecurity, with whom they are forced into association, connection, dependence, grouping with, that, bhikkhus, is called being joined with the disliked... And what is being separated from the liked? Here whoever has what is wanted, liked, pleasant sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches or mental states, or whoever enjoys company of well-wishers of good, of comfort & security, mother or father, brother or sister, younger or elders,friends or colleagues, and then is loosing this company, connection, or union, that, bhikkhus is called being separated from the liked... And what, bhikkhus, is not getting what one wants & getting what one not wants?In beings subject to birth, ageing, decay, sickness & death, bhikkhus, this wish arises: Oh may we not meet any birth, ageing, decay, sickness & death. But such cannot be gained by naive wishing. In beings prone to sorrow lamentation, pain, sadness, stress & frustration this childish wish arises: Oh may we not be afflictedby any sorrow lamentation, pain, sadness, stress nor frustration, despite none such ever can be won by mere wishing. That is not getting what one wants while getting what one not wants... And what, bhikkhus, in brevity, are the five clusters of clusters of clinging? The five clusters of clusters of clinging are as follows:

 

 

The cluster of clinging to form, The cluster of clinging to feeling, The cluster of clinging to perception, The cluster of clinging to mental constructions, The cluster of clinging to kinds of consciousness.

These are, in short, the five clusters of clusters of clinging, that are suffering. And that, bhikkhus, is called the 1st Noble Truth of Suffering...

 

Source (edited extract):The Long Speeches of the Buddha. Digha Nikaya. Book II [308-] Thread: The Foundations of Awareness. Mahāsatipatthāna Sutta 22. http://www.pariyatti.com/book.cgi?prod_id=251033http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/digha/index.html

 

 

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Bhikkhu Samahita, Sri Lanka.

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