The Four Noble Truths
The Buddha is said to have taught, "I have taught one thing and one thing only, dukkha and the cessation of dukkha,"
Dukkha (suffering) is an innate characteristic of transient existence; nothing is permanent, and that is suffering. The first truth, suffering, is an impermanent characteristic of existence in the realm of continuous rebirth, called samsara (wandering). The first noble truth is the right understanding that our life is impermanent, full of unavoidable sufferings, and it continues in the form of rebirth. The two of many sufferings are one, you leaving someone you love; the other, meeting someone you hate.
Samudaya (cause of suffering): together with this transient world and its suffering, there is also thirst, craving for, and attachment to this transient, unsatisfactory existence. To end suffering, the four noble truths tell us, one needs to know how and why suffering arises. The second noble truth explains that suffering arises because of craving, desire, and attachment. Samudaya means "arising" and refers to the causes of suffering. At the bottom of these cravings, wants, and desires is the ever-present ego, the mistaken identity of oneself.
Nirodha (severance of suffering): the attachment to this transient world and its suffering can be severed or contained by the controlling or letting go of this craving. If the cause of suffering is desire and attachment to various transient things, then the way to end suffering is to eliminate such craving, desire, and attachment. Nirodha is a Sanskrit word that means "cessation" or "extinction". It is the third of the Four Noble Truths.
Marga: the fourth truth, marga means "path" or "way." It means the way to extinguish suffering. Marga refers to the path to liberation, also known as awakening. The most well-known path is the Noble Eightfold Path, which is one of several paths described in the Sutta Pitaka.
The Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path is a practical guide for living a life of ethical conduct, mental discipline, and wisdom, ultimately leading to the cessation of suffering and the attainment of enlightenment.
The Eightfold Path is not a linear sequence, but rather a continuous process where each practice supports the others. By cultivating these practices, one can gradually overcome suffering and move towards enlightenment.
What is the Buddha’s Noble Eightfold Path and Why is it Essential? (YouTube 21min.)
Nirvana in Buddhism - The Path to Ultimate Freedom
1. Right View (Understanding)
Sammā diṭṭhi, Right View, is a way to see reality as it is, without confusion or misunderstanding. It is a means to gain insight into the four noble truths. It is a way to see things in their true nature, without labels or names. It is a way to see the impermanence, selflessness, and inevitability of suffering.
The Noble Eightfold Path: Right View (Samma Ditthi) (YouTube 78 min.)
2. Right Intention (Volition, Thought, Resolve)
Right intention, sammā saṅkappa, is the second step of the path, is the outcome of right understanding. These two comprise the wisdom spoken of in the context of the noble eightfold path. Right thought is the result of seeing things as they are. Thoughts are all important; for a man‘s words and acts have thoughts as their source. It is thoughts that are translated into speech and deed. The good or ill results of our words and actions depend solely on our thoughts, on the way we think. Hence the importance of learning to think straight instead of twisted.
You Don’t Think Thoughts – Thoughts Think You (Buddhist Wisdom)
Ajahn Nissarano - Right Intention : The How To (YouTube 58 min.)
3. Right Speech (Samma vaca)
"It is spoken at the right time. It is spoken in truth. It is spoken affectionately. It is spoken beneficially. It is spoken with a mind of good-will."
Ajahn Nissarano - Right Speech (YouTube 64 min.)
4. Right Action (Samma Kammanta)
No killing or injuring, no taking what is not given, no sexual misconduct, no material desires.
The Noble Eightfold Path (4): Right Action (YouTube 18 min.)
5. Right Livelihood (Samma Ajiva)
No trading in weapons, living beings (human trafficking for sexual exploitation, illegal adoption, organ harvesting, slavery, or other criminal purposes), liquor (drug trafficking), or poisons (murders via medical inducements, inventing and dispersing deadly viruses and problematic vaccines for profit), or financial or religious frauds abusing victims' trust and vulnerability.
Choose your profession or, even more importantly, your employment wisely. Do not get involved in a usury or predatory lending business where you create or add more suffering to others. Do not be a law person or psychiatrist who protects criminals for profit or sends innocents to an insane asylum or to incarceration. Do not be medical doctors or health professionals whose primary professional objective is not curing but hurting their patients or victims for profits.
Do not become scientists of destruction or hate. Do not become politicians or government employees who betray public trust, people who elected them and pay their salaries.
Do not make a living by preaching false/fake/harmful religious/faith doctrines, leading followers to mindless wastelands and depriving their right livelihood. That is the worst kind of all frauds, the worst kind of all karma.
Never commit any kind of frauds, because the frauds can only occur with betrayal of trusts of victims. There are no greater sins or crimes than frauds. Don't make a living by lying or deceiving others. Don't make any kind of living by adding more suffering to others.The karmic retribution of such crimes will be most severe.
Right Livelihood: How can we tell (YouTube 61 min.)
6. Right Effort (Samma Vayama)
Right Effort, samma vayama, involves trying to prevent unwholesome states of mind, such as anger, jealousy, and craving. It also involves trying to get rid of these states of mind that have already arisen.
The Noble Eightfold Path (6): Right Effort (YouTube 57min.)
7. Right Mindfulness (Samma Sati)
Right Mindfulness is associated with becoming more attentive to our thoughts, emotions, feelings, speech, and behavior in meditation. Whatever we experience, we become more conscious of it and more attentive to it, so that we gain more insight into the workings of the mind and how the mind influences our actions in everyday life.
Right Mindfulness (YouTube 52 min.)
8. Right Concentration (Samma Samadhi)
Any singleness of mind equipped with these seven factors — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, and right mindfulness. Developing single-minded focus through meditation.
Buddha: The Power of Right Concentration and That’s All You Need!
Practicing Buddhist Right Concentration: Encountering the Esoteric (YouTube 14 min.)
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