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Part Two
SUFFERING and THE FIRST NOBLE TRUTH
Buddha discovered the truth about life in general, not only suffering.
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I cant help those who believe Buddhas exact words are recorded in the texts. It is generally understood that Buddhas teaching was written about 400 years after he spoke. During his teaching buddha often repeated the 4 Noble Truths and there are many versions.
There are many versions of his first teaching, the Sermon at Benares, In all versions he talked of the Middle Way and the 4 Noble Truths; these two ideas were his most immediate concerns as a teacher.
Buddha apparently taught "Now, this, O bhikkhus, is the noble truth concerning suffering: Birth is attended with pain, decay is painful, disease is painful, death is painful, . Union with the unpleasant is painful, ... " etc. (6)
He also taught "the middle path, which keeps aloof from both extremes"(6), But incredulously according to the text and most Buddhists present understanding, all these key experiences in life are judged in a very one sided way, as suffering, (or painful in this translation).
The story as it is generally understood makes no sense when we consider : he gave this very short description of suffering to five ascetics who already had a deep understanding of the Hindu teaching on desire, illusion, impermanence and the consequent suffering.
How different the text and the sense would all if Buddha had said "the wheel of life is not running smoothly".
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The Noble Truths |
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How can we believe the exact text of the Mahasatipatthana? In the first Truth, apparently the enlightened buddha used a list of dictionary defintions.
"And what, monks is lamentation? The crying and lamenting, the act of crying and lamenting, and the state of crying and lamentation that arises because of this or that loss (of relatives, or possessions) or this or that painful state that one experiences - this monks, is called lamentation."(2)
And such dictionary defintions are given for old age, sorrow, lamentation, physical pain, mental pain, anguish, having to associate with those one dislikes, and being separated from those one loves or likes.
(I note with interest that the dictionary definition for birth and death are only different in that they mention the manifestation and dissolution of the 5 aggregates of clinging).
There is also a form of mirror logic used in the summary where concerning "wishing for what one cannot get is suffering" the text gives all the previous suffering experiences as examples "Oh that we were not subject to sorrow, lamentation, physical pain, mental pain and anguish! Oh that sorrow, lamentation, physical pain, mental pain, and anguish would not happen to us!"(2)
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The Noble Truths |
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