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the 4 noble truths of Buddhism

Christ Suffering

Christ Suffering (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

4 noble truths of Buddhism:

1) there is a pattern of experience called suffering (which could also be called stress or even distress or worrying or aversion or simply fear or trauma or tension or, in the Sankrit language, dukkha)

2) the experience of suffering is a naturally-arising, conditional effect (a symptom)

3) Suffering is transitory (impermanent), so, in the absence of the conditions that produce suffering, the experience of suffering cannot endure.

4) The “middle way” of moderation recognizes the possibility of experiencing suffering, rather than avoiding the subject of suffering or trying to escape from the natural arising of suffering, which does not work anyway. Let suffering come and let it go. This is the way of moderation. This is the way of inclusiveness, wholeness, and holiness. This is the way of allowing, accepting, recognition, realization, being conscious. This could certainly be called the way of enlightenment or the way of grace or the way of the godly or the way of God.

Call it whatever! There are many ways of talking about it and different word sequences can all reference the same thing, but different words fit for different audiences. Be attentive to what fits, what works, what is functional, what is practical, what is relevant- including as it applies to alternatives for speaking, for economic activities, and even things for like emotional development and mental discernment.

English: The moment of revealing four noble tr...

English: The moment of revealing four noble truths by buddha 2600 years ago to 1st 5 disciples. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Dhamekh Stupa, where the Buddha gave the first...

Dhamekh Stupa, where the Buddha gave the first sermon on the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path to his five disciples after attaining enlightenment at Bodh Gaya. Also seen behind the stupa in the left corner is the yellow-coloured spire of Digamber Jain temple, dedicated to 11th Jain Tirthankar, Shreyansanath, known to be his birth place. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Related articles

http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html

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This entry was posted on June 6, 2012 at 6:40 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

6 Responses to “the 4 noble truths of Buddhism”

  1. MindMindful Says:
    June 6, 2012 at 2:47 pm | Reply

    Reblogged this on MindMindful and commented:
    Nice addition to the ‘canon’ on the 4 Noble Truths (see my post: Exit Strategy too:)

  2. Stop judging others … « Inspirations Says:
    June 6, 2012 at 4:48 pm | Reply

    [...] the 4 noble truths of Buddhism (jrfibonacci.wordpress.com) [...]

  3. jrfibonacci Says:
    June 6, 2012 at 6:25 pm | Reply

    From J.R. (the author):

    I have been studying Buddhism for around 20 years and recently I saw some content from Tony Parsons and Mooji that demonstrated a practical clarity regarding these basic Buddhist teachings- not just a familiarity with the words, but a direct experience of the principles. I also credit Landmark Education and their distinction “upset,” which is similar-
    there is such a thing as the experience of an upset.

    An upset is triggered not just by one thing, but by a sequence of misinterpretations or misconceptions.

    Upsets can be “de-constructed” or dissolved.

    One way to minimize upsets is to be responsible for finding opportunities to have breakthroughs, which can involve “declaring a breakdown” (a functional challenge) and exploring for the commitment and value that has been active in the breakdown.

    • J R Fibonacci Hunn Says:
      June 7, 2012 at 4:54 pm | Reply

      Someone reposted this blog and then asked a question. Here is their question and my response.

      MindMindful says:
      June 7, 2012 at 9:50 am

      Is this what you mean by ‘upset’ — from anything that happens, you can analyze the causes of it, to thereby understand your experience of it……..?? close?? way off??

      I’d like to know more

      >>>
      J R Fibonacci Hunn says:
      June 7, 2012 at 11:16 am
      An upset could be a label for any challenge which dramatically interrupts or interferes with “normal” functionality. Typically, we think of something sudden, but we could also use the label “upset” for a decade-old grudge or resentment. The idea of exploring “upsets” is not to dig in the past so much as develop discernment so that if there is a challenge in one area of life that seems to effect functionality in other areas. “Upset” is a structure to use for journaling or a conversation with someone who is able and willing to facilitate or even just listen to the self-analysis.

      J R Fibonacci Hunn says:
      June 7, 2012 at 11:23 am
      The essential “technique” within the 4 four noble truths is what I would call dis-association (or withdrawing). In the field of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), there is the method of (1) simply recognizing that some experience of upset is present (which shifts attention from the trigger of the upset to the experience of an upset) and then (2) stopping other activity (like through use of a mantra or prayer), which may be functional in returning someone at least to calmness- which MAY be desirable. In a way, the “mantra” of the four noble truths is ultimately about the impermanence of any particular experience, such as the experience of an upset.

      Here is how I phrased it on a comment in the original post:

      1) there is such a thing as the experience of an upset.

      2) An upset is triggered not just by one thing, but by a sequence of misinterpretations or misconceptions.

      3) Upsets can be “de-constructed” or dissolved.

      4) One way to minimize upsets is to be responsible for finding opportunities to have breakthroughs, which can involve “declaring a breakdown” (a functional challenge) and exploring for the commitment and value that has been active in the breakdown.

      >>>
      J R Fibonacci Hunn says:
      June 7, 2012 at 11:34 am
      Here is how Landmark Education “de-constructs” an “upset:”

      An upset is composed of

      1) a thwarted intention,

      2) an unfulfilled expectation

      and/or (?)

      3) an undelivered communication.

      So, the self-analysis would be to take some issue and label it as the experience of an upset, then explore for the “value” behind it, as in cultivating clarity about what factors may have been active beyond the focus of conscious attention. To de-construct an upset does tend to create a new circuitry neurologically such that future similar “triggers” will send energy to the new “neuro-linguistic program” of the 3-component “upset” model, and rather than energy being “stuck” in the experience of upset (a short-circuiting neurologically), the energy can flow toward clarity and some new instance of communication (delivering the communication that has not been delivered yet).

      Typically, there may be an experience of fear (worry, dread) related to delivering that communication. The idea is that if the fear or hesitation is only moderate, then the communication can be delivered anyway with courage, rather than repressed in a paralysis of terror. Further, “de-constucting an upset” does not require anything beyond deconstructing it, but if life constructs new ones faster than old ones get resolved, then there is baseline of hysteria or distress in one’s experience of life- which is metaphorically like “purgatory” in which the sense of an impending hell is eternally present, along with a vague hopefulness about an alleged heaven.
      >>>>
      J R Fibonacci Hunn says:
      June 7, 2012 at 11:51 am
      Now, with all of that said, there is also the ‘technique” of Advaita or Zen or (anatma). Rather than focus on the experience of an upset for a personal identity and how for the person to process it and convert the energy through some “fix,” there is another possibility. Let life be however it already is.

      If the labeling of something as an upset happens, let that happen. If the arising of the experience of a personal identity happens, let that happen. If the arising of the application of a coping process happens (for deconstructing a personal experience), let that happen.

      Allow for energy to be whatever it is. Allow for life to be however it is.

      If a personal identifying arises, only then can an upset person arise. In the absence of personal identifying, there is no personal identifying of anything happening to anyone. There may be identifying of some isolated feature of life that may be happening.

      1) Identifying through language is natural.

      2) Identifying through language arises naturally whenever it does.

      3) In the absence of linguistic identifying, life still arises naturally however it does. (Linguistic identifying is transitory or impermanent).

      4) There is a way to live without linguistic identifying of a person. More specifically, there is a way to use language without the identifying of a person. Then again, there is also a way to use language to identify a particular person who is the one having a particular experience and who is the one doing various things, such as isolating themselves from some aspect of life or rejecting some aspect of life or identifying some aspect of life as “not me” or “not right” or “not good” or “not okay.”

      Notice that from any neuro-linguistic program of personal identifying, every “me” presents itself as “right.” Various programs of me can then insist on each one alone as being “right,” thus producing interpersonal conflict. Interpersonal conflict requires the linguistic constructing of persons and personalities, which is entirely natural, but also entirely transitory.

      Also, in the absence of personal identifying, there is no one to allow for anything to be. Life is simply happening however it may be happening…. unless nothing at all is happening, like when there is no linguistic activity at all, for until language labels something as happening, then there is no language happening.

  4. buddhawithlove Says:
    June 9, 2012 at 8:44 am | Reply

    Great post and nice pictures of buddhist sites.

  5. The 4 Noble Truths (not part of the 7 sets series!) « TiltedCandle Says:
    June 30, 2012 at 8:47 pm | Reply

    [...] the 4 noble truths of Buddhism (jrfibonacci.wordpress.com) Rate this:Share this:TumblrFacebookStumbleUponMoreEmailPrintDiggLinkedInRedditTwitterPinterestLike this:LikeBe the first to like this. [...]

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