THE FOUR NOBEL TRUTHS

The Four Nobel Truths were an major part of the teaching of Buddha, that helped many people to become enlightened in later lives.


The First Nobel Truth

This First Nobel truth is the Truth of Dukha. Buddha taught that everything was Dukha including all experiences whether pleasant or painful in nature. Included in the Dukha were many of the factors which Buddha strove to eliminate from people's lives. Some of these being birth, ageing, death, parting, unfulfilled desires and decay. It is the Dukha which is throughout the universe and it effects everything.



The Second Nobel Truth

The Second Nobel truth is the origin of the Dukha. Buddha taught that the Dukha arises as a result of sensual pleasures which revolve in a continuous circle. He believed that craving or greed arise from feeling which arises from sense-contact, which arises from six senses, which arises from mind and form, which arises from consciousness, which arises from formations, which arises from ignorance, which arises from suffering, which arises from birth, which arises from becoming, which arises from grasping, which arises from craving. So beings remain trapped in this never ending circle.


The Third Nobel Truth

The Third Nobel truth is the truth of Cessation, or ceasing, of the Duhkha. This states that there is a final stage to the Duhkha were everything is 'blown out' including greed, hate and delusion. This only can occur however when the individual stops craving and gets themselves out of the endless cycle. It is here that birth and death are abandoned.


The Fourth Nobel Truth

The final and Fourth Nobel truth, is the truth of the Eightfold Path. This is simply the factors that lead to the ending of the duhka. The factor are having the right speech, action, livelihood, mindfulness, concentration, view.and thought. It is these eight factors which complete the three parts of a Buddha's training of moral conduct, concentration and wisdom.



Medical Analogy

Buddha likened the Four Nobel Truths to a medical analogy

First Nobel Truth - Human condition is diagnosed as being duhkha
Second Nobel Truth - Craving to known the cause of the duhkha
Third Nobel Truth - The condition is diagnosed and recovery is possible
Fourth Nobel Truth - The Eightfold Path is the medicine to cure duhkha




BUDDHA'S TEACHING AND THE RAFT

Buddha likened his teaching to a raft.He told the story of a traveler who is on one side of a river. On his side the bank is dangerous, but he can see that on the other side the area is safe. He builds a raft to and uses it to cross the river. Once he is on the other side the traveler is unsure of what he should do. He asks himself whether he should keep the raft or let go of it.

Buddha says that his teaching is like that raft which should be used for crossing but not clinging to. They should not be used as a creed, but instead as something that is brought into existence that needs to be cultivated.