In our daily life we wake up and try to spend our day with joy and happiness. Though it is not a cup of tea to have happiness, but sometimes we experience a spark of joy which rapidly grows within our heart and spreads towards others. I was also fortunate to get this experience when I opened my eyes one morning
One day when I woke up early in the morning, I found the weather was pleasant. I took my reading book and began to ride my bike toward Sarnath. It took me almost fifteen minutes to reach Mulagandha Kuti Vihar[i] at Sarnath from the Tibetan University where I have been studying for almost four years.
I circumambulated three times at Mulagandha Kuti Vihar and slowly and peacefully moved towards the statues of the Buddha and his five disciples. It is said that The Buddha preached Four Noble Truths to his five disciples at the same place where his statue was erected as a gesture of dharma teaching.
While I was moving nearer, paying my respects to the statues of the Buddha and his five disciples, I was wondering how fortunate those five disciples and people of those times were that they could see the Buddha and listen to his teaching. However, I was very happy that though I could not see the Buddha now, his teachings are still available. I can study and practise them according to my ability.
At that time I was very enthusiastic to learn more and more of his teaching, especially the Four Noble Truths which is the essence of his teaching. Buddha's teaching of the Four Noble Truths is translated in many languages and I could see texts in different languages engraved on flattened stones round the statues of the Buddha and his five disciples. I tried to read few of them as I was moving round the statues.
At last I reached before the inscription of Four Noble Truths in Tibetan language, which was translated from Sanskrit[ii] into Tibetan around 8th century AD. I read it very attentively and carefully. While I was reading sutra from the stone, spontaneously I remembered my class at the university where my teacher told about The Buddha and his teaching; the Four Noble Truths. In the class, my teacher took a holy book from his bag, read the sutra of Four Noble Truths and compassionately explained it.
The four noble truths are the way to attain enlightenment. It means that we can make ourselves completely free from suffering of the world if we learned the Four Noble Truths and practice it.
Gautama Buddha, when he used to be an ordinary person as prince Siddhartha, he used to live in his father’s palace, unaware of the suffering of the world. One day while he was visiting around the palace on horse chariot, he saw an old man, a sick man, a dead body and a monk. After consulting his driver, he knew that all have to become sick, old, and finally to die. His mind was disturbed by what he saw during his visit around the palace. He was very sorry and said ‘‘everybody in the world has lots of suffering and must some day die. No one has found out how to stop it. I must find it and help the whole world".
After that incident he immediately left the palace and his family to search for a way to stop all types of suffering. He went to many teachers, learned what they taught, but he was still dissatisfied. Finally he discovered the middle way[iii] of practice and under the Bodhi tree at Bodhgaya he attained enlightenment. He became Buddha, Enlightenment One. He made himself free from all suffering and possessed Ultimate happiness.
Later he went to Sarnath and preached the Dharma Chakra Pravartana Sutra[iv]. This Sutra contains the doctrine of Four Noble Truths.
They are-
1. Dukkha (suffering or misery)
Suffering is a feeling of pain. Life is full of miserly. Birth is misery. Death is misery. Sickness is misery. Old age is misery. Getting what one does not want is misery. Failure is misery. Not getting what one wants is misery.
2. Dukkha samudaya (Origin of suffering)
Misery is out come of attachment. Misery remains as long as attachment remains.
3. Dukkha nirodha (Cessation of suffering)
Suffering can be remove completely when it causes are remove. Removing the conditions leading to misery puts an end to misery and one possesses ultimate happiness. That is Nirvana. (Liberation)
4. Dukkha nirodha gamine marga (The path leading to that cessation)
There is a way, how to remove the cause of suffering. Which are shown detail in Eight Fold Noble Path. They are-
1. Right view -it is the pure wisdom. One sees things as they are, for example one sees that all things are impermanent.
2. Right determination- means one explains to others through pure speech, the things in exactly the way one has realized them.
3. Right speech- means one use always right and accurate speech towards other.
4. Right action-means one has to completely abandon all non-virtues conduct.
5. Right livelihood - means one income and profession must be pure. Occupation of butcher and other non-virtues livelihood must avoid.
6. Right effort- means that use one energies towards right action. Effort to refrain from misery action.
7. Right mindfulness- means one mind must be in attentiveness. In these ways, one mind does not forget the objective of right action.
8. Right meditation- means one mind has to remain single pointed ness.
Buddha’s teaching on Four Noble Truths are example as a physician diagnosing an illness and prescribing a treatment. The first Noble Truth example as what the illness is? The second Truth tells what cause the illness? The third Truth is like cure of the illness, then the forth Truth describes a way of treatment to cure that illness. Here the Buddha tells us the way of eliminating suffering as physician prescribes the treatment for illness.
The Sun had just arisen as my mind came back from past and I could hear different sounds of birds, which had been chirping there on trees around the area. I thought that even birds were encouraging me to learn more about the Four Noble Truths. I felt more respect for Buddha; I prostrated before the statue of the Buddha and his five disciples. As I was ready to return, my joy had no bound. I rode back towards the Tibetan University expecting that I could uproot all my suffering which has been secretly pursuing me...
[i] A temple where Gautama Buddha used to stay during his visit at Sarnath.
[ii] All teachings of the Buddha were written in Sanskrit and Pali languages, later around 8th century AD. Buddhism was spread in Tibet, since then all the Buddha’s teachings have been translating from Sanskrit in to Tibetan language by Indian scholars and Tibetan translators sponsored by kings in Tibet.
[iii] Middle way is a practice which is refraining from extremes of sensual indulgence and self mortification.
[iv] Sutra is a Sanskrit word for teaching of Buddha which is written in text.
experience with dharma.
Four noble truth which is very profound and could not understand by merely reading it. we have to read it time to time and try to make it practically in life. for example we hunam being in this world are already captured by mainly four thing ; Birth, Aging, illness and lastly Death. they are part of suffering if we really need to liberate from those suffering. we must study four noble truth time to time. i have written this small article with four noble truth. but sometime i think i do not know any thing of four noble truth, continously study it,,, really people like me as a beginer in Buddha Dharma cannot explain dharma but mare a pile of words. however i m still happy to write it because i could spend more time with it, and and atleast awareness for Four Noble Truths might arise in people mind.
One day when I woke up early in the morning, I found the weather was pleasant. I took my reading book and began to ride my bike toward Sarnath. It took me almost fifteen minutes to reach Mulagandha Kuti Vihar[i] at Sarnath from the Tibetan University where I have been studying for almost four years.
I circumambulated three times at Mulagandha Kuti Vihar and slowly and peacefully moved towards the statues of the Buddha and his five disciples. It is said that The Buddha preached Four Noble Truths to his five disciples at the same place where his statue was erected as a gesture of dharma teaching.
While I was moving nearer, paying my respects to the statues of the Buddha and his five disciples, I was wondering how fortunate those five disciples and people of those times were that they could see the Buddha and listen to his teaching. However, I was very happy that though I could not see the Buddha now, his teachings are still available. I can study and practise them according to my ability.
At that time I was very enthusiastic to learn more and more of his teaching, especially the Four Noble Truths which is the essence of his teaching. Buddha's teaching of the Four Noble Truths is translated in many languages and I could see texts in different languages engraved on flattened stones round the statues of the Buddha and his five disciples. I tried to read few of them as I was moving round the statues.
At last I reached before the inscription of Four Noble Truths in Tibetan language, which was translated from Sanskrit[ii] into Tibetan around 8th century AD. I read it very attentively and carefully. While I was reading sutra from the stone, spontaneously I remembered my class at the university where my teacher told about The Buddha and his teaching; the Four Noble Truths. In the class, my teacher took a holy book from his bag, read the sutra of Four Noble Truths and compassionately explained it.
The four noble truths are the way to attain enlightenment. It means that we can make ourselves completely free from suffering of the world if we learned the Four Noble Truths and practice it.
Gautama Buddha, when he used to be an ordinary person as prince Siddhartha, he used to live in his father’s palace, unaware of the suffering of the world. One day while he was visiting around the palace on horse chariot, he saw an old man, a sick man, a dead body and a monk. After consulting his driver, he knew that all have to become sick, old, and finally to die. His mind was disturbed by what he saw during his visit around the palace. He was very sorry and said ‘‘everybody in the world has lots of suffering and must some day die. No one has found out how to stop it. I must find it and help the whole world".
After that incident he immediately left the palace and his family to search for a way to stop all types of suffering. He went to many teachers, learned what they taught, but he was still dissatisfied. Finally he discovered the middle way[iii] of practice and under the Bodhi tree at Bodhgaya he attained enlightenment. He became Buddha, Enlightenment One. He made himself free from all suffering and possessed Ultimate happiness.
Later he went to Sarnath and preached the Dharma Chakra Pravartana Sutra[iv]. This Sutra contains the doctrine of Four Noble Truths.
They are-
1. Dukkha (suffering or misery)
Suffering is a feeling of pain. Life is full of miserly. Birth is misery. Death is misery. Sickness is misery. Old age is misery. Getting what one does not want is misery. Failure is misery. Not getting what one wants is misery.
2. Dukkha samudaya (Origin of suffering)
Misery is out come of attachment. Misery remains as long as attachment remains.
3. Dukkha nirodha (Cessation of suffering)
Suffering can be remove completely when it causes are remove. Removing the conditions leading to misery puts an end to misery and one possesses ultimate happiness. That is Nirvana. (Liberation)
4. Dukkha nirodha gamine marga (The path leading to that cessation)
There is a way, how to remove the cause of suffering. Which are shown detail in Eight Fold Noble Path. They are-
1. Right view -it is the pure wisdom. One sees things as they are, for example one sees that all things are impermanent.
2. Right determination- means one explains to others through pure speech, the things in exactly the way one has realized them.
3. Right speech- means one use always right and accurate speech towards other.
4. Right action-means one has to completely abandon all non-virtues conduct.
5. Right livelihood - means one income and profession must be pure. Occupation of butcher and other non-virtues livelihood must avoid.
6. Right effort- means that use one energies towards right action. Effort to refrain from misery action.
7. Right mindfulness- means one mind must be in attentiveness. In these ways, one mind does not forget the objective of right action.
8. Right meditation- means one mind has to remain single pointed ness.
Buddha’s teaching on Four Noble Truths are example as a physician diagnosing an illness and prescribing a treatment. The first Noble Truth example as what the illness is? The second Truth tells what cause the illness? The third Truth is like cure of the illness, then the forth Truth describes a way of treatment to cure that illness. Here the Buddha tells us the way of eliminating suffering as physician prescribes the treatment for illness.
The Sun had just arisen as my mind came back from past and I could hear different sounds of birds, which had been chirping there on trees around the area. I thought that even birds were encouraging me to learn more about the Four Noble Truths. I felt more respect for Buddha; I prostrated before the statue of the Buddha and his five disciples. As I was ready to return, my joy had no bound. I rode back towards the Tibetan University expecting that I could uproot all my suffering which has been secretly pursuing me...
[i] A temple where Gautama Buddha used to stay during his visit at Sarnath.
[ii] All teachings of the Buddha were written in Sanskrit and Pali languages, later around 8th century AD. Buddhism was spread in Tibet, since then all the Buddha’s teachings have been translating from Sanskrit in to Tibetan language by Indian scholars and Tibetan translators sponsored by kings in Tibet.
[iii] Middle way is a practice which is refraining from extremes of sensual indulgence and self mortification.
[iv] Sutra is a Sanskrit word for teaching of Buddha which is written in text.
experience with dharma.
Four noble truth which is very profound and could not understand by merely reading it. we have to read it time to time and try to make it practically in life. for example we hunam being in this world are already captured by mainly four thing ; Birth, Aging, illness and lastly Death. they are part of suffering if we really need to liberate from those suffering. we must study four noble truth time to time. i have written this small article with four noble truth. but sometime i think i do not know any thing of four noble truth, continously study it,,, really people like me as a beginer in Buddha Dharma cannot explain dharma but mare a pile of words. however i m still happy to write it because i could spend more time with it, and and atleast awareness for Four Noble Truths might arise in people mind.
