Four truths, stated plainly
Today, notice one moment of wanting things to be otherwise, and simply name it.
- Read · about 2 minutes
Now this is the noble truth of suffering.Rebirth is suffering; old age is suffering; illness is suffering; death is suffering; being coupled with the disliked is suffering; separation from the liked is suffering; not getting what you wish for is suffering. In brief, the five grasping aggregates are suffering.Now this is the noble truth of the origin of suffering.It’s the craving that leads to future lives, mixed up with relishing and greed, taking pleasure there wherever it alights. That is,…Now this is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering.It’s the fading away and cessation of that very same craving no residue left behind; giving it away, letting it go, releasing it, and not clinging to it.Now this is the noble truth of the practice that leads to the cessation of suffering.SN 56.11 · Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta · “Rolling Forth the Wheel of Dhamma” · tr. Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0)
From the text
The passage states four noble truths. Suffering includes old age, illness, death, being joined with what you dislike, being parted from what you like, and not getting what you wish for. Its origin is craving, mixed up with relishing and greed. Its cessation is the fading away and letting go of that same craving. The fourth truth is the practice that leads to that cessation.
In everyday life
Much of this passage is a list, worth reading slowly for how ordinary it is. Getting older. Getting ill. Losing people. Being stuck with what you would rather avoid. Not getting what you want. The text does not call these things wrong or unusual; it calls them suffering, then looks for the root. The root it names is craving, and one way to take craving is as the pull of wanting things to be other than they are. 'Aggregates' is a technical term for the parts of experience; you can set it aside. What you can use is the shape of the teaching: a difficulty, a cause, the possibility of that cause easing, and a practice that leads there. One way to take today's breath sit is as a small piece of that practice. When wanting shows up, in the sit or in the day, you are looking at the second truth up close.
- Sit · 3, 5 or 10 minutes
Breath Awareness
Sit comfortably upright, hands in your lap or on your knees. After reading a cue, you may close your eyes and rest with the breath until the next one appears.
- Live · during your day
The next time you catch yourself wanting something to be different, silently label it 'wanting' and watch it for a few seconds to see whether it eases, stays, or grows.
- Reflect · this evening
Which item on the list of difficulties felt closest to your own day, and how did it show up?
Answer on paper, or in the app’s journal, which stays on your iPhone.