Four Noble Truths

The Buddha teaching the Four Noble Truths. Sanskrit manuscript. Nālandā, Bihar, India.

Translations of Four Noble Truths
Sanskrit	चत्वारि आर्यसत्यानि (catvāri āryasatyāni)
Pali	cattāri ariyasaccānip
Bengali	[চতুরার্য সত্য chôturarjô sôtyô] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)
Burmese	သစ္စာလေးပါး (MLCTS: θɪʔsà lé bá)
Chinese	四聖諦(T) / 四圣谛(S) (Pinyin: sìshèngdì)
Japanese	四諦 (Rōmaji: shitai)
Korean	사성제 (sa-seong-je)
Mongolian	Хутагт дөрвөн үнэн (Khutagt durvun unen)
Sinhala	චතුරාර්ය සත්‍ය
Tibetan	འཕགས་པའི་བདེན་པ་བཞི་ (Wylie: 'phags pa'i bden pa bzhi THL: pakpé denpa shyi)
Thai	อริยสัจสี่ (ariyasaj sii)
Vietnamese	vi:Tứ Diệu Điygygoiế
Glossary of Buddhism

The Four Noble Truths express the basic orientation of Buddhism: this mundane life, which is continuously repeated by rebirth, is not the place to be; how do we get out of it? The truths are as follows:

1. Dukkha: all temporary things and states are unsatisfying;
2. The start of dukkha: yet we crave and cling to these things and states; thereby, we're continuously reborn;
3. The end of dukkha: if we stop craving and clinging, we won't be reborn;
4. How to end dukkha: by following the Buddhist path, namely behaving decently, not acting on impulses, and practicing mindfulness and meditation, which help with this selfcontrol.

The four truths

According to the Buddhist tradition, the Buddha first taught the four noble truths in the very first teaching he gave after he attained enlightenment, as recorded in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta (The Discourse That Sets Turning the Wheel of Truth). Within this discourse, there are four key verses which present the four noble truths.

"Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of suffering: birth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering, death is suffering; union with what is displeasing is suffering; separation from what is pleasing is suffering; not to get what one wants is suffering; in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering.

"Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of the origin of suffering: it is this craving which leads to re-becoming, accompanied by delight and lust, seeking delight here and there; that is, craving for sensual pleasures, craving for becoming, craving for disbecoming.

"Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: it is the remainderless fading away and cessation of that same craving, the giving up and relinquishing of it, freedom from it, non-reliance on it.

"Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering: it is this noble eightfold path; that is, right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.

The four noble truths have been condensed as follows:

1. The truth of dukkha
2. The truth of the arising or origin of dukkha
3. The truth of the cessation of dukkha
4. The truth of the path leading to the cessation of dukkha

According to Rupert Gethin, the four truths are the "classic formulation" of the basic orientation of Buddhism, namely

Suffering and the cessation of suffering.

The Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, Majjhima Nikaya 56.11, gives a similar statement attributed to Kondañña, when the "Dhamma eye" arises in him:

Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to cessation.

Explanation of the four truths

First truth: dukkha

Main article: Dukkha

The first noble truth is the truth of dukkha. It gives an overview of what is regarded to be dukkha, starting with samsara, the ongoing process of death and rebirth:

1. Birth is dukkha, aging is dukkha, illness is dukkha, death is dukkha;
2. Sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, & despair are dukkha;
3. Association with the unbeloved is dukkha; separation from the loved is dukkha;
4. Not getting what is wanted is dukkha.
5. In conclusion, the five clinging-aggregates are dukkha.

The Dukkhata Sutta, Samyutta Nikaya 45.165, describes three kinds of dukkhataa, suffering in the most general sense:

1. Dukkha-dukkhataa, "the actual feeling of physical or mental pain or anguish", "response to unpleasant physical or mental experiences";
2. Saṃkhāra-dukkhataa, "the suffering produced by all 'conditioned phenomena'"; "craving for things to be how we want them to be." It is a basic unsatisfactoriness pervading all forms of existence, due to ignorance of the fact that all forms of life are changing, impermanent and without any inner core or substance. It is a lack of satisfaction, a sense that things never measure up to our expectations or standards.
3. Vipariṇāma-dukkhataa, "the suffering associated with pleasant bodily and mental feelings: "because they are the cause for the arising of pain when they change", "when we’re enjoying a pleasant experience, we crave for it to continue [...] inevitably, the universal law of impermanence leaves that craving unsatisfied."

Majjhima Nikaya 149:3 gives a concise description of dukkha:

When one abides inflamed by lust, fettered, infatuated, contemplating gratification, [...] [o]ne's bodily and mental troubles increase, one's bodily and mental torments increase, one's bodily and mental fevers increase, and one experiences bodily and mental suffering.

From a Buddhist perspective, labelling Buddhism as "a bleak, pessimistic and world-denying philosophy," as some commentators have done, "may reflect a deep-seated refusal to accept the reality of dukkha itself."

Second truth: arising or origin of dukkha

Main article: Samudaya sacca

The second noble truth is the truth of the arising of dukkha:

"Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of the origin of suffering: it is this craving which leads to re-becoming, accompanied by delight and lust, seeking delight here and there; that is, craving for sensual pleasures, craving for becoming, craving for disbecoming."

Craving (Pali: tanha) ties us to dukkha and samsara, the round of death and rebirth. Extended descriptions of craving give three sorts of craving:

• Craving for sense-pleasures (kama-tanha): this is craving for sense objects which provide pleasant feeling, or craving for sensory pleasures.
• Craving to be (bhava-tanha): this is craving to be something, to unite with an experience. This includes craving to be solid and ongoing, to be a being that has a past and a future, and craving to prevail and dominate over others.
• Craving not to be (vibhava-tanha): this is craving to not experience the world, and to be nothing; a wish to be separated from painful feelings.

Another common explanation presents the cause of dukkha as disturbing emotions (Sanskrit: kleshas). In this context, it is common to identify three root disturbing emotions, called the three poisons, as the root cause of suffering or dukkha. These three poisons are:

• Ignorance (Sanskrit: avidya or moha): misunderstanding of the nature of reality; bewilderment.
• Attachment (Sanskrit: raga): attachment to pleasurable experiences.
• Aversion (Sanskrit: dvesha): a fear of getting what we don't want, or not getting what we do want.

When the Buddha's teachings were systematised, craving and the kleshas were seen as arising from wrong knowledge or ignorance (Pali: avijja). Insight acquired a growing importance in the Buddhist soteriology, in some instances even replacing the central practice of dhyana. Ignorance (Pali: avijja) came to be defined as ignorance of the meaning and implication of the four noble truths. On a deeper level, it refers to a misunderstanding of the nature of the self and reality.

Sammyuta Nikaya 149:3 gives the following description of the origin of dukkha:

...when one does not know and see as it actually is [the feeling] felt as pleasant or painful or neither painful-nor-pleasant that arises with eye-contact as condition, then one is inflamed by lust for the eye, for forms, for eye-consciousness, for eye-contact, for [the feeling] felt as pleasant or painful or neither painful-nor-pleasant that arises with eye-contact as condition [repeated for the nose, tongue, body, mind].

Third truth: cessation of dukkha

See also: Nirodha sacca

The third Noble Truth is the truth of the cessation of dukkha. The term cessation (Pali: nirodha) refers to the cessation of craving, which keeps us tied to samsara. It is

And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of dukkha: the remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, & letting go of that very craving.

Cessation is the goal of one's practice in the Buddhist tradition. From a more psychological point of view, once we have developed a genuine understanding of the causes of suffering, such as craving (tanha) and ignorance (avijja), then we can completely eradicate these causes and thus be free from suffering.

Cessation is often equated with nirvana (Sanskrit; Pali nibbana), which can be described as the state of being in cessation or the event or process of the cessation. A temporary state of nirvana can be said to occur whenever the causes of suffering (e.g. craving) have ceased in our mind.

Majjhima Nikaya 149:9 gives the following description of cessation:

When one abides uninflamed by lust, unfettered, uninfatuated, contemplating danger [...] one's craving [...] is abandoned. One's bodily and mental troubles are abandoned, one's bodily and mental torments are abandoned, one's bodily and mental fevers are abandoned, and one experiences bodily and mental pleasure.

Joseph Goldstein explains:

Ajahn Buddhadasa, a well-known Thai master of the last century, said that when village people in India were cooking rice and waiting for it to cool, they might remark, "Wait a little for the rice to become nibbana". So here, nibbana means the cool state of mind, free from the fires of the defilements. As Ajahn Buddhadasa remarked, "The cooler the mind, the more Nibbana in that moment". We can notice for ourselves relative states of coolness in our own minds as we go through the day.

Fourth truth: path to the cessation of dukkha

The Dharma wheel, often used to represent the Noble Eightfold Path

Main articles: Noble Eightfold Path and Buddhist Paths to liberation

The fourth noble truth is the path, or method, to the cessation of dukkha. The path consists of a set of interconnected factors or conditions, that when developed together, lead to the development of dhyana and the cessation of dukkha.

The term "path" is usually taken to mean the Noble Eightfold Path, but other versions of "the path" can also be found in the Nikayas. Majjhima Nikaya 26:42 gives a very conscise summary:

[H]is taints are destroyed by his seeing with wisdom.

Majjhima Nikaya 149:9 says:

...when one knows and see as it actually is [the feeling] felt as pleasant or painfull or neither painful-nor-pleasant that arises with eye-contact as condition, then one is not inflamed by lust for the eye, for forms, for eye-consciousness, for eye-contact, for [the feeling] felt as pleasant or painful or neither painful-nor-pleasant that arises with eye-contact as condition [repeated for the nose, tongue, body, mind].

The eightfold path consists of the understanding that this world is floating and unsatisfying, and how craving keeps us ties to this floating world; a friendly and compassionate attitude to others; a correct way of behaving; mind-control, which means not feeding on negative thoughts, and nurturing positive thoughts; constant awareness of the feelings and responses which arise; and the practice of dhyana, meditation. The tenfold path adds the right (liberating) insight, and liberation from rebirth.

The path is a series of stages leading to liberating insight c.q. practice. According to Tilmann Vetter, the description of the four truths is a later addition to a set of practices which culminate in the practice of dhyana. In early Buddhism, the calm to which this practice leads is the liberation which is being sought.But it is also interpreted as an interconnected collection of practices without a gradual progression.

Experiential knowledge

In the Buddhist tradition, the four noble truths, and Buddhist philosophy in general, are understood to be based on the personal experience of the Buddha. This understanding is implied in the term "noble truths," which is a translation of the Pali terms ariya sacca (Sanskrit: arya satya). The Pali term sacca means "truth" and "real" or "actual thing." In this context, contemporary Buddhist scholar Rupert Gethin explains that the four noble truths are not asserted as propositional truths or creeds; rather, they are understood as "true things" or "realities" that the Buddha experienced.

Illness, diagnosis, and cure

In the Buddhist tradition, the Buddha is often compared to a great physician, and his teachings are compared to medicine. The teachings on the four noble truths in particular are related to a medical diagnosis, as follows:

1. The truth of dukkha: identifying the illness and the nature of the illness (the diagnosis)
2. The truth of origin: identifying the causes of the illness (the etiology)
3. The truth of cessation: identifying a cure for the illness (the prognosis)
4. The truth of the path: recommending a treatment for the illness that can bring about a cure (the prescription)

This analogy is said to emphasize the compassion of the Buddha—that he was motivated by the desire to relieve the suffering of beings. It also emphasizes that the Buddha was presented as physician, or healer of the spirit, rather than as a meta-physician or someone who spoke of supernatural powers.

Emphasis within different traditions

Early Indian Buddhism

Ekavyāvahārika

The Ekavyāvahārika sect emphasized the transcendence of the Buddha, asserting that he was eternally enlightened and essentially non-physical. According to the Ekavyāvahārika, the words of the Buddha were spoken with one transcendent meaning, and the Four Noble Truths are perfectly realized with one wisdom.

Mahīśāsaka

According to the Mahīśāsaka sect, the Four Noble Truths should be meditated upon simultaneously.

Theravada

Within the Theravada tradition, great emphasis is placed upon reading and contemplating The Discourse That Sets Turning the Wheel of Truth, and other suttas, as a means to study the four noble truths and put them into practice.

The Kathāvatthu records debate by the Theravādins with the Andhakas (who may have been Mahāsāṃghikas) regarding whether or not old age and death are the result (vipāka) of karma. The Theravāda maintained that they are not—not, apparently because there is no causal relation between the two, but because they wished to reserve the term vipāka strictly for mental results--"subjective phenomena arising through the effects of kamma."

Mahayana

In the Mahayana tradition, the four noble truths take a less prominent place. They are traditionally studied through various Mahayana commentaries, in conjunction with teachings on bodhisattva path.

Tibetan Buddhism

Within Tibetan Buddhism, the four noble truths are traditionally studied from Mahayana commentaries such as the Abhisamayalamkara, rather than from reading the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta. In this context, the truth of the path (the fourth truth) is traditionally presented according to a progressive formula of five paths, rather than as the eightfold path presented in other traditions.

Sixteen characteristics

The Tibetan tradition also emphasizes the study of the sixteen characteristics of the four noble truths, as described in the Abhisamayalamkara. The Mahayana text Ornament of Clear Realization (Abhisamayalamkara) identifies four characteristics of each truth, for a total of sixteen characteristics, which are presented as a guide to contemplating and practicing the four noble truths. The Ornament of Clear Realization is a key text in the curriculum of Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and study colleges, and this method of study and practice is emphasized in the Tibetan tradition.

Commentaries on the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta

Note however, that some contemporary Tibetan Buddhist teachers have provided commentary on the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta and the noble eightfold path when presenting the dharma to Western students. For example, Geshe Tashi Tsering's commentary on the four noble truths emphasizes the Pali version of the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, and contemporary texts by Ringu Tulku and Lama Surya Das present the noble eightfold path.

From the Tibetan Buddhist point of view, these alternative methods of presentation are not considered to be contradictory, but rather as different ways to present the Buddhist path.

Nichiren Buddhism

Nichiren Buddhism is based on the teaching of the Japanese teacher Nichiren, who believed that the Lotus sutra contained the essence of all of Gautama Buddha's teachings. In his letter "A Comparison between the Lotus and Other Sutras," Nichiren states that the Four Noble Truths are a specific teaching expounded by the Buddha for the sake of the śrāvakas disciples, those who attain awakening by listening to the teachings of a Buddha. The implication here is that the teachings on the four noble truths are a provisional teaching, which Shakyamuni Buddha taught according to the people’s capacity, while the Lotus Sutra is a direct statement of Shakyamuni’s own enlightenment. The essence of the Four Noble Truths about the cause of sufferings being "Attachment to Earthly Desires" is recognized in Nichiren Buddhism, however as just one cause among others, such as Arrogance, Ignorance ...etc., as explained by Nichiren in his letter on The Fourteen Slanders.

Nichiren Buddhism regards the Four Noble Truths as specific teachings for the sravaka or voice hearers disciples of the Buddha: “the Sravaka, a term Hurvitz translates as ‘voice hearer’, is what we might call the standard followers of the Buddha for whom he teaches the four noble truths”., contrasted with the Dharma of the Lotus Sutra:” the Lotus Sutra was addressed to all people

The Second and Third Truth regarding the cause of suffering are recognized in Nichiren’s teaching as “Attachment to earthly desires”, however other causes of suffering are also listed such as arrogance, negligence, hatred and grudges and others.

Another difference in perceiving the teaching of the Eightfold Path is Nichiren’s teaching of the “direct path” to enlightenment: “The key point that set Nichiren Buddhism apart from the other Buddhist schools of his day was the establishment of this concrete means for attaining Buddhahood [in one’s current lifetime]”

Lotus Sutra

Buddhist schools which are based on the Lotus Sutra pay respect to the teaching of the Four Noble Truths, and recognize it as the first teaching of the Buddha, but – differently from other schools - not as the final teaching – and which they consider to be the Dharma of the Lotus:

The Lotus Sūtra, which is the Buddha’s final teaching, expounds all essences of the Buddha’s enlightenment based on the universal law.

According to Watson, the Lotus Sutra refers to the four noble truths in the context of presenting the teachings on the bodhisattva path. The third chapter of the Lotus Sutra states that the Four Noble Truths was the early teaching of the Buddha, while the Dharma of the Lotus is the 'most wonderful, unsurpassed great Dharma'.

Etymology

Pali terms

Five sets of the four truths can be found in the Pitaka. One of them is as follows:

1. Dukkha saccã - "suffering", "anxiety", "uneasiness", "dissatisfaction", "unsatisfactoriness", etc. See Dukkha etymology
2. Samudaya saccã - "origin", "source", "arising", "coming to existence"; "aggregate of the constituent elements or factors of any being or existence", "cluster", "coming together", "combination", "producing cause", "combination", "rising"
3. Nirodha saccã - cessation; release; to confine
4. Magga saccã - "path"

Ariya sacca

Arya sacca

The Pali terms ariya sacca (Sanskrit: arya satya) are commonly translated as "noble truths". This translation is a convention started by the earliest translators of Buddhist texts into English. K.R Norman has argues that this is just one of several possible translations. According to Paul Williams,

[T]here is no particular reason why the Pali expression ariyasaccani should be translated as 'noble truths'. It could equally be translated as 'the nobles' truths', or 'the truths for nobles', or 'the nobilising truths', or 'the truths of, possessed by, the noble ones' [...] In fact the Pali expression (and its Sanskrit equivalent) can mean all of these, although the Pali commentators place 'the noble truths' as the least important in their understanding .

According to Norman, probably the best translation is "the truth[s] of the noble one (the Buddha)." It is a statement of how things are seen by a Buddha, how things really are when seen correctly. It is the truthful way of seeing, Through not seeing things this way, and behaving accordingly, we suffer.

Arya

The term "arya" was probably later added to the four truths. The term ariya (Sanskrit: arya) can be translated as "noble", "not ordinary", "valuable", "precious". "pure", Paul Williams states:

The Aryas are the noble ones, the saints, those who have attained 'the fruits of the path', 'that middle path the Tathagata has comprehended which promotes sight and knowledge, and which tends to peace, higher wisdom, enlightenment, and Nibbana' (Narada 1980: 50 ).

Sacca

The term sacca (Sanskrit: satya) is a central term in Indian thought and religion. It is typically translated as "truth"; but it also means "that which is in accord with reality", or "reality". Rupert Gethin states:

The word satya (Pali sacca) can certainly mean truth, but it might equally be rendered as ‘real’ or ‘actual thing’. That is, we are not dealing here with propositional truths with which we must either agree or disagree, but with four ‘true things’ or ‘realities’ whose nature, we are told, the Buddha finally understood on the night of his awakening.

Critical Historical Analysis

Development

Growing importance

Carol Anderson notes that only by the time of the commentaries, in the fifth century CE, did the four truths come to be identified as the central teaching of the Buddha. Carol Anderson notes that the four truths are missing in critical passages in the canon, and states:

... the four noble truths were probably not part of the earliest strata of what came to be recognized as Buddhism, but that they emerged as a central teaching in a slightly later period that still preceded the final redactions of the various Buddhist canons.

Stephen Batchelor notes that the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta contains incongruities, and states that

The First Discourse cannot be treated as a verbatim transcript of what the Buddha taught in the Deer Park, but as a document that has evolved over an unspecified period of time until it reached the form in which it is found today in the canons of the different Buddhist schools.

The four truths probably entered the Sutta Pitaka from th Vinaya, the rules for monastic order. They were first added to enlightenment-stories which contain the Four Jhanas, replacing terms for "liberating insight". from there they were added to the biographical stories of the Buddha:

[I]t is more likely that the four truths are an addition to the biographies of the Buddha and to the Dhammacakkappavattana-sutta.

K.R. Norman concluded that the earliest version of the sutta did not contain the word "noble", but was added later.

Substituting "liberating insight"

According to both Bronkhorst and Anderson, the four truths became a substitution for prajna, or "liberating insight", in the suttas. According to Bronkhorst, the four truths may not have been formulated in earliest Buddhism, and did not serve in earliest Buddhism as a description of "liberating insight". Gotama's teachings may have been personal, "adjusted to the need of each person." Bronkhorst gives the example of Majjhima Nikaya 26, which also refers to the first sermon, but does not mention the four truths. The monks receive here personal instructions. Bronkhorst further notices that

...the accounts which include the Four Noble Truths had a completely different conception of the process of liberation than the one which includes the Four Dhyanas and the destruction of the intoxicants.

Originally the term prajna may have been used, which came to be replaced by the four truths in those texts where "liberating insight" was preceded by the four jhanas. Bronkhorst also notices that the conception of what exactly this "liberating insight" was developed throughout time. Whereas originally it may not have been specified, later on the four truths served as such, to be superseded by pratityasamutpada, and still later, in the Hinayana schools, by the doctrine of the non-existence of a substantial self or person. And Schmithausen notices that still other descriptions of this "liberating insight" exist in the Buddhist canon:

"that the five Skandhas are impermanent, disagreeable, and neither teh Self nor belonging to oneself"; "the contemplation of the arising and disappearance (udayabbaya) of the five Skandhas"; "the realisation of the Skandhas as empty (rittaka), vain (tucchaka) and without any pith or substance (asaraka).

An example of this substitution, and its consequences, is Majjhima Nikaya 36:42-43, which gives an account of the awakening of the Buddha.

Function of the four noble truths

Summary of the teachings

In the Nikayas the four truths are given as the "liberating insight" which constituted the awakening, or "enlightenment" In the Nikayas, they are compared to the footprints of an elephant: just as the footprints of all the other animals can fit within the footprint of an elephant, in the same way, all the teachings of the Buddha are contained within the teachings on the four noble truths.

Many Buddhist teachers present them as the essence of the Buddhist teachings. They see them as the teaching that the Buddha presented in his first sermon, and teach that the Buddha taught them repeatedly throughout his lifetime, expanding upon the presentation in the first sermon. According to Walpola Rahula,

The heart of the Buddha's teaching lies in the Four Noble Truths (Cattāri Ariyasaccāni) which he expounded in his very first sermon to his old colleagues, the five ascetics, at Isipatana (modern Sarnath) near Benares. In this sermon, as we have it in the original texts, these four Truths are given briefly. But there are innumerable places in the early Buddhist scriptures where they are explained again and again, with greater detail and in different ways. If we study the Four Noble Truths with the help of these references and explanations, we get a fairly good and accurate account of the essential teachings of the Buddha according to the original texts.

Symbolic and proposition function

According to Anderson, the four truths have both a symbolic and a propositional function. As a symbol, they refer to the possibility of awakening, as represented by the Buddha:

[W]hen the four noble truths are regarded in the canon as the first teaching of the Buddha, they function as a view or doctrine that assumes a symbolic function. Where the four noble truths appear in the guise of a religious symbol in the Sutta-pitaka and the Vinaya-pitaka of the Palicanon, they represent the enlightenment experience of the Buddha and the possibility of enlightenment for all Buddhists within the cosmos.

As a proposition, they describe how release from craving is to be reached:

... the four noble truths are truly set apart within the body of the Buddha's teachings, not because they are by definition sacred, but because they are both a symbol and a doctrine and transformative within the sphere of right view. As one doctrine among others, the four noble truths make explicit the structure within which one should seek enlightenment; as a symbol, the four noble truths evoke the possibility of enlightenment. As both, they occupy not only a central but a singular position within the Theravada canon and tradition.

Appearance within the discourses

The developing Buddhist tradition inserted the four truths, using various formulations, at various sutras. They are being used both as a symbol of all dhammas and the Buddha's awakening, and as a set of propositions which function within a matrix of teachings. According to Anderson, there is no single way to understand the teachings; one teaching may be used to explain another teaching, and vice versa. The teachings form a network, which should be apprehended as such to understand how the various teachings intersect with each other.

Symbolic function

Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta (SN56.11)

A relief depicting the first discourse of the Buddha, from the 2nd century (Kushan). The Walters Art Museum. The Buddha's hand can be seen at right.

According to the Buddhist tradition, the first talk of Gautama Buddha after he attained enlightenment is recorded in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta (The Discourse That Sets Turning the Wheel of Truth) (Samyutta Nikaya 56.11). The four truths originally were not part of this sutta, and were later added in some versions. Several versions of this sutta contain the four truths, whereas others don't.

The Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta provides details on three stages in the understanding of each truth, for a total of twelve insights. According to Bronkhorst, they are probably also a later addition, born out of unease with the substitution of the general term "prajna" for the more specific "four truths". The three stages for understanding each truth are:

1. sacca-ñāṇa - knowing the nature of the truth (e.g., acknowledgement, view, reflection)
2. kicca-ñāṇa - knowing what needs to be done in connection with that truth (e.g., practice; motivation; directly experiencing)
3. kata-ñāṇa - accomplishing what needs to be done (e.g., result, full understanding, knowing)

These three stages of understanding are emphasized particularly in the Theravada tradition, but they are also recognized by some contemporary Mahayana teachers.

Maha-parinibbana Sutta (Last Days of the Buddha)(DN16)

The Maha-parinibbana Sutta(Digha Nikaya 16) was given near the end of the Buddha's life. In this sutta, the Buddha emphasized the importance of the four noble truths with the following statement:

And the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus, saying: "Bhikkhus, it is through not realizing, through not penetrating the Four Noble Truths that this long course of birth and death has been passed through and undergone by me as well as by you. What are these four? They are the noble truth of suffering; the noble truth of the origin of suffering; the noble truth of the cessation of suffering; and the noble truth of the way to the cessation of suffering. But now, bhikkhus, that these have been realized and penetrated, cut off is the craving for existence, destroyed is that which leads to renewed becoming, and there is no fresh becoming."

Thus it was said by the Blessed One. And the Happy One, the Master, further said:

Through not seeing the Four Noble Truths,

Long was the weary path from birth to birth.

When these are known, removed is rebirth's cause,

The root of sorrow plucked; then ends rebirth.

Mahasaccaka Sutta (The Greater Discourse to Saccaka)(MN36)

The Mahasaccaka Sutta (Majjhima Nikaya 36) narrates the Buddha's way to liberation. He attains the Three Knowledges, the third one being the knowledge of the taints and the knowledge of the Four Noble Truths.

After going through the four dhyanas, and gaining the first two knowledges, the story proceeds:

I directed my mind to the knowledge of the destruction of the intoxicants [suffering ... origin ... cessation ... path] [intoxicants (asava) ... origin ... cessation ... path] My mind was liberated [...] the knowledge arose that it was liberated.

Bronkhorst dismisses the first two knowledges as later additions, and proceeds to notice that the recognition of the intoxicants is modelled on the four truths. According to Bronkhorst, those are added the bridge the original sequence of "I directed my mind to the knowledge of the destruction of the intoxicants. My mind was liberated", which was interrupted by the addition of the four truths. Bronkhorst points out that those do not fit here, since the four truths culminate in the knowledge of the path to be followed - which has been ended by that point!

Propositional function

Maha-satipatthana Sutta (The Great Frames of Reference)(DN22)

The Maha-satipatthana Sutta (Digha Nikaya 22) elaborates on the meaning of each of the four noble truths (providing additional details to those found in the first discourse of the Buddha).

Sammaditthi Sutta (The Discourse on Right View)(MN9)

The Sammaditthi Sutta (Majjhima Nikaya 9), a discourse given by Ven. Sariputta, explains many aspects of the four noble truths, kamma and dependent arising.

Mahāhatthipadopama Sutta (The Greater Discourse on the Elephant-footprint Simile)(MN28)

The Mahāhatthipadopama Sutta (The Greater Discourse on the Elephant-footprint Simile; Majjhima-Nikāya 28), a discourse given by Sāriputta, presents the simile of the elephant-footprint; this sutta states:

Friends, just as the footprint of any breathing thing that walks can be placed within an elephant’s footprint, and so the elephant’s footprint is declared the chief of them because of its great size, so too, whatever beneficial ideas there are can all be included in the four Noble Truths.

This sutta also elaborates on the meaning of the five aggregates which are mentioned in the first discourse as part of the cause of suffering.

Samyutta Nikaya

The Samyutta Nikaya gives elaborate overviews of treatments and discussions of separate items. SN61, Sacca Samyutta, treats the four truths extensively.

Tittha Sutta (Sectarians)(AN3.61)

In the Tittha Sutta (Anguttara Nikaya 3.61), the Buddha provides an alternate description of the second and third noble truths; in this sutta the Buddha identifies the arising and cessation of suffering in accordance with his teachings on the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination.

See also

• Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta
• Dukkha
• Enlightenment in Buddhism
• List of Buddhist topics

Sources

• Ajahn Sumedho (2002), The Four Noble Truths, Amaravati Publications
• Ajahn Sucitto (2010), Turning the Wheel of Truth: Commentary on the Buddha's First Teaching, Shambhala
• Anderson, Carol (1999), Pain and Its Ending: The Four Noble Truths in the Theravada Buddhist Canon, Routledge
• Barber, Anthony W. (2008), Buddhism in the Krishna River Valley
• Batchelor, Stephen (2012), "A Secular Buddhism", Journal of Global Buddhism 13 (2012): 87-107
• Bhikkhu Bodhi (translator) (2000), The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya, Boston: Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-331-1 {{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help)
• Bhikkhu Bodhi (2011), The Noble Eightfold Path: Way to the End of Suffering (Kindle ed.), Independent Publishers Group
• Bhikkhu Nanamoli (translator) (1995), The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A New Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya, Boston: Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-072-X {{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help)
• Bhikkhu Thanissaro (translator) (1997), Tittha Sutta: Sectarians (AN 3.61), retrieved 2007-11-12 {{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help) (See also Anguttara Nikaya)
• Brazier, David (2001), The Feeling Buddha, Robinson Publishing
• Bronkhorst, Johannes (1993), The Two Traditions Of Meditation In Ancient India, Motilal Banarsidass Publ.
• Bucknell, Rod (1984), "The Buddhist to Liberation: An Analysis of the Listing of Stages", The Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, Volume 7, 1984, Number 2
• Buswell, Robert E. JR; Gimello, Robert M. (editors) (1994), Paths to Liberation. The Marga and its Transformations in Buddhist Thought, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers {{citation}}: |first2= has generic name (help)
• Buswell, Robert E. (ed.) (2003), Encyclopedia of Buddhism, MacMillan Reference Books, ISBN 978-0-02-865718-9 {{citation}}: |first= has generic name (help)
• Chogyam Trungpa (2009), Leif, Judy (ed.), The Truth of Suffering and the Path of Liberation, Shambhala
• Cohen, Robert S. (2006), Beyond Enlightenment: Buddhism, Religion, Modernity, Routledge
• Dalai Lama (1992), The Meaning of Life: Buddhist Perspectives on Cause and Effect, Translated and edited by Jeffrey Hopkins, Wisdom
• Dalai Lama (1998), The Four Noble Truths, Thorsons
• Dhamma, Ven. Dr. Rewata (1997), The First Discourse of the Buddha, Wisdom, ISBN 0-86171-104-1
• Duff, Tony (2008), Contemplation by way of the Twelve Interdependent Arisings, Padma Karpo Translation Committee, retrieved 2008-08-19
• Epstein, Mark (2004), Thoughts Without A Thinker: Psychotherapy from a Buddhist Perspective (Kindle ed.), Basic Books
• Feer, Leon (editor) (1976), The Samyutta Nikaya, vol. 5, London: Pali Text Society {{citation}}: |first= has generic name (help)
• Fronsdal, Gil (2001), The Issue at Hand (Kindle ed.), self-published
• Geshe Tashi Tsering (2005), The Four Noble Truths: The Foundation of Buddhist Thought, Volume I (Kindle ed.), Wisdom
• Geshe Tashi Tsering (2006), Buddhist Psychology: The Foundation of Buddhist Thought, Volume III (Kindle ed.), Perseus Books Group
• Gethin, Rupert (1998), Foundations of Buddhism, Oxford University Press
• Goenka, S.N. (2000), The Discourse Summaries, Pariyatti
• Goldstein, Joseph (2002), One Dharma: The Emerging Western Buddhism, HarperCollins
• Goldstein, Joseph (2013), Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Awakening (Kindle ed.), Sounds True
• Harvey, Peter (2013), An Introduction to Buddhism, Cambridge University Press
• Kalupahana, David J. (1992-B), A history of Buddhist philosophy, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited {{citation}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
• Keown, Damien (2000), Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction (Kindle ed.), Oxford University Press
• Khunu Rinpoche (2012), Vast as the Heavens, Deep as the Sea: Verses in Praise of Bodhicitta, Translated by Thubten Thardo (Gareth Sparham) (Kindle ed.), Wisdom
• Lama Surya Das (1997), Awakening the Buddha Within (Kindle ed.), Broadway Books
• Leifer, Ron (1997), The Happiness Project, Snow Lion
• Lopez, Donald S. (2001), The Story of Buddhism, HarperCollins
• McDermott, James Paul (1975), "The Kathāvatthu Kamma Debates", Journal of the American Oriental Society, no. Vol. 95, No. 3, Jul. - Sep., 1975 {{citation}}: |issue= has extra text (help)
• Mingyur Rinpoche (2007), The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness (Kindle ed.), Harmony
• Moffitt, Philip (2008), Dancing with Life: Buddhist Insights for Finding Meaning and Joy in the Face of Suffering (Kindle ed.), Rodale
• Monier-Williams (1899, 1964), A Sanskrit-English Dictionary (PDF), London: Oxford University Press, retrieved 27 December 2008 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
• Pema Chodron (2010), Comfortable with Uncertainty: 108 Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion, Shambhala
• Potter, Karl (2004), The Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophies, Vol. IX: Buddhist philosophy from 350 to 600 AD
• Rahula, Walpola (2007), What the Buddha Taught, Grove Press
• Ringu Tulku (2005), Daring Steps Toward Fearlessness: The Three Vehicles of Tibetan Buddhism, Snow Lion
• Rockhill, William (1992), The Life of Buddha And the Early History of His Order Derived from Tibetan, Asian Educational Services
• Sharf, Robert H. (1995-B), "Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience" (PDF), NUMEN, vol.42 (1995) {{citation}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
• Sharf, Robert H. (2000), The Rhetoric of Experience and the Study of Religion. In: Journal of Consciousness Studies, 7, No. 11-12, 2000, pp. 267-87 (PDF)
• Smith, Huston; Novak, Philip (2009), Buddhism: A Concise Introduction (Kindle ed.), HarperOne
• Snelling, John (1987), The Buddhist handbook. A Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice, London: Century Paperbacks
• Thich Nhat Hanh (1991), Old Path White Clouds, Parallax Press
• Thich Nhat Hanh (1999), The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching, Three River Press
• Traleg Kyabgon (2001), The Essence of Buddhism, Shambhala
• Vetter, Tilmann (1988), The Ideas and Meditative Practices of Early Buddhism, BRILL
• Walpola Rahula (2007), What the Buddha Taught (Kindle ed.), Grove Press
• Walsh, Maurice (1995), The Long Discourses of the Buddha. A Translation of the Dīgha Nikāya, Wisdom Publications
• Wardner, A.K. (1970), Indian Buddhism, Delhi{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Watson, Burton (1993), The Lotus Sutra, Columbia University Press
• Williams, Paul (2002), Buddhist Thought (Kindle ed.), Taylor & Francis
• Williams, Paul (2008), Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations, Routledge

Further reading

Historical background and development

• Vetter, Tilmann (1988), The Ideas and Meditative Practices of Early Buddhism, BRILL
• Bronkhorst, Johannes (1993), The Two Traditions Of Meditation In Ancient India, Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, chapter 8
• Anderson, Carol (1999), Pain and Its Ending: The Four Noble Truths in the Theravada Buddhist Canon, Routledge

Theravada commentaries

• Ajahn Sucitto (2010), Turning the Wheel of Truth: Commentary on the Buddha's First Teaching, Shambhala.
• Ajahn Sumedho (2002), The Four Noble Truths, Amaravati Publications. (Available for free in two formats: HTML and downloadable PDF)
• Bhikkhu Bodhi (2006), The Noble Eightfold Path: Way to the End of Suffering, Pariyatti Publishing.

Tibetan Buddhism

• Chögyam Trungpa (2009), The Truth of Suffering and the Path of Liberation, Shambhala.
• Dalai Lama (1998), The Four Noble Truths, Thorsons.
• Geshe Tashi Tsering (2005), The Four Noble Truths: The Foundation of Buddhist Thought, Volume I, Wisdom, Kindle Edition
• Ringu Tulku (2005), Daring Steps Toward Fearlessness: The Three Vehicles of Tibetan Buddhism, Snow Lion. (Part 1 of 3 is a commentary on the four truths)

Modern interpreatations

• Epstein, Mark (2004), Thoughts Without A Thinker: Psychotherapy from a Buddhist Perspective. Basic Books. Kindle Edition. (Part 1 examines the four truths from a Western psychological perspective)
• Moffitt, Phillip (2008), Dancing with Life: Buddhist Insights for Finding Meaning and Joy in the Face of Suffering, Rodale, Kindle Edition. (An explanation of how to apply the Four Noble Truths to daily life)
• Thich Nhat Hanh (1999), The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching, Three Rivers Press

Other commentaries

• Gethin, Rupert (1998), Foundations of Buddhism, Oxford University Press, (Chapter 3 is a commentary of about 25 pages.)
• Lopez, Donald S. (2001), The Story of Buddhism, HarperCollins. (pp. 42–54)
• Walpola Rahula (1974), What the Buddha Taught, Grove Press

External links

Complete commentaries - Theravada tradition

• Four Noble Truths: Teachings by Ajahn Sumedho
• The Four Noble Truths: Teachings by Ajahn Sumedho (ebook) - an ebook version of the above commentary

Introductory material and study guides - Theravada tradition

• The Four Noble Truths - Ajahn Chah
• The Buddha's Ancient Path - Piyadassi Thera
• The Four Noble Truths (brief overview) - Bhikkhu Bodhi
• The Noble Eightfold Path: The Way to End Suffering - Bhikkhu Bodhi
• Study Guide on the Eightfold Path - Bhikkhu Bodhi, Richard Blumberg (a study guide on Bhikkhu Bodhi's text)
• Lecture on the Four Noble Truths by Bhikkhu Bodhi
• The Four Noble Truths: A Study Guide - Thanissaro Bhikkhu
• The Four Noble Truths - Wings to Awakening - excerpts from suttas translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
• DharmaNet - Four Noble Truths - links to several online sources

Introductory material and study guides - Mahayana tradition

• Four Noble Truths - Dalai Lama (A brief overview)
• Brief Introduction to the Four Noble Truths - Dalai Lama, Alexander Berzin (an edited version of the link above)
• Four Noble Truths - Thrangu Rinpoche (A brief overview)
• Overview of Four Noble Truths - Alexander Berzin
• Sixteen Aspects of the Four Noble Truths - Alexander Berzin
• A View on the Four Noble Truths - Rudy Harderwijk
• Four Noble Truths - Buddhism in the National Capital of Canada

Nichiren Buddhism

• The Four Noble Truth and the Lotus Sutra

Chinese

• 轉法輪經 ChineseBodhiDhammacakka at CBETA Chinese Electronic Tripitaka As of 28 October 2008