The Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering (dukkha-samudaya)
The origin of suffering can be viewed from a 3 life-time cycle of rebirth: the previous life, the present life, and the next life. This is how it shows the causal relationship between things done and the kamma / karma [cause and effect] acquired in a previous life to the present life, and things done and kamma / karma acquired in the present life that will affect the next life.
“And what is the origin of suffering?
It is craving, which brings renewal of being, is accompanied by delight and lust, and delights in this and that;
that is,
- craving for sensual pleasures,
- craving for being [repeated rebirth], and
- craving for non-being [extermination].
This is called the origin of suffering.” — MN I.48
The origin of suffering might be translated as the cause of suffering, or to indicate what causes the arising of suffering. This is to accentuate that the practice of Buddhism has more to do with the causes of suffering, and the practice should lead to the cessation or diminishing of the causes of suffering. Suffering does not arise in a vacuum, so the Buddhist teachings explain the formative chains or links that show how suffering arises:
“And what, monks, is the noble truth of the origin of suffering?
- With ignorance as condition, volitional activities arise;
- with volitional activities as condition, consciousness arises;
- with consciousness as condition, name-and-form ariwith name-and-form as condition, the six sense baseswith the six sense bases as contact arises;
- with contact as condition, feeling arises;
- with feeling as condition, craving arises;
- with craving as condition, clinging arises;
- with clinging as condition, existence arises;
- with existence as condition, birth arises;
- with birth as condition, old age and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, dejection, and anguish arise.
Such is the origin of this whole mass of suffering.” — AN I.177
Besides the explanation of how suffering arises, it is beneficial to get an understanding of how and where craving gets established, as it forms a vital role in the previous chain of causes that lead to suffering. Craving is the grasping for intangible [mentality] and tangible objects, where the quality projected onto those objects by the grasping person is perceived as pleasurable and enjoyable. In this complexity of the arising and establishing, the five senses, it’s 5 sense objects that are being grasped, and the consciousness of those objects in the mind all play a part of how craving comes to be and is maintained through a cycle of perpetual motion for pleasurable and enjoyable experience in the mind. This craving and grasping projects a quality onto the objects that is invalid, as such that it is perceived as a permanent experience, whereas reality proves every single time that whatever arises will also cease eventually, leading to disappointment and hence suffering.
“But where does this craving, monks, arise and where does it get established?
Wherever in the world [of mind and matter] there is something enticing and pleasurable, there this craving arises and gets established.” — Mahasatipatthana Sutta
The teaching continuous to explain this in more detail. The pleasurable quality is explained in the form of sensation, perception, how the mind reacts to it, the continued craving, how the mind conceptualizes thoughts based on them, and how the mind keeps itself focussed on these fleeting moments of it all:
“But what in the world [of mind and matter] is enticing and pleasurable?
The eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, [and] mind in the world of mind and matter;
Visible objects, material forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touch, [and] contents of the mind in the world of mind and matter;
The eye-consciousness, ear-, nose-, tongue-, body-, [and] mind-consciousness in the world of mind and matter;
The eye-contact, ear-, nose-, tongue-, body-, and mind-contact in the world of mind and matter;
The sensation arising from the eye-contact, ear-contact, nose-contact, tongue-contact, body-contact, and mind-contact in the world of mind and matter;
The perception of visible objects, of material forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touch, and contents of the mind in the world of mind and matter;
The mental reaction to visible objects, to material forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touch, and mind objects and mental contents in the world of mind and matter;
The craving after visible objects, after material forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touch, and mind objects and mental contents in the world of mind and matter;
The thought conception of visible objects, of material forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touch, and mind objects and mental contents in the world of mind and matter;
The rolling in thoughts of visible objects, of material forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touch, and mind objects and mental contents in the world of mind and matter;
are [all] enticing and pleasurable;
there this craving arises and gets established.” — Mahasatipatthana Sutta
This might all seem a bit much to comprehend at first, but the Buddhist teachings are about the gradual increase of understanding and do not demand full understanding immediately. The Buddhist teachings are written for repeated reading and contemplation of what they mean. The explanation given also at first will seem a bit schematic, when compared to one’s experience in meditation, but hopefully it starts to match the meditative experience over time.
In the next part we’ll be discussing the Third Noble Truth.
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