The Bodhisatva attained Enlightenment at the age of thirty-five years. What is meant by Enlightenment? In Sanskrit and Pali language the term Bodhi is used to mean enlightenment . The term Bodhi is from the root Budh, meaning to awaken, to know, to be enlightened. The term Bodhisatva means a person who is in search of the Bodhi or Enlightenment. This is why the Buddha, in the period of his search for enlightenment, is referred to as Bodhisatva. The word Buddha is also from the same root Budh. The word Buddha means an Enlightened One, an Awakened One or the One who knows or understand.
If Bodhi means enlightement, what really constitutes this Enlightenment? It is noted that the canonical texts give two different accounts of the attainment of enlightenment. In one of these accounts it is simply described as the dawning of the Truth brought about by the practise of meditation, after a long process of trial and error. In the other, this description is preceded by an account of the battle between the Bodhisatva and the Mara. Finally, the Bodhisatva defeated the Mara and this victory marks his enlightenment. Obviously of these two descritions, the first one is earlier and more close to the truth than the second one which is mixed with mythology.
From the early canonical accounts it is seen that the Bodhisatva left household-life and became a recluse with an intention of putting an end to Dukkha by finding a way to do so . Through meditation he controlled and cleansed his mind, and making it one-pointed, directed it towards the development of three knowledge (tisso vijja). These are the knowledge he obtained by recollecting about his own past lives (pubbenivasanussati nana); divine eye (Dibbacakkhu), that is the ability to see how others are dying and are being reborn acording to their kamma. Therefore, this is also called yathakammupaga nana. And finally, the knowledge regarding the destruction of all defilements (asavakkhayanana) With the acquisition of these knowledges, the Bodhisatva sees things as they are (yathabhuta). He ses that this is Dukkha, this is the arising of Dukkha, this is the cessation of Dukkha, this is the path leading to the cessation of Dukkha. These collectively is called the Four Noble Truths. When these Truths are seen, his mind becomes free of the defilements of sense-pleasures, becoming and ignorance. Thus it is een that the culmination of enlightenment is the complete eradication of Ignorance (avijja) and the arising of knowledge (vijja).
In early texts avijja or ignorance is explained as lack of knowledge regarding the Four Noble Truths (catusacce annana) and its opposite, named knowledge is explained as knowledge regarding the Four Noble Truths (catasacca nana).
This shows how important the knowledge regarding the Four Noble Truths are. In fact Bodhi or Enlightenment is this knowledge. It is the acquisition of this knowledge that elevated Gotama from the level of a Bodhisatva to that of the Buddha. The Buddha, in the Mahaparinibbana Sutta says that it is through not understanding the Four Noble Truths that beings wander for long time in Samsara.
The Buddha himself described his attainment of Enlightenment in the following words: "There arose in me vision, knowledge, wisdom, insight and light (cakkhum udapadi, nanam udapadi, panna udapadi, vijja udapadi, aloko udapadi ). Thus it is seen that the understanding of the four Noble Truths is the arising of a new vision of life, a new vision into all phenomena. This vision brings about a total change in the Bodhisatva. He is elevated to the level of a noble being, an Ariya. It is for this reason that the teaching regarding the Four Noble Truths is referred to as the totally elevating teaching (samukkhansika desana). Once a person understands this teaching, he breaks away from the level of an ordinary person. The other teaching is the gradual teaching(anapubbikatha) which gradually lift a person to the level of a noble being.
The heart of the Buddha's teaching lies in the Four Noble Truths --- Truths is that which is sacca. These Truths do not change with time. To realise these Truths is to realise and penetrate into the true nature existence, including the full knowledge of oneself. These Truths are so important that they are called 'Noble Truths' (Ariya Sacca) because by fully understanding these Truths that an ordinary person(puthujjana) can becomes a Noble person (Ariya Puggala) or an Arahant. The Buddha has said that it is because we fail to realise the Four Noble Truth that we have to go round in the cycle of birth and death.
The Four Noble Truths are four fundamental, categorical statements or propositions (..pasika Dhamma) regarding the man's existence in Samsara and the way out of it. In this sense this teaching contains the sessence of the Buddha's teaching, for the whole of his teaching is about this important fact. The essence of the Buddha's teaching is about the existence of Dukkha and the possibility of its cessation. These four Noble Truths are :
Commonly however, these are referred to as Dukkha Sacca, Samudaya Sacca, Nirodha Sacca and Magga Sacca . The prefix Ariya or Noble is an indication to show their importance and it is by fully understanding these Truths that an ordinary worldling (puthujjana) gets elevated into the status of a Noble person ( Ariya Puggala ), or an Arahant .
The first Noble Truth is about the existence of Dukkha and it is said that one who understand this Truth, understand the arising of Dukkha, its cessation and also the path leading to its cessation. Therefore it is said that though they are referred to as Four Noble Truths they are in fact one. This show how important the Four Noble Truth is.
There is however some confusion about this Truth. The problem is concerning the word Dukkha. the most common English translation of this word is 'suffering'. Though this sense is not totally absent, the term Dukkha cannot be totally understood if we are taking it in this 'limited meaning'. Scholars have rightly pointed out that this term cannot be rendered into English by any single term. Scholars have also pointed out that this 'mistranslation' that has lead to much misinterpretation of Buddhism. In fact, it is this 'mistranslation' that has made many wrongly think that Buddhism is pessimistic. Therefore this perm has to be porperly understood if one is to understand the essence of the Buddha's teaching.
The word Dukkha besides conveying the meaning of suffering also conveys the meanings such as unhappiness, unsatisfactoriness, pain, unpleasantness, conflict, emptiness, imperfection, non-substantiality, and so on. Thus it is seen what a complex word this is. It is seen that these wide range of meanings covered by the word Dukkha include both physical pain as well as mental anguish or conflict. When it is used to indicate the first Noble Truth, this word Dukkha conveys more the meaning of mental conflict than physical pain. It is very important to bear this fact in mind so as to understand the Four Noble Truths properly.
The Buddha's teachng on these Four Truths forms the 'theme' of his first sermon namely, the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta. This Sutta found mentioned in two separate volumes. One is in the Samyutta Nikaya (Vol. V 420) and the other in the Vinaya (Vol. I 10). It was delivered to his erstwhile friends, the Pancavaggiya Bhikkhu. This Sutta itself gives a short description of what these Four Noble Truths mean. In introducing these Truths the Buddha says that these are truths not heard of before.
The first Noble Truth is described as follows: Birth is Dukkha, decay is Dukkha, sickness is Dukkha, death is Dukkha, likewise sorrow and grief, woe, lamentation and despair is Dukkha. Association with things disliked and separation from things liked, and not getting what one desires too are Dukkha. In brief, the grasping of five aggregates (pancaupadanakkhandha) are Dukkha.
The Buddha himself in the Samyutta Nikaya (Vol. V 430 ) syas that in this Noble Truth of Dukkha described immeasurable are the shades and meanings. Dukkha is of different types and intensities. Traditionally Dukkha is divided into three namely, Dukkha-Dukkha, Vaparinama-dukkha and sankhara-dukkha.
Dukkha-dukkha -- It is the most common. By this is meant the ordinary feeling of Dukkha due to sickness, old age, death, loss of friends, things that are dear and so on. This sort of Dukkha is often experienced by us in our day to day life. It is some kind of an unhappy feeling that kills the enthusiasm, making one feel dejected and disheartened. It weighs heavy in one's heart.
Viparinama-dukkha -- It is due to change of some existing favourable condition. For example, when a happy condition changes into an unhappy condition, one experiences dukkha due to this change of condition. This is Viparinama-Dukkha.
Sankhara Dukkha -- It is more complex and hence difficult to understand. This is described as the unsatisfactoriness experienced due to conditioned states. This is also what the Buddha meant when he said that, in brief the five aggregates of clinging are dukkha. To understand this properly it is necessary to understand the Buddha's analysis of the individual.
According to the explanation given by the Buddha the individal is made up of five aggregates. These are : form (rupa), feeling (vedana), perception (sanna), mental formations (sankhara), and consciousness (vinnana). None of these are permanent. They are always changing, and therefore there is no permanent substance in them. When they are combined for convenience we call this combination 'the individual'. Not knowing this is the individual develops an attachment to these five aggregates or Pancakkhanda, and begin to think 'this I am', 'this is myself' and 'this is mine'. This attachment or clinging is what is known as 'upadana'. The pancaupadanakkhandha is the attachment one develops to these five aggregates. It is this attachment that gives us the false sense of self and make us consider everything in a very selfish manner. It is this selfishness that lies at the root of all our Dukkha. It is for this reason that the Buddha says that in brief the five aggregates of clinging are Dukkha.
The first Noble Truth is about the existence of Dukkha. The second explains the cause of its arising. The word samudaya means arising. In the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta itself, craving or tanha is mentioned as the cause of arising of Dukkha. But it should clearly be understood that the Buddha does not say that anything arises from a single cause. Similarly, the Buddha does not say that there is a first cause. He clearly says that the attempt to find the first cause of things is a futile one. Besides, he points that such an attempt is in no way helpful to the cessation of dukkha which should be the main concern of all Buddhist.
According to the Buddha things do arise due to causes and conditions. There is no single entity that could be pointed out as the cause of anything; that is why it is said that Buddhism speaks of a plurality of causes. Even these are not separate and independent causes. All causes are interdependent and inter-related. Then why does Buddha say that tanha is the cause of Dukkha, that Dukkha arises due to tanha? . This is because in this context tanha or craving is the most salient, important or obvious cause. Take the case of the paticcasamuppada. Therein, Avijja or ignorance is given as the cause of arising of all Dukkha. In fact it is mentioned first in the list of twelve factors. But even then Avijja or ignorance should not be taken as either first cause or the one single cause. You may have noted that else where craving, hatred and confusion are given as causes of our existence is samsara. So what is clear is that in Buddhism there is neither any reference to a first cause or to a single cause. While it does not speak of a first cause, it accepts that things do arise due to a number of inter-related and inter-dependent causes.
So in this case tanha should be taken as the most obvious cause. Tanha is an urge that arises in the mind. When it arises regarding things that one desires it is called craving, and when it arises regarding things that one does not like it takes the form of hatred. Tanha has no limits. It could have anything as its object. This object may be a person, a thing or even an idea or a belief. Whatever is the object, tanha or craving leads to conflict or Dukkha.
Tanha is broadly divided into three. These are: Craving for sensual pleasure (kamatanha), craving for eternal life (bhavatanha) and craving for annihilation (vibhavatanha). All kinds of craving merely lead to Dukkha.
The third Noble Truth is the cessation of Dukkha, that is, Dukkha-nirodha-ariya-sacca. Whatever that arises is bound to cease and so is Dukkha. Dukkha also arises and therefore is bound to cease. When its cause is known it is easy to put an end to it. We know the cause of Dukkha and what we have to do is to eleminate the cause. To eliminate tanha we have to understand how tanha comes to be. This is due to our ignorance regarding the true nature of things. We do not properly understand that things are impermanent (anicca), non-satisfactory (dukkha) and without any substance (anatta). Hence we consider things that are impermanent as permanent, things that are causing unhappiness (dukkha) as giving happiness, and things without any lasting substance as having substance. This is not the true nature of things but the nature in which we wish to see them. But when faced with reality things appear otherwise and thus causes dukkha in us. So what we have to do is to correct our vision and see the true nature of things. This will enable us to get rid of tanha.
The fourth Noble Truth, Dukkha-nirodha-gamini-patipada-ariya-sacca, lays down the path following which one could completely eradicate Dukkha. This path consists of the Buddhist practice or carana. It is called the path leading to the cessation of Dukkha. Therefore it has to be properly understood if one is to gain freedom from Dukkha. As it has been pointed our before, the one and only goal of a Buddhist is the ending of Dukkha. The only purpose of leading a religious life is this and therefore it is very important to have a thorough understanding of this Noble Path (Ariya Magga).
The Noble Eightfold Path is the path leading to the cessation of Dukkha. It is referred to as the Middle Path (Majjhima Patipada). This is termed as such because it completely rejects the two extremes namely, the path of self-mortification and the extreme self-indulgence (Attakilamathanuyoga, Kamasukhallikanuyoga). It is also called the path leading to the cessation of Kamma.
The Noble Eightfold Path contains the essence of the Buddha's teaching, and it is the knowledge regarding the four Noble Truths which contains also the path that is said to be the liberating knowledge or Vijja.
By following the path leading to the cessation of suffering, one could put an end to Dukkha; and putting an end to Dukkha is the goal of Buddhism. This path is called the Ariya atthangika magga, the Noble Eightfold Path. This path is so named because it consists of eight factors.
These eight factors are:
Buddhism is an ethical religion and therefore, emphasises the important of virtues or sila. It is said that a wise man is expected to first establish himself in virtue and then cultivate his mind and wisdom. So sila forms the foundation on which character development is based. Under the category of Sila fall the following three factors of the Path. Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood. Right speech deals with proper use of the power of speech. Abuse of speech is the cause of many problems and conflicts in the society. It harms oneself as well as others. Abuse of speech is of four kinds namely telling lies (musavada), tale bearing, slandering (pisunavaca), use of harsh words (pharusavaca) and idle talk,frivolous talk, gossip (samphappalapa). Giving up these one should cultivate in their place the practise of speaking the truth, good of others, pleasant words and meaningful words. It is seen that this is covered by the fourth precept. Right action is to avoid killing, stealing and illegal sexual relations. These are the same as the first three precepts. Right livelihood is regarding the avoidance of professions that are harmful to the society. Five such professions are directly named and these are : trading in arms, living beings, flesh, intoxicants and poison. But these are not the only professions that are harmful to oneself and others. Any kind of profession that causes harm is bad, so even those trade if it is done by cheating and exploiting people is bad.
Development of concentration consists of Right effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration. Right Effort is a factor that has relation to the whole path. Buddhism accepts the independence and supremacy of man. They have to look after their own salvation and effort is very necessary in this.
Right effort is four fold :
Controlling of the mind is important to develop mindfulness. This enables one to always keep away from bad activities. Right Mindfulness is to be constantly aware of all activities of the body, feeling, mind and thoughts. The culmination comes with the perfection of wisdom. Practice of Satipatthana helps this.
Right Concentration helps to develop one-pointedness of the mind and this helps the mind in achieving Jhanas.
Right view and right thought constitute wisdom. Right view helps to distinguish between good and bad. It is a basic requirement to set one's life on the proper path. Guided by right view one becomes able to gear one's thoughts properly. It helps one to free the mind of evil thoughts such as lust, ill-will and cruelty. And it has to be remembered that thought thought is a mental activity and that mental activities go a long way in shaping one's verbal and physical activities.
These eight factors above are inter-connected and therefore these factors are not expected to be practised one after the other independently. The path is an integrated one and therefore these factors are to be followed almost together. These factors are not meant to be cultivated one after the other (or separately). It is a collective cultivation of all thought at one moment ~ one factor may receive more attention than the rest. However, generally sila (virtue) is regarded as the basic of all moral perfection and receives special emphasis because the factors that are included in sila are involved closely with all our day to day activities.
As this path is said to be a graduated one, any ordinary layman can follow it, beginning from the mundane level (lokiya) and then going on to the supra mundane level (lokuttara).
It is clear that this path is a programme for character perfection. Therefore the perfection of one's character is the solution for the problem of Dukkha. Thus it is seen that the solution is not to found outside but within the individual himself. When the character is perfected the vision of such individuals undergo a drastic change enabling them to understand the real nature of oneself and the world. This help them to be without coming to conflict.
FOOTNOTE : The above article was compiled by one Dhamma teacher of Buddhist
Institute Sunday Dhamma School, Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur on Jan 1996.
Sadhu! Sadhu! Sadhu!