QUESTION: What are the main teachings of the Buddha?
ANSWER:
All of the many teachings of the Buddha centre
on the Four Noble Truths just as the rim and spokes of a
wheel centre on the hub. They are called 'Four' because there
are four of them. They are called 'Noble' because they
ennoble one who understands them and they are called
'Truths' because, corresponding with reality, they are true.
QUESTION: What is the First Noble Truth?
ANSWER:
The First Noble Truth is that life is suffering. To
live, you must suffer. It is impossible to live without
experiencing some kind of suffering. We have to endure
physical suffering like sickness, injury, tiredness, old age
and eventually death and we have to endure psychological
suffering like loneliness, frustrations, fear, embarrassment,
disappointment, anger, etc.
QUESTION: Isn't this a bit pessimistic?
ANSWER:
The dictionary defines pessimism as 'the habit of
thinking that whatever will happen will be bad,' or 'The
belief that evil is more powerful than good.' Buddhism
teaches neither of these ideas. Nor does it deny that
happiness exists. It simply says that to live is to experience
physical and psychological suffering which is a statement
so true and so obvious that it cannot be denied. The central
concept of most religions is a myth, a legend or a belief that
is difficult or impossible to verify. Buddhism starts with an
experience, an irrefutable fact, a thing that all know, that all
have experienced and that all are striving to overcome. Thus
Buddhism is the only truly universal religion because it
goes right to the core of every individual human being's
concern - suffering and how to avoid it.
QUESTION: What is the Second Noble truth?
ANSWER:
The Second Noble Truth is that all suffering is
caused by craving. When we look at psychological suffering,
it is easy to see how it is caused by craving. When we want
something but are unable to get it, we feel frustrated. When
we expect someone to live up to our expectation and they
do not, we feel let down and disappointed. When we want
others to like us and they don't, we feel hurt. Even when
we want something and are able to get it, this does not often
lead to happiness either because it is not long before we feel
bored with that thing, lose interest in it and commence to
want something else. Put simply, the Second Noble Truth
says that getting what you want does not guarantee happiness.
Rather than constantly struggling to get what you want, try
to modify your wanting. Wanting deprives us of contentment
and happiness.
QUESTION: But how does wanting and craving lead to
physical suffering?
ANSWER:
A lifetime wanting and craving for this and that
and especially the craving to continue to exist creates a
powerful energy that causes the individual to be reborn.
When we are reborn, we have a body and, as we said before,
the body is susceptible to injury and disease; it can be
exhausted by work; it ages and eventually dies. Thus, craving
leads to physical suffering because it causes us to be reborn.
QUESTION: That's all verywell. But if we stopped wanting
altogether, we would never get or achieve anything.
ANSWER:
True. But what the Buddha says is that when our
desires, our craving, our constant discontent with what we
have, and our continual longing for more and more does
cause us suffering, then we should stop doing it. He asks us
to make a difference between what we need and what we
want and to strive for our needs and modify our wants. He
tells us that our needs can be fulfilled but that our wants are
endless - a bottomless pit. There are needs that are essential,
fundamental and that can be obtained and this we should
work towards. Desires beyond this should be gradually
lessened. After all, what is the purpose of life? To get or
to be content and happy.
QUESTION: You have talked about rebirth, but is there
any proof that such a thing happens?
ANSWER:
There is ample evidence that such a thing happens,
but we will look at this in more detail later on.
QUESTION: What is the Third Noble Truth?
ANSWER:
The Third Noble Truth is that suffering can be
overcome and happiness attained. This is perhaps the most
important of the Four Noble Truths because in it the Buddha
reassures us that true happiness and contentment are possible.
When we give up useless craving and learn to live each day
at a time, enjoying without restless wanting the experiences
that life offers us, patiently enduring the problems that life
involves without fear, hatred and anger, then we become
happy and free. Then, and only then, do we begin to live
fully. Because we are no longer obsessed with satisfying our
own selfish wants, we find we have so much time to help
others fulfil their needs. This state is called Nirvana. We are
free from all psychological suffering as well. This is called
Final Nirvana.
Dp 204
QUESTION: What or where is Nirvana?
ANSWER:
It is a dimension transcending time and space and
thus is difficult to talk about or even think about. Words and
thoughts being only suited to describe the time-space
dimension. But because Nirvana is beyond time, there is no
movement and so no aging or dying. Thus Nirvana is eternal.
Because it is beyond space, there is no causation, no boundary,
no concept of self and not-self and thus Nirvana is infinite.
The Buddha also assures us that Nirvana is an experience
of great happiness. He says:
Nirvana is the highest happiness.
Ud 80
QUESTION: But is there any proof that such a dimension exists?
ANSWER:
No, there is not. But its existence can be inferred.
If there is a dimension where time and space do operate and
there is such a dimension - the world we experience, then
we can infer that there is a dimension where time and space
do not operate - Nirvana. Again, even though we cannot
prove Nirvana exists, we have the Buddha's word that it does
exist. He tells us:
"There is an Unborn, a Not-become, a Not-made,
a Not-compounded. If there were not, this Unborn,
Not become, Not-made, Not-compounded, there could
not be made any escape from what is born, become,
made, and compounded. But since there is this Unborn,
Not become, Not-made, Not-compounded, therefore is
there made known an escape from what is born, become,
made, and compounded."
We will know it when we attain it. Until that time, we can still practise.
QUESTION: What is the Fourth Noble Truth?
ANSWER:
The Fourth Noble Truth is the Path leading to the
overcoming of suffering. This path is called the Noble
Eightfold Path and consists of Perfect Understanding, Perfect
Thought, Perfect Speech, Perfect Action, Perfect Livelihood,
Perfect Effort, Perfect Mindfulness and Perfect Concentration.
Buddhist practice consists of practising these eight things
until they become more complete. You will notice that the
steps on the Noble Eightfold Path cover every aspect of life:
the intellectual, the ethical, the social and economic and
the psychological and therefore contain everything a person
needs to lead a good life and to develop spiritually.