The Four Noble Truths

Explaining the basics of Buddhism

“When you hear the splash
Of the water drops that fall
Into the stone bowl,
You will feel that all the dust
Of your mind is washed away.”
— Sen No Rikyu

1. The Truth of Suffering

Old age, sickness, difficulty, disappointment, and death. If you’re a human, you probably experience some sort of suffering on a regular basis.

Suffering can be as small as the frustration we feel when a five-second ad pops up to interrupt a YouTube video you were trying to watch.

Or, it can be as big as constantly feeling like a worthless failure.

Buddhism recognizes this as the first “noble truth” — that some states of being feel painfully undesirable — that suffering exists. But don’t worry, it offers a way of overcoming it, too.

2. The Origin of Suffering

Just as one can’t fully kill a weed without pulling it out from the roots, you can’t fully overcome suffering without knowing its roots.

In Buddhism, the root of suffering is attachment — desire, expectation, feeling like you need to control things.

If you’re sitting a red light seething about the fact that it’s red, it’s because you believe and expect…