The Four Noble Truths

The Noble Truth of Suffering (Dukkha) The truth that conditioned existence is intrinsically unsatisfactory and stressful. This includes birth, aging, sickness, death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, despair, not getting what one wants, and the five aggregates subject to clinging.

The Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering (Dukkha-samudaya) The truth that the cause of suffering is craving (taṇhā). This manifests as craving for sensual pleasures (kāma-taṇhā), craving for continued existence (bhava-taṇhā), and craving for non-existence or annihilation (vibhava-taṇhā).

The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering (Dukkha-nirodha) The truth that suffering ends with the complete fading away, cessation, renunciation, relinquishment, release, and letting go of that very craving. This is the realization of Nibbāna.

The Noble Truth of the Way Leading to the Cessation of Suffering (Dukkha-nirodha-gāminī paṭipadā) The truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering, known as the Noble Eightfold Path: Right View, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration.