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The Four Noble Truths compress the problem, solution, and techniques of Buddhism into what is considered to be the simplest doctrinal summarization of Buddhist teachings.
The First Noble Truth says that human existence is characterized by dukkha, meaning suffering. It says that while there is joy along the way, each of us will ultimately grow sick and old, and one day die. Since the happiness we experience is fleeting, underlying it is dukkha.The Second Noble Truth says that suffering has an origin. Since everything is interconnected, suffering must come from somewhere. Buddhist note twelve “links” in this chain of pratityasamutpada (dependent origination). It posits that we suffer because we ignore this interconnectedness and pretend that we are independent, or that things are unchanging. We suffer because we cling to our ideas of what should be and what is, when according to the First Noble Truth, things cannot last and all will change and die.The Third Noble Truth asserts that since suffering has a cause, it can be eliminated. It says that if we open our eyes to the true, changing world, then we can stop clinging to things that won’t last, and achieve nirvana. Nirvana is not some place that one goes after death; it can be achieved while living and is the rejection of suffering and ultimate peace or bliss (though the true state is beyond description).The Fourth Noble Truth states that there is a path to the goal of nirvana. This path is known as the Eightfold Path and constitutes “right understanding, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, [and] right concentration” and primarily avoids extreme self-indulgence, attachment, and self-mortification. It boils down to the following: be kind, be wise, be mindful.
So, those are the Four Noble Truths! Hope you found it helpful. Check out my full Religion 101 article list (useful for studying, or just learning!) here.