Why did Buddha say all life is suffering?

odyssey · #1 26-10-2016, 07:01 PM

As per the four noble truths, first one is: All life is suffering, pain and misery.

sky · #2 26-10-2016, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by odyssey

As per the four noble truths, first one is: All life is suffering, pain and misery.

Life is suffering because it's impermanent and ever changing. It's impossible to go through life without some form of suffering, physical or mental.
If you read the rest of the Four Noble Truths you will understand what he meant. I personally prefer to think he taught ' in life there is suffering ' this makes more sense to me as not everything in life is suffering there is much happiness and joy but nothing last forever, life doesn't always go the way we want or expect it to go, hence suffering.

Swift of Spirit · #3 26-10-2016, 07:23 PM

Life is how you perceive it to be. So subjectively Buddha was quite right.

Personally I think life is awesome and the challenges of life enrich the times of euphoria.

odyssey · #4 26-10-2016, 07:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sky123

Life is suffering because it's impermanent and ever changing. It's impossible to go through life without some form of suffering, physical or mental.
If you read the rest of the Four Noble Truths you will understand what he meant. I personally prefer to think he taught ' in life there is suffering ' this makes more sense to me as not everything in life is suffering there is much happiness and joy.

But whatever we call happiness, is temporary. Ultimately, we fall back to the pain. I am not saying pain is necessarily bad. It's just a feeling, and again, it's temporary too. Suffering is optional, I believe. It makes much more sense to me now to stop expecting from life to make me happy, and to just accept that there WAS pain, there IS pain, and there WILL be pain. And once in a while, we get a few glimpse of so-called happiness. Ultimately, getting liberated from this cycle by accepting it.

odyssey · #5 26-10-2016, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swift of Spirit

Life is how you perceive it to be. So subjectively Buddha was quite right.

Personally I think life is awesome and the challenges of life enrich the times of euphoria.

It's all perception, yes. But it depends what makes our life 'awesome'. For example, I love the people who are there is my life but there are temporary, too. And this feeling doesn't really make my life too much of a happy affair, as I know that pain is just a step away.

sky · #6 26-10-2016, 07:30 PM

Physical pain is inevitable in life but suffering is optional.

odyssey · #7 26-10-2016, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sky123

Pain is inevitable in life but suffering is optional.

I have written the same in my reply.

But I wonder why there is so much pressure to be 'happy' then. If people find someone who says something along this line, he would be considered a weirdo, as most of our lives, there is intense pressure to lead a 'happy' life. Whereas I read somewhere it's much better to aim at living a 'content' life--irrespective of the emotions you are feeling.

sky · #8 26-10-2016, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by odyssey

I have written the same in my reply.

But I wonder why there is so much pressure to be 'happy' then. If people find someone who says something along this line, he would be considered a weirdo, as most of our lives, there is intense pressure to lead a 'happy' life. Whereas I read somewhere it's much better to aim at living a 'content' life--irrespective of the emotions you are feeling.

Read the Four Noble Truths all the answers are there.

kingfisher · #9 26-10-2016, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by odyssey

As per the four noble truths, first one is: All life is suffering, pain and misery.

First, a bit of deconstruction........what the historical Buddha actually said, the word he actually used, could well be lost in the mists of time. The Pali word eventually used to record his words is dhukka.

An English born Theravada monk , Nanamouli ( spelling? ) when translating various Pali texts into English, originally had the intention of:- one Pali word will always equal one English word. He found in practice that such was not possible - the context of each use of each word dictated the use of different English words in order to convey the meaning.

But we need not despair. The words above "in practice" hold the key. Ehipassiko........."come and see for oneself" - variously translated!

The goal of the Holy Life is "unshakeable deliverance of mind" ( Majjhima Nikaya, Bhikku Bodhi's translation) If we do not have such we suffer. That is all.

"I teach this and this alone, suffering and the ending of suffering" ( Buddha )

Still_Waters · #10 26-10-2016, 08:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swift of Spirit

Life is how you perceive it to be. So subjectively Buddha was quite right.

Personally I think life is awesome and the challenges of life enrich the times of euphoria.

Consider the audience to whom the Buddha's statements were directed.

As in therapy, the therapist often starts from where the patient is at. Many spiritual statements are framed from the perspective of the seeker.

Ramana Maharshi is a rare sage who maintained his state and spoke more from the absolute perspective than most other sages. Who can criticize the various approaches --- certainly, not I? Is the Buddha's perspective better or worse? I do not know what is in the mind of the Buddha and hence dare not judge. I do not feel equal to judging any of the great sages.