The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching: Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation

by Thich Nhat Hanh

The First Noble Truth is suffering (dukkha).

The Second Noble Truth is the origin, roots, nature, creation, or arising (samudaya) of suffering.

The Third Noble Truth is the cessation (nirodha) of creating suffering by refraining from doing the things that make us suffer.

The Third Truth is that healing is possible.

The Third Truth is that healing is possible.

The Fourth Noble Truth is the path (marga) that leads to refraining from doing the thing...

The Fourth Noble Truth is the path (marga) that leads to refraining from doing the thing...

The Buddha called it the Noble Ei...

The Buddha called it the Noble Ei...

Entering the Eightfold Path, we learn ways to practice that are of benefit, the “Right” way to practice. Right and wrong are neither moral judgments nor arbitrary standards imposed from outside. Through our own awareness, we discover what is beneficial (“right”) and what is unbeneficial (“wrong”).

Entering the Eightfold Path, we learn ways to practice that are of benefit, the “Right” way to practice. Right and wrong are neither moral judgments nor arbitrary standards imposed from outside. Through our own awareness, we discover what is beneficial (“right”) and what is unbeneficial (“wrong”).

A teacher cannot give you the truth. The truth is already in you. You only need to open yourself — body, mind, and heart — so that his or her teachings will penetrate your own seeds of understanding and enlightenment. If you let the words enter you, the soil and the seeds will do the rest of the work.

A teacher cannot give you the truth. The truth is already in you. You only need to open yourself — body, mind, and heart — so that his or her teachings will penetrate your own seeds of understanding and enlightenment. If you let the words enter you, the soil and the seeds will do the rest of the work.

Source Buddhism includes all the teachings the Buddha gave during his lifetime.

Source Buddhism includes all the teachings the Buddha gave during his lifetime.

We have to remember that the Buddha did not speak Pali, Sanskrit, or Prakrit. It is surmised that he spoke a language close to Pali and some think this was Ardhamagadhi, and there is no record of the Buddha’s words in his own language.

We have to remember that the Buddha did not speak Pali, Sanskrit, or Prakrit. It is surmised that he spoke a language close to Pali and some think this was Ardhamagadhi, and there is no record of the Buddha’s words in his own language.

Please remember that a sutra or a Dharma talk is not insight in and of itself. It is a means of presenting insight, using words and concepts. When you use a map to get to Paris, once you have arrived, you can put the map away and enjoy being in Paris. If you spend all your time with your map, if you get caught by the words and notions presented by the Buddha, you’ll miss the reality.

Please remember that a sutra or a Dharma talk is not insight in and of itself. It is a means of presenting insight, using words and concepts. When you use a map to get to Paris, once you have arrived, you can put the map away and enjoy being in Paris. If you spend all your time with your map, if you get caught by the words and notions presented by the Buddha, you’ll miss the reality.

The Buddha said many times, “My teaching is like a finger pointing to the moon. Do not mistak...

The Buddha said many times, “My teaching is like a finger pointing to the moon. Do not mistak...

If we have an overall view of the teachings of the Buddha, when a piece is missing or has been added, we have to recognize it and repair the damage.

If we have an overall view of the teachings of the Buddha, when a piece is missing or has been added, we have to recognize it and repair the damage.

If we practice identifying the causes of our suffering, we will see that sometimes it is due to craving and sometimes it is due to other factors. To say, “Life is suffering,” is too general. To say that craving is the cause of all our suffering is too simplistic. We need to say, “The basis for this suffering is such and such an affliction,” and then call it by its true name. If we have a stomachache, we need to call it a stomachache. If it is a headache, we need to call it a headache. How else will we find the cause of our suffering and the way to heal ourselves?

If we practice identifying the causes of our suffering, we will see that sometimes it is due to craving and sometimes it is due to other factors. To say, “Life is suffering,” is too general. To say that craving is the cause of all our suffering is too simplistic. We need to say, “The basis for this suffering is such and such an affliction,” and then call it by its true name. If we have a stomachache, we need to call it a stomachache. If it is a headache, we need to call it a headache. How else will we find the cause of our suffering and the way to heal ourselves?

the practice of shamatha (“stopping”) is fundamental. If we cannot stop, we cannot have insight.

We have to learn the art of stopping — stopping our thinking, our habit energies, our forgetfulness, the strong emotions that rule us. When an emotion rushes through us like a storm, we have no peace. We turn on the TV and then we turn it off. We pick up a book and then we put it down. How can we stop this state of agitation? How can we stop our fear, despair, anger, and craving? We can stop by practicing mindful breathing, mindful walking, mindful smiling, and deep looking in order to understand. When we are mindful, touching deeply the present moment, the fruits are always understanding, acceptance, love, and the desire to relieve suffering and bring joy.

We have to learn the art of stopping — stopping our thinking, our habit energies, our forgetfulness, the strong emotions that rule us. When an emotion rushes through us like a storm, we have no peace. We turn on the TV and then we turn it off. We pick up a book and then we put it down. How can we stop this state of agitation? How can we stop our fear, despair, anger, and craving? We can stop by practicing mindful breathing, mindful walking, mindful smiling, and deep looking in order to understand. When we are mindful, touching deeply the present moment, the fruits are always understanding, acceptance, love, and the desire to relieve suffering and bring joy.

Mindfulness is the energy that allows us to recognize our habit energy and prevent it from dominating us.

Mindfulness is the energy that allows us to recognize our habit energy and prevent it from dominating us.

“Mindfulness” defined.

Mindfulness is the energy that allows us to recognize our habit energy and preven...

“Mindfulness” defined.

The first function of meditation — shamatha — is to stop.

The second function of shamatha is calming.

We have to learn the art of breathing in and out, stopping our activities, and calming our emotions. We have to learn to become solid and stable like an oak tree, and not be blown from side to side by the storm.

We have to learn the art of breathing in and out, stopping our activities, and calming our emotions. We have to learn to become solid and stable like an oak tree, and not be blown from side to side by the storm.

We have heard it said, “Beware the calm before the storm.” But it is not the calm *before* the storm that concerns us; it is recognizing the storm is approaching, it is already upon us and all around us, which is “awareness”, and then looking inward upon the stillness of the soul, which is “mindfulness”. We realize we are at the center of the storm, but not controlled by it, nor blown over and destroyed by it. Our concern has shifted from one of fear and anxiety over the approaching storm, to that of finding “the calm *within* the storm”, which is inner strength and peace. The action of the storm does not change, nor do we deny its raging force. On the contrary, we stand at the center of it and revel in its transforming power and beauty as it passes through us. Thus we are transformed by the storm. Things do not get better by chance or through luck; things get better through change. We are made better for having endured the changes incurred in the outcome from the storm.

We have to learn the art of breathing in and out, stopping our activities, and calming our emotions. We have to learn to become solid and stable like an oak tree, an...

We have heard it said, “Beware the calm before the storm.” But it is not the calm *before* the storm that concerns us; it is recognizing the storm is approaching, it is already upon us and all around us, which is “awareness”, and then looking inward upon the stillness of the soul, which is “mindfulness”. We realize we are at the center of the storm, but not controlled by it, nor blown over and destroyed by it. Our concern has shifted from one of fear and anxiety over the approaching storm, to that of finding “the calm *within* the storm”, which is inner strength and peace. The action of the storm does not change, nor do we deny its raging force. On the contrary, we stand at the center of it and revel in its transforming power and beauty as it passes through us. Thus we are transformed by the storm. Things do not get better by chance or through luck; things get better through change. We are made better for having endured the changes incurred in the outcome from the storm.

After calming, the third function of shamatha is resting.

We have to learn the art of resting, allowing our body and mind to rest. If we have wounds in our body or our mind, we have to rest so they can heal themselves.

Calming allows us to rest, and resting is a precondition for healing.

We have to learn to rest. Lying down is not the only position for resting. During sitting or walking meditation, we can rest very well. Meditation does not have to be hard labor.

Stopping, calming, and resting are preconditions for healing.

To understand the Four Noble Truths, not just intellectually but experientially, we have to practice the twelve turnings of the wheel. The first turning is called “Recognition.”

The first turning of the wheel of the Second Noble Truth is the “Recognition”: I am continuing to create suffering. The Buddha said, “When something has come to be, we have to acknowledge its presence and look deeply into its nature. When we look deeply, we will discover the kinds of nutriments that have helped it come to be and that continue to feed it.”1 He then elaborated four kinds of nutriments that can lead to our happiness or our suffering — edible food, sense impressions, intention, and consciousness.

Much of our suffering comes from not eating mindfully. We have to learn ways to eat that preserve the health and well-being of our body and our spirit.

We have to look deeply to see how we grow our food, so we can eat in ways that preserve our collective well-being, minimize our suffering and the suffering of other species, and allow the earth to continue to be a source of life for all of us.

The second kind of nutriment is sense impressions. Our six sense organs — eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind — are in constant contact (sparsha) with sense objects, and these contacts become food for our consciousness.

Our skin protects us from bacteria. Antibodies protect us from internal invaders. We have to use the equivalent aspects of our consciousness to protect us from unwholesome sense objects that can poison us.

We are exposed to invasions of all kinds — images, sounds, smells, touch, ideas — and many of these feed the craving, violence, fear, and despair in us. The Buddha advised us to post a sentinel, namely mindfulness, at each of our sense doors to protect ourselves.

We must come together as individuals, families, cities, and a nation to discuss strategies of self-protection and survival. To get out of the dangerous situation we are in, the practice of mindfulness has to be collective.

The third kind of nutriment is volition, intention, or will — the desire in us to obtain whatever it is that we want. Volition is the ground of all our actions.