The Word of the Buddha I. The Noble Truth of Suffering
Suffering is stated first in brief — birth, aging, death, sorrow, and the five groups — and then taken apart as body, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness, each marked by impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and not-self. The section ends with how long that wandering has already gone on.
4.5.1. Exposition of the Truth of Suffering
And what is the noble truth of suffering?
Birth is suffering, aging is suffering, death is suffering, sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair are suffering, association with the disliked is suffering, separation from the liked is suffering, not getting what one wishes for is suffering—in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering.
And what is birth? Whatever birth, coming into being, descent, coming-to-be, appearance of the aggregates, obtaining of the sense bases of those various beings in those various orders of beings—this is called birth.
And what is aging? Whatever aging, decrepitude, broken teeth, grey hair, wrinkling of skin, decline of vitality, deterioration of the faculties of those various beings in those various orders of beings—this is called aging.
And what is death? Whatever passing away, falling away, breaking up, disappearance, dying, death, completion of time, breaking up of the aggregates, laying down of the body, ending of the life faculty, of those various beings from those various orders of beings—this is called death.
And what is sorrow? Whatever sorrow, sorrowing, the state of being sorrowful, inner sorrow, deep inner sorrow of one affected by some misfortune or other, or stricken by some painful state or other—this is called sorrow.
And what is lamentation? Whatever wailing, lamenting, crying out, bemoaning, the state of wailing, the state of lamenting of one affected by some misfortune or other, or stricken by some painful state or other—this is called lamentation.
And what is pain? Whatever bodily pain, bodily displeasure, pain and displeasure born of bodily contact—this is called pain.
And what is displeasure? Mental pain, unease born of mental contact, a disagreeable feeling born of mental contact—this is called displeasure.
And what is despair? Whatever anguish, despair, the state of anguish, the state of despair of one affected by some misfortune or other, or stricken by some painful state or other—this is called despair.
And what is association with the disliked that is suffering? Here, whatever unwanted, unpleasant, unappealing forms, sounds, odors, tastes, tangible objects, and mental objects one has; or whoever wishes one harm, wishes one ill, wishes one discomfort, wishes one no safety from bondage—whatever coming together, meeting, affiliating, and mingling with them: this is called association with the disliked that is suffering.
And what is separation from the liked that is suffering? Here, whatever wanted, pleasant, appealing forms, sounds, odors, tastes, tangible objects, and mental objects one has; or whoever wishes one well, wishes one benefit, wishes one comfort, wishes one safety from bondage—mother, father, brother, sister, friends, companions, or relatives and blood relations—whatever separation, not encountering, not affiliating, and non-association with them: this is called separation from the liked that is suffering.
And what is not getting what one wishes for that is suffering? To beings subject to birth, there comes the wish: ‘Oh, if only we were not subject to birth! That birth would not come to us!’ But such is not achievable by wish alone. This too is not getting what one wishes for that is suffering. To beings subject to aging, there comes the wish: ‘Oh, if only we were not subject to aging! That aging would not come to us!’ But such is not achievable by wish alone. This too is not getting what one wishes for that is suffering. To beings subject to illness, there comes the wish: ‘Oh, if only we were not subject to illness! That illness would not come to us!’ But such is not achievable by wish alone. This too is not getting what one wishes for that is suffering. To beings subject to death, there comes the wish: ‘Oh, if only we were not subject to death! That death would not come to us!’ But such is not achievable by wish alone. This too is not getting what one wishes for that is suffering. To beings subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair, there comes the wish: ‘Oh, if only we were not subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair! That sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would not come to us!’ But such is not achievable by wish alone. This too is not getting what one wishes for that is suffering.
Last updated on October 20, 2026