The Buddha teaches on the five aggregates regarding suffering, showing how they are to be understood for liberation from suffering.

SN 22.104 Suffering

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

“Dukkhañca vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi dukkhasamudayañca dukkhanirodhañca dukkhanirodhagāminiñca paṭipadaṁ. Taṁ suṇātha.

Katamañca, bhikkhave, dukkhaṁ? Pañcupādānakkhandhātissa vacanīyaṁ. Katame pañca? Seyyathidaṁrūpupādānakkhandho …pe… viññāṇupādānakkhandho. Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhaṁ.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, dukkhasamudayo? Yāyaṁ taṇhā ponobhavikā …pe… vibhavataṇhā ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhasamudayo.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodho? Yo tassāyeva taṇhāya asesavirāganirodho cāgo paṭinissaggo mutti anālayo ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodho.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā? Ayameva ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo. Seyyathidaṁsammādiṭṭhi …pe… sammāsamādhi. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā”ti.

Dutiyaṁ.

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

At Sāvatthī.

“Dukkhañca vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi dukkhasamudayañca dukkhanirodhañca dukkhanirodhagāminiñca paṭipadaṁ.

“Mendicants, I will teach you suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the practice that leads to the cessation of suffering.

Taṁ suṇātha.

Listen …

Katamañca, bhikkhave, dukkhaṁ?

And what is suffering?

Pañcupādānakkhandhātissa vacanīyaṁ.

It should be said: the five grasping aggregates.

Katame pañca?

What five?

Seyyathidaṁrūpupādānakkhandho …pe… viññāṇupādānakkhandho.

That is, the grasping aggregates of form, feeling, perception, choices, and consciousness.

Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhaṁ.

This is called suffering.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, dukkhasamudayo?

And what is the origin of suffering?

Yāyaṁ taṇhā ponobhavikā …pe… vibhavataṇhā

It’s the craving that leads to future lives, mixed up with relishing and greed, taking pleasure there wherever it alights. That is, craving for sensual pleasures, craving for existence, and craving for nonexistence.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhasamudayo.

This is called the origin of suffering.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodho?

And what is the cessation of suffering?

Yo tassāyeva taṇhāya asesavirāganirodho cāgo paṭinissaggo mutti anālayo

It’s the fading away and cessation of that very same craving with no residue left behind; giving it away, letting it go, releasing it, and not clinging to it.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodho.

This is called the cessation of suffering.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā?

And what is the practice that leads to the cessation of suffering?

Ayameva ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo.

It is simply this noble eightfold path, that is:

Seyyathidaṁsammādiṭṭhi …pe… sammāsamādhi.

right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right immersion.

Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā”ti.

This is called the practice that leads to the cessation of suffering.”

Dutiyaṁ.

Topics & Qualities:

Attachment

Attachment

A mental fastening onto people, things, views, or states as “me” or “mine,” unwilling to release them. This clinging can give a sense of security and sweetness.

Also known as: acquisition, bond, clinging, grasping, holding on, possession, entanglement, bound, connected, taking as mine
Pāli: upadhi, upādāna, sakiñcana, mamatta
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Craving

Craving

A driving ‘thirst’ that reaches out toward experiences, identities, or outcomes as the place to find satisfaction—“if only I had that.” It spins stories of lack, binds the mind to becoming, and invariably leads to suffering.

Also known as: wanting, yearning, longing, lit. thirst
Pāli: taṇha, abhijjhā
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Delight

Delight

A mental quality of relishing and taking pleasure in what is experienced—especially in sensuality or the prospect of continued becoming. When it fastens onto gratification, it nourishes craving and keeps the mind circling around what it wants to experience again.

Also known as: relishing, enjoyment, taking pleasure
Pāli: nandi, ārāmatā
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Ending

Ending

The complete exhaustion and ending of craving, aversion, and delusion—the three roots of suffering. It refers to both the gradual wearing away of defilements through practice and the final cessation that constitutes Nibbāna.

Also known as: cessation, exhaustion, gradual ending, wearing away
Pāli: khaya, khīṇa, nirodha
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Giving

Giving

The act of generosity, sharing, or offering to others without expecting anything in return. Giving is considered a foundational virtue in Buddhist practice, fostering selflessness and compassion.

Also known as: generosity, charity, donation, almsgiving, donating, philanthropy, providing with, gift with
Pāli: dāna
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Suffering

Suffering

Unpleasantness, discontentment, dissatisfaction, stress, pain, disease, i.e. mild or intense suffering that is inherent in conditioned existence.

Also known as: discomfort, unpleasantness, discontentedness, dissatisfaction, stress, pain, disease, distress, affliction
Pāli: dukkha
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Last updated on July 27, 2026