The end of Suffering: The Fourth Noble Truth

And finally, the Fourth Noble Truth... the path leading to the cessation of suffering which is the Eightfold Path, grouped in three sections:

1. Wisdom (panna)

Right Understanding (samma ditthi)
Right Aspiration (samma sankappa)

2. Morality (sila)

Right Speech (samma vaca)
Right Action (samma kammanta)
Right Livelihood (samma ajiva)

3. Concentration (samadhi)

Right Effort (samma vayama)
Right Mindfulness (samma sati)
Right Concentration (samma samadhi)


The Fourth Noble Truth, like the first three Noble Truths, has three aspects or insights to keep in mind.

First, the Eightfold Path is the way out of suffering. Simply written, the path teaches us to reflect on the importance of taking responsibility for everything that we say and do in our lives.

Second, the Eightfold Path should be developed by practicing taking responsibility for everything that we say and do in our lives.

And Last, the Eightfold Path has been fully developed by being responsible for everything that we say and do in our lives.


I am pierced by my own understanding of the Fourth Noble Truth. It calls for the end of all delusions of the mind by the perfect understanding that all things are subject to rising and ceasing and they are not Self. "This too shall pass" as my father would say.

We enter the Eightfold Path by instinctively knowing in a profound way, in your gut, the right way of living. We understand that ignorance is the source of our despair and the suffering of humanity.

With this instinctive understanding comes compassion for our fellow humans. How can we hate or harbor bitterness for someone who is chained to their own ignorance? Are we not all part of the same human condition?

We are all influenced by our surroundings. We all make choices based upon our limited knowledge and understanding of the world in which we live.

But only when its darkest can we see the stars because what comes shining like a light in the darkness is our understanding that we can be free of our suffering by knowing that all things are subject to cessation.

Then and only then can we begin to make conscious choices to lay these things to the side by making right decisions and taking right actions.

Then free of desires, we can begin to aspire to truth, goodness, and beauty. This to me, is the Eightfold Path.

Its the feeling of my spirit moving within me when I read a speech by Martin Luther King Jr when he speaks of non-violence means to reach peaceful ends.

Its the intention that I have to see the world a better place by caring about the people around me and wanting to invest in them.

Its my attitude towards life and others when I see past the facade of this world, into what is the true essence of all things.

Then as I watch the mysteries of life unfold, I find peace of spirit knowing that everything is part of the divine plan. With this peace, I can enjoy the journey of my life.