suffering, not to obtain what we desire is suffering. Briefly, the fivefold clinging to existence (the five elements) is suffering.
"This, Bhikkhus, is the Noble Truth of the Cause of Suffering. Thirst, that leads to rebirth accompanied by pleasure and lust, finding its delight here and there, thirst for pleasure, thirst for existence, thirst for prosperity.
"This, O Bhikkhus, is the Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering. It ceases with the complete cessation of thirst—a cessation which consists in the absence of every passion, with the abandoning of this thirst, with the doing away with it, with the deliverance from it, with the destruction of desire.
"This, O Bhikkhus, is the Noble Truth of the Path which leads to the cessation of suffering—the holy Eightfold Path of Right Belief, Right Aspiration, Right Speech, Right Conduct, Right Means of Livelihood, Right Exertion, Right Mindfulness, and Right Meditation."
The substance of this teaching is that life is suffering, the thirst for life and its pleasures is the cause of suffering, the extinction of that thirst is the cessation of suffering, and that such extinction can be brought about only by a holy life. It is impossible to convey in a few words all that is implied by the eight maxims into which a holy life is thus analyzed, but to Buddhists, trained in the traditions of their religion, these aphorisms speak volumes. Correct views and beliefs must be learnt and entertained; high aims and
