6. The Four Noble Truths (ARV6)

Herein, (monks,) what are the four noble truths?

[They are as follows:]

The noble truth of suffering,

the noble truth of the arising of suffering,

the noble truth of the cessation of suffering,

the noble truth of the path leading to the cessation of suffering,

6.1 The Noble Truth of Suffering

Herein, what is the noble truth of suffering?

[It is as follows:]

Birth is suffering,
old age is suffering,
sickness is suffering,
death is suffering,
being parted from what is liked is suffering,
being joined to what is not liked is suffering,
not to obtain that which is wished for and sought for is suffering,
in brief, the five components (of mind and body) that provide fuel for attachment are suffering.

This is said to be the noble truth of suffering.

6.2 The Noble Truth of the Arising of Suffering

What is the noble truth of the arising of suffering?

It is as follows:

It is that craving which leads to continuation in existence, which is connected with enjoyment and passion, greatly enjoying this and that.

This is said to be the noble truth of the arising of suffering.

6.3 The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering

What is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering?

Whatever craving there is which leads to continuation in existence, which is connected with enjoyment and passion, greatly enjoying this and that, its abandonment without remainder, letting go, wasting away, destruction, fading away, cessation, stilling and disappearance.

This is said to be the noble truth of the cessation of suffering.

6.4 The Noble Truth of the Practice Leading to the End of Suffering

Herein, what is the noble truth of the practice leading to the end of suffering?

It is that eightfold noble path beginning with right view and so on.

It is as follows:

Right view,

right thought,

right speech,

right action,

right livelihood,

right endeavour,

right mindfulness,

right concentration.

This is said to be the noble truth of the practice leading to the end of suffering.

These, monastics, are the four noble truths.

Translated by Ānandajoti Bhikkhu, 2016

Based on the edition by Prof. N. H. Samtani in The Arthaviniścaya-sūtra & its commentary (Nibandhana) (Patna, 1971), updated to include the corrections he printed in that work on pp. 180–181, most of which were also printed in his translation of the same, Gathering the Meanings (Berkeley, 2002), on pp. 309–310.

Original translation with comments to be found at http://www.ancient-buddhist-texts.net/.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Ayya Vimala.