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The Nature of the First Noble Truth of Suffering
Afflictions and enlightenment are both organic; we must practice continuously to transform and to not fall into degeneration—just as without mud, there can be no lotus; without suffering, there can be no understanding and love; without the world of samsāra, there can be no Pure Land. The Four Noble Truths, right from the truth of suffering, show us an attitude of not running away from suffering but stopping, looking deeply into the roots of suffering (the origin of suffering) in order to enter the path of transformation (the path) that leads to the cessation of suffering. The impermanence of suffering teaches us insight and compassion, and insight itself is also impermanent, needing to be nourished every day like tending to a flower, while also knowing how to compost the garbage in order to transform it into flowers.
The 27th Mindfulness Training of Plum Village affirms that samsāra is continuation and clarifies the difference between degeneration and non-retreat in the garden of our mind:
- Degeneration is losing the ability to transform garbage into flowers, letting afflictions wither away happiness.
- Non-retreat is maintaining the Dharma door of transformation, always having the capacity to transform suffering into insight and love.
- The three karmas (body, speech, and mind) are reborn every moment, non-local and timeless; when they are wholesome, they bring benefit to ourselves and to the world.
The Continuity of the Sangha Body, the Buddha Body, and the Dharma Body