The Path to Awakening
And Ending Suffering According to the Buddha
I provide this for our Buena Vista Sangha in Amador County, California and any meditation students who may need a little background on the Buddhist tradition from which our meditation practices come. These practices have traditionally been practiced in the context of a broader understanding that is very helpful, even essential, to make deeper progress with these methods. It's my hope that the following short summary of The Middle Way, The Four Noble Truths and The Noble Eightfold Path help make a rewarding difference in your practice.
The Middle Way
At the time of Buddha's awakening, in what is now Nepal and India, there were many spiritual teachers with widely varying views. On one extreme, there were those that were promoting nihilism and hedonism. On the other end of the spectrum, there were those that were promoting self-mortification as a means of spiritual purification and Self-realization. The Buddha considered both extremes ignoble and not beneficial as a means to end suffering, let alone awakening.
Out of compassion, Shakyamuni Buddha, sought out his five former sanyasi companions with whom he had formerly been practiced. Together with them he had strived for six years to awaken through extreme asceticism, almost to the point of death. Having found them, Buddha shared with his colleagues what he called The Middle Way, a middle path between the two extremes that only lead to more suffering.
In the Buddha's own words,
"Without veering towards either of these extremes, the Tathagata [Thus Come One] has awakened to the middle way, which gives rise to vision, which gives rise to knowledge, which leads to peace, to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to Nirvana."
- Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta SN56.11
The Buddha elaborated this middle way in what he called The Noble Eightfold Path, which he was confident leads to liberation from suffering.
The Noble Eightfold Path
The path to awakening and liberation from suffering is an eightfold practice.
"And what, bhikkhus (monks), is that middle way awakened to by the Tathagata, which gives rise to vision, which gives rise to knowledge, which leads to peace, to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to Nirvana? It is this Noble Eightfold Path; that is, right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration."
- Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta SN56.11 - Bhikkhu Bodhi
Before elaborating on the meaning of each of these eightfold paths, the Buddha first went on to describe "four noble truths", each of which must be directly seen, recognized and fully understood to awaken from suffering.
The Four Noble Truths
The First Noble Truth - Dukha
The Buddha first pointed out that there is a lot of dukha in life. Dukha is a Sanskrit word ranging in meaning from unease or dissatisfaction to pain or extreme suffering. As examples of dukha, Buddha lists birth, aging, illness and death as obvious forms of suffering. But he goes on to show that being around what is displeasing, being separated from what is pleasing, not getting what one wants and clinging to what one has are all forms of dissatisfaction or suffering.
Until we really stop to think about it, we may not realize the pervasiveness of dissatisfaction in our daily lives. How much of our day ranges between various levels of unease or dissatisfaction? How often do we get triggered by something someone said or did? How often do our assumptions, misperceptions or suspicions cause us to unnecessarily worry or think badly of others? How soon after making a purchase does the joy fade and we are already thinking of something else we want?
Buddha wanted us to really look at how often we are discontent, both moment-to-moment and more broadly with our career, status, appearance, relationships or direction in life; how all our striving doesn't bring lasting happiness. Regardless of how healthy or wealthy we are, for most of us, there is still this nagging dissatisfaction, like an itch that can never be fully relieved. We first need to recognize this as the human condition to come to terms with our situation and find a way beyond it.
The Second Noble Truth - The Origin of Dukha
Buddha then identifies the origin of dukha as incessant craving. No sooner have we satisfied one urge or craving that another arises. When we look closely, this is a moment-to-moment condition. Eat a potato chip and watch how fast the urge arises, how the hand automatically reaches for another. This craving manifests in myriad ways throughout the day and throughout our lives. The inability to be present to the blessings that exist in the present moment, to be satisfied and content, to always be looking for our next gig, our next social engagement, our next meal, our next purchase, our next vacation, our next raise, our next promotion, the next compliment. Our happiness is always in the future, when we have the next thing. It seems we are wired for dissatisfaction and to crave what we don't have with little appreciation for the wonder that exists in each breath, each moment. It leads us to wonder, can there be an end to this incessant unrest? Is there peace?
The Third Noble Truth - The Cessation of Dukha
Buddha gave us hope from his own awakening. What he discovered is that we can find lasting contentment and be at peace. But what soothes and puts to rest this unease, this habitual craving and clinging, this inability to be content and satisfied?
The Forth Noble Truth - The Way to Leading to the Cessation of Dukha
Buddha then circles back around to the Noble Eightfold Path as the fourth noble truth, the way beyond suffering. So what is the eightfold path and how does it lead to lasting peace and happiness?
The Way to Peace and Happiness
Right View
In the Vibhaṅga Sutta (Discourse), the Buddha states that right view is itself the Four Noble Truths, the knowing of dukha, its origin, cessation, and way of cessation is right view. Interesting! You may have detected a circular definition and in a sense it is. The Middle Way is the Noble Eightfold Path, the first of which is Right View, which is the Four Noble Truths, the last of which is The Cessation of Dukha, which is through the Noble Eightfold Path. This self-referential construct is one meaning of "the turning of the Dharma wheel", the wheel of truth.
The Buddha didn't ask us to accept The Middle Way on faith, but invited us to verify through our own direct experience. This is through contemplating the four "truths" to see if they ring true, and if so, to practice the eightfold path. As practicing bears fruit, we become more confident in the Buddha's teaching and find it natural to accept. The acceptance of Buddha's teaching through practice and direct experience, which bolsters confidence, is right view.
Right view also is understanding the relationship of cause and effect, perhaps best summarized as Jesus did, "As you sow, so shall you reap." From this comes "dependent origination", and the Buddha's teaching on emptiness developed later in Mahayana Buddhism.
In practice, right view provides us a standard by which we can compare our thoughts as they arise as well as long held beliefs that govern our behavior. Our view gives rise to intention, speech, action and livelihood, so right view is fundamental to these as well.
Right Intention
If right view is acceptance that the human condition is dukha, that there is a cause of this dissatisfaction, which is clinging to craving, that we can allow this clinging to subside and the way is the Middle Way of these eightfold practices, it stands to reason that we naturally don't want to create more pain and suffering for ourselves or others. So, right intention is the intention to let go of clinging to incessant craving, the intention of non-ill will and of harmlessness toward others, in short, of kindness to all other beings, ourselves included, and the Bodhisattva ideal of freeing all others from suffering.
When we see so much injustice in the world, we may be quick to wish that perpetrators of the injustices and violence meet with similar ends. Right intension implies that our attention might be better focused on supporting those that enact just laws and enforce them for the benefit of others. Or supporting organizations that help people live better lives through education and activities that foster wisdom and compassion. The Buddha said in the Dhammapada that hatred can never conquere hatred, but by love alone is hatred vanquished.
Right Speech
If we are trying to free ourselves and others from suffering, Buddha says we should abstain from false speech, divisive speech, harsh speech and idle chatter. Its not hard to imagine how much better things would be today if more people would subscribe to this and how much worse things will become if they do not.
When we meet with friends, practicing right speech requires that we refrain from gossip, spreading rumors, talking about others in disparaging ways. Such speech only makes acquaintances wonder what you say when they are not present. Rumors have a way of getting back to the people that are the subjects of such rumor and can have hurtful and harmful affects on them, especially when untrue. Our speech leads to peace and harmony when it is honest but not needlessly hurtful.
Right Action
Naturally, if we don't want to suffer, we should not cause other beings to suffer. We should abstain from the destruction of life. If we don't want to be taken advantage of, we should not take what is not given. If we don't want to be violated, sexually or otherwise, we should not violate others.
Right Livelihood
Right livelihood is borne out of the previously discussed right view, intention, speech and action. Our livelihood should align with these. Imagine how the world would be if more and more businesses took right livelihood to heart.
Right Effort
Right effort, and the following right mindfulness and right concentration, can be applied to your meditation practice as well as life in general. Right effort has to do with fostering a healthy physical, mental, emotional and spiritual state, well-being, and opting out of those things that do not cultivate well-being in ourselves and others.
From a meditation perspective, it is applying just enough effort to the method. Too much effort causes one to tense up. Too little leads to daydreaming or becoming drowsy and forgetting the method. Chan Master Shengyen often described this as "catching a feather with a fan." Down feathers are very light and can take time to settle. Imagine having a Chinese fan and trying to catch such a light down feather. Too quick and the feather will rise. Too slow and it may change course and you'll miss it. Following the breath meditation is very much like this. We need just enough effort to stay with the breath and return to it again and again as thoughts overshadow following the breath. We simply acknowledge we are thinking thoughts and are no longer following the breath, and very gently, easily, graciously return to the method of following the breath. Eventually, the mind quiets down quite naturally as appreciation of the breath deepens.
Even Silent Illumination, often called the method of no-method, or "just sitting", requires right effort. Here, the effort is truly minimal, just maintaining the overall awareness of the body and environment. Everything else that comes and goes, thoughts, feelings, perceptions, are seen just as wispy, white clouds may be seen drifting through an otherwise vast, spacious blue sky. Everything is coming and going but what remains is bright, open, clear awareness. Silent Illumination, when performed in this way is a near effortless method.
In activity as well, we put forth just enough effort to remain present, fostering wholesome intentions, speech and action with clear, spacious presence, which is a great segway to right mindfulness.
Right Mindfulness
I often say that no one ever got enlightened in the past or future -- but only in the present. Right mindfulness enables us to remain in the present.
In the Vibhaṅga Sutta, the Buddha says practitioners should abide remaining aware of the body and mind, and the coming and going of feelings, perceptions and phenomena "ardent, clearly comprehending, mindful, letting go of grasping and aversion" moment-to-moment.
This does not mean that we push away thoughts or feelings but experience them as they arise, endure for a time and pass away. When we need to plan a trip, we are able to do so with better clarity and therefore more efficiently. Our mind isn't divided.
There is an old Chan saying, "Chop wood, carry water." What needs to get done, gets done with greater clarity and presence.
Right Concentration
In the Vibhaṅga Sutta, the Buddha discusses right concentration in terms of Shamata meditation, which is often translated as "calm-abiding" meditation, such as following the breath, some forms of mantra meditation and some forms of visualization meditation. Buddha describes entering and abiding in deeper and deeper levels of absorption or "jhanas." The first level is accompanied by thoughts and investigation, and results in a state of rapture and happiness. The second, thoughts subside and one experiences a sense of confidence and unification of the mind along with "happiness born of concentration" or absorption. The more overt sense of rapture fades.
"With the fading away as well of rapture, he dwells equanimous and, mindful and clearly comprehending, he experiences happiness with the body; he enters and dwells in the third jhana of which the noble ones declare: ‘He is equanimous, mindful, one who dwells happily.’"
"With the abandoning of pleasure and pain, and with the previous passing away of joy and displeasure, he enters and dwells in the fourth jhana, which is neither painful nor pleasant and includes the purification of mindfulness by equanimity. This is called right concentration.”
It's important to note that this is not the only form of meditation. According to some schools of Buddhism, this is only a preliminary method that enables the mind (and physiology) to settle enough to practice a type of "insight" meditation, such as Vipassana or Silent Illumination, where the equanimity and clarity gained through the preliminary practice is then used to develop deeper insight into what is happening as it actually happens to reveal truths about the true nature of our minds and the phenomenal world.
In Conclusion
In the very first discourse spoken to his former spiritual aspirant colleagues, the Buddha provided them, and us, with a comprehensive outline of how to practice to awaken from misperceptions and delusion, and live a liberated life that is helpful to ourselves and others to greatly reduce or end suffering.
Buddha never required that we believe in his teachings or turn them into a religion. More like a scientist, doctor or psychologist, he outlines a way of living that promises to reduce suffering and leaves it to us to verify against our own empirical, direct experience. As such, Buddha's teaching can be adopted by people of any religion or philosophical orientation to make life for ourselves and others more fulfilling. The proof is in the pudding, as the saying goes. Enjoy and if it helps you, share with others!
Copyright © 2025 Barry Wadsworth - All Rights Reserved
