Cessation

The first teaching the Buddha gave is called the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, the sutta on the turning of the wheel of Dhamma.

In it he expounds the teaching of the Four Noble Truths and states very clearly how to use them. When we understand that craving (taṇhā) is the cause of suffering (dukkha) we abandon craving and thus realize nirodha, cessation. Nirodha is to be realized, so it’s not a matter of believing in cessation or thinking about cessation, but of seeing cessation directly and knowing the peace of nirodha.

As my teacher used to say, if we believe or attach to the idea that the goal of the path is to realize that everything ceases, is not ‘mine’ or ‘self’, is just suffering, that sounds rather dreary, doesn’t it? As a prospect for our future life, the idea of just ceasing with nothing left doesn’t necessarily inspire the heart, does it? If I talked about blossoming, growing, developing, increasing, progress, that sounds much more positive. But when we hear the word ‘cessation’, we think, ‘Cessation, ugh – what is she talking about?’

Cessation does not sound terribly attractive as a practice. We want the truth; we want liberation, but we may not have realized that this is only possible through understanding, through direct insight into, the truth of cessation. That’s the place of letting go. When you’ve let go and seen clearly what happens, then you have a chance of realizing cessation.

Most of us are fascinated by the arising of conditions, by the beginning of things, by birth. We can all rejoice when a baby is born. We can go crazy cooing over a little baby, but to react in that way to an old person isn’t a feeling that arises naturally in the heart. We don’t coo over an old granny or say how cute she is.

We can see, even in nature, there’s an immediate response to birth of wanting to rejoice, to celebrate. But as many Dhamma teachers have said, celebrations should take place at death rather than birth because birth is being reborn into the realm of suffering, a realm of trials and tribulations.

So nirodha, the Third Noble Truth, is probably the most important truth on the path of realization. That’s where realization takes place. It means the cessation of attachment, the cessation of wrong views, the cessation of suffering caused by our clinging to anything, the cessation of unskilful behaviour.

So how do we realize this?

This reflection by Ajahn Sundara is from the book Walking the World, (pdf) pp. 159-161.