The Pilgrim Kamanita/Chapter 19
And the Lord Buddha said: "The Perfect One, brother, the Fully Enlightened One, set the wheel of Doctrine rolling at Benares, beside the Rock of the Prophet, in the Grove of the Gazelles. And to it may no man oppose himself, neither ascetic nor priest, neither god nor devil, nor any one whosoever in this world.
That Doctrine is the Unveiling, the Revelation of the four Sacred Truths. What Four? The Sacred Truth of Suffering, The Sacred Truth of the Origin of Suffering, The Sacred Truth of the End of all Suffering, The Sacred Truth of the Path which leads to the End of all Suffering.
But what is, brother, the Sacred Truth of Suffering? Birth is Suffering, Age is Suffering, Sickness is Suffering, Death is Suffering; Care, Misery, Pain, Grief, and Despair are all Suffering; to be separated from the loved is Suffering, to be united to the unloved is Suffering; not to obtain what we desire is Suffering; in short, all the various forms of affection involve Suffering. That is, O brother, the Sacred Truth of Suffering.
But what is, brother, the Sacred Truth of the Origin of Suffering? It is this, the thirst that leads from birth to birth, through many lives, companioned by desire and passion, regaling itself, now here, now there,—it is the thirst for earthly pleasure, the thirst for heavenly rapture, the thirst for annihilation. That is, O brother, the Sacred Truth of the Origin of Suffering.
But what is, brother, the Sacred Truth of the End of all Suffering? It is the complete, the absolute end of this very thirst, the forsaking it, the detaching, the freeing, the saving oneself from it. That is, O brother, the Sacred Truth of the End of all Suffering.
But what is, brother, the Sacred Truth of the Path which leads to the End of all Suffering? It is the Holy Eightfold Path consisting of Right Perception, Right Resolve, Right Speech, Right Dealing, Right Life, Right Effort, Right Thought, Right Contemplation. That is, O brother, the Sacred Truth of the Path which leads to the End of all Suffering.
After the Master had in this way set up the four cornerstones, he proceeded to raise the whole doctrinal structure in such a way as to make it a habitable home for the thoughts and feelings of his pupil; he elucidated each separate sentence as one hews and polishes each individual stone, and just as one lays stone upon stone so did he join sentence to sentence, everywhere laying the foundations carefully and fitting each sentence into its own proper place, in its due relation to every other. By the side of the pillar of the Conception of Suffering he placed the pillar of the Conception of the Transitoriness of all things; and as entablature joining the two, while supported by and overarching them, he added the weighty thought of the unreality of all phenomena. Through this mighty portal he ascended, leading his pupil circumspectly, step by step, several times up and down the well-built ladder of the fundamental law of sequence, everywhere establishing and perfecting.
And just as an able builder, when erecting some magnificent structure, adds pieces of statuary at suitable points and in such a way that they serve not only as ornaments, but also as bearers or supports, so the Master at times introduced a pleasing and ingenious parable, conscious that by such means the veiled meaning of many a profound utterance becomes clear.
Finally, however, he summed the whole up, and at the same time, as it were, covered the building in by placing upon it a resplendent, far-seen dome, in the words: "By attachment to existence, O pilgrim, thou comest into existence; lacking such attachment thou dost not come into existence."
And in the monk, who is nowhere held fast by his affections, there grows amid the unclouded cheerfulness of inward peace this perception—"that now is his salvation sure, that this is the last birth of all, that there will be no new existence beyond."
The monk who has come thus far is rewarded with this highest wisdom. And this, O pilgrim, is the highest, holiest wisdom—"to know that all suffering is ended." He who has found it has found a freedom which stands true and inviolable. For that is false, O pilgrim, which is vain and fleeting; and that is true which is real and permanent, the end of all delusion.
And he who from the very beginning was subject to birth, to the changes of age, and to death, has now, marking well the balefulness of this law of Nature, won for himself the safety that knows no birth, no age, no death. He who was subject to sickness, to impurity, to sin, has now reached the assurance that knows no change, that is pure and holy—
"I am saved and my salvation is within me; my life is ended, my work done, this world exists for me no longer."
Such a one, O pilgrim, is called the "Finisher" because he has finished and made an end of all suffering.
Such a one, O pilgrim, is called the "Obliterator" because he has obliterated the delusion of "I" and "Mine."
Such a one, O pilgrim, is called the "Weeder" because he has weeded out the plant of life by the roots so that no life can ever germinate again.
Such a one, so long as he is in the body, is seen of gods and men; but when his body is dissolved in death, he is no longer seen of gods and men. Nor does Nature—the All-seeing—see him any longer; he has blinded the eye of Nature, escaped from the Evil One. Crossing the stream of being, he has reached the island, the only one, that lies beyond age and death—Nirvana.