Chapter Four

The Cessation of Suffering

Today I will complete my presentation of the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism. In three previous talks we discussed the truth of suffering and the truth of the origin of suffering. We ed continue with the third and fourth noble truths: the cessation of suffering, and the path of cessation.

The Meaning of Cessation

True cessation is not the process of ending suffering, true cessation is a state of complete realization. It means having completely terminated emotional affliction and having fully realized the path; it is liberation from the causes and the effects of suffering, and it is a state where there are no more outflows--the root defilements of craving, becoming, and ignorance that keep us in samsara, the cycle of birth and death.