Lizzy Moreno
Professor Bertozzi
PHIL 190-001
February 15, 2025
“Why should the fact or mere rebirth count as Suffering” Sidertis 22
Many people consider happiness to be the goal in life. But when studying Buddhist
philosophy, I began to think that if achieving happiness is as simple as it sounds. The Four Noble
Truth was especially interesting because they demonstrated that suffering is an essential and
unavoidable aspect of life. Through connections of pleasure and happiness along with the Four
Noble Truths, my respect for Buddhist philosophy along with its useful wisdom can help anyone
realize how these philosophical concepts can be applied in day-to-day life.
Personally, I was able to connect with the fact that pleasure and happiness can sometimes
be deceptive. As one read this part of the Buddhist philosophy, it can make you think about how
Americans are looked at and how we work so hard to be happy in the future. We are on the
treadmill that may or may not tire us before we reach our goal. Furthermore, it made me think
deeper into my own life as I have always thought about what would make me happy along with
what is needed to get there to achieve that, and it makes me wonder if I will get tired before
reaching the end goal. Along with that the example with the anti-depressant stuck out to me due
to the fact that when thinking about the medication I see that as a goal for long term happiness
but one is just hiding from their problems. It shows that we cannot just mask something but
improve ourselves to be happy.
The Four Noble Truth is also very eye-opening in the way they show that suffering is an
unavoidable reality at the core of human existence. The Four Noble Truths can make one realize
that suffering is a necessary condition that exposes the true nature of existence rather than
burden. The truths that stuck out to me the most were the first truth of impermanence and the
fourth noble truth of the Eightfold path. The first noble truth of impermanence stuck out to me
because at first is opened the thought to myself that I am impermanent but then one can observe
the Buddhist were not only talking about humans but everything since nothing is permanent. By
making this realization I was able to see how many of the truths are connected like due to the
suffering of impermanence a suffering of attachment may develop. On the other hand, the fourth
noble truth of the eightfold was also very enjoyable since it states this in the passage “right view,
right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right exertion, right self-possession
and right concentration.”(Sidertis pg.36) It was enjoyable to read since these are many of the
rules that I live by in a day-to-day life to feel joy for myself. Getting to read how these
fundamentals played into philosophy very much enhanced how much I practice the eight-folds in
my day-to-day life.
The biggest take away from the Buddhist philosophy is that happiness and suffering are
basic terms of life. I now see that suffering is necessary since it can result in increased awareness
and self-improvement rather than just being able to overcome an obstacle. It led me to think that
if we are pursuing an illusion of happiness rather than living in the present because of
impermanence and the endless hunt for happiness. The understanding that everything is
impermanent, not just humans, deepened my appreciation for Buddhist thought. The Eightfold
path also stood out to me as a useful manual for leading an honest and purposeful life. Rather
than avoid difficult situations we must strive to improve ourselves.