Friends,
The Third Noble Truth is about complete freedom from affliction. Imagine a man afflicted by a horrible skin condition. He had sores and blisters all over his limbs, being devoured by worms. When he burned his afflicted skin over a fire, he felt relief and pleasure. That is affliction. Imagine that he went to see a good doctor, and he got completely cured of his disease. He felt great all the time. That is freedom from affliction. That man now realized that the joy of being free from affliction far exceeded the joy of gratifying his affliction by burning his skin.
In the same way, our minds are afflicted with greed, hatred, and delusion. That is why we are constantly agitated, and that is why we keep doing self-destructive things just to gain a little bit of relief and pleasure. Also in the same way, the joy of being free from this affliction far exceeds the joy of gratifying those afflictions. The Third Noble Truth is about that state of freedom.
Learn more about the Third Noble Truth in Topic#5, starting today.
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