All we seek in life is happiness, yet we encounter suffering every moment. About 2600 years ago, the Buddha discovered a truth that there is suffering in the world. According to the Buddha, there is suffering in the world, suffering has a cause, suffering can be ended. In order to end suffering, the Buddha propounded the Eightfold Path.

The truths the Buddha discovered are referred as the Four Noble Truths. In this article, we will discuss on suffering. The article will answer questions like:

• Why we suffer?
• How to end our suffering?

Why do we suffer in life?

Buddhism, at its core, is a philosophy centered on understanding and overcoming suffering. Known as dukkha in Pali, suffering is the first and most essential truth in Buddhism, articulated by the Buddha in the Four Noble Truths (Cattāri Ariyasaccāni). These truths state: life is suffering; suffering has a cause; suffering can end; and there is a path that leads to the end of suffering. The cause of suffering, according to Buddhist thought, is tanhā or craving—an endless cycle of desire, attachment, and ignorance. The Buddha did not view suffering merely as physical pain but as the deeper existential dissatisfaction that pervades all aspects of life. The solution lies not in external change but in internal awakening through mindfulness, ethical conduct, and wisdom.

The historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, was born into royalty and lived a sheltered life until his late twenties. When he ventured outside his palace, he encountered what are referred to in Buddhist texts as the Four Sights: an old man, a sick person, a corpse, and an ascetic. These experiences awakened him to the inescapable reality of suffering. He renounced his luxurious life and spent nearly ten years in intense meditation, austerity, and study to find a way beyond suffering. His enlightenment under the Bodhi tree marked the discovery of the Middle Way—a balanced path between extreme indulgence and severe asceticism. This is recorded in the Dhammapada and Majjhima Nikāya, where the Buddha emphasized insight into the impermanent and selfless nature of all phenomena as the key to liberation.

At the heart of Buddhist practice is the Noble Eightfold Path (Ariya Atthangika Magga), which provides practical guidance to overcome suffering. It includes right understanding, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. These principles guide followers toward ethical living, mental discipline, and wisdom. Another foundational concept is anatta (non-self), which teaches that the idea of a permanent, unchanging self is an illusion. By understanding impermanence (anicca) and letting go of attachment, one can transcend suffering and attain nirvana, a state of ultimate peace and freedom. Thus, Buddhism is not merely a religion but a profound philosophical system that addresses the human condition at its root.

The root of suffering is attachment – The Buddha

In order to understand why we suffer, we need to first understand what is suffering.

Death is suffering. When someone dies, we suffer. Why does death bring suffering? Because death separates us from those we love and care. We suffer from the death of someone we love and care because death brings grief and fear.  We are afraid of death, we become sad due to death because we do not understand the role death plays in human evolution.

We have enemies. We suffer from the words and actions of our enemies. Why do we have enemies? Why do we suffer from their words and actions?

Our physical consciousness has a limitation. Our limitation does now allow us to perceive the unity of all life or realize that our wrong thoughts, words and actions have repercussion. What you do is what you get. There is nothing left of us except to suffer.

We want a good life, yet we suffer from poverty and disease. Why poverty and disease make us suffer? That’s because our ignorance creates their existence. Unless we can understand poverty and diseases as natural events, we will continue to suffer.

All forms of suffering we experience are nothing but just the reactions from our ignorant mind. When we comprehended the illusory nature of things and phenomena, sufferings will disappear.

How To End Suffering in Life?

The human beings suffer from death. It is nothing but just our ignorance. In order to end suffering of death, we need to sweep away our comprehension. When fear vanishes, a serene happiness takes place.

Evil thoughts, words and actions bring suffering. In order to end this suffering you have to cease your evil thoughts, words and actions. We think evil, we talk evil, we do evil because you are ignorant human beings. The suffering from these evils will end only when spiritual illumination comes. We will no longer stumble upon the darkness of ignorance.

We suffer from poverty and diseases because we do not understand what poverty or diseases are? Suffering from poverty and disease will end when we understand the nature’s lesson. These are nothing but just passing events.

Spiritual illumination alone can shed light on our path and give us strength to move forward safely by ending the obstacles that lie before us.

We need to become wise to get away from suffering. We become wise not though the materials we gather in life, but from the illumination that we gain by developing our soul.

What is Suffering? Why There is Suffering in The World?

 The Buddha is a great teacher and master. He propounded four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path. The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism are:

1. There is suffering in the world.
2. There is a cause of suffering.
3. There is an end to suffering.
4. The Eightfold Path is the solution to suffering.

We will discuss the Eighfold Path later. In this article, we will focus on suffering. The article will answer questions like:

• What is suffering?
• Why there is suffering in the world?

What is Suffering?

Suffering is the scheme forced upon us by the nature. Sadly, we lack the spiritual illumination to understand suffering.

Generally speaking, suffering is not visible to us until it leaps upon us like a crouching tiger.

We are besotted with our family and complacent in our own little world. Suddenly death or disease comes and happiness is replaced with agony.

Today we have a dear friend who is with us through thick and thin. Tomorrow, he abandons us, or becomes an adversary. This is one of the sufferings that we always face in our life. And we know no reason for this change.

Sometime back we had wealth and the luxuries. Something strikes and now we face poverty and misery. We seek reasons for this suffering, yet we do not know why this has happened to us.

Once we were healthy and full of virility. We lose our health, we lose our virility, and we do not see any reasons of this suffering.

These are just a few examples of suffering that we face in our everyday life. In fact, there are even greater sufferings on our life. Every day, every moment, miseries and sufferings are coming in our life.

We want to get away from sufferings, however, we never see the suffering. We see suffering only when it grabs us. We experience suffering only when we stumble upon in the darkness of our ignorance.

Why There is Suffering in the World

Before becoming the Buddha, Siddhartha was a prince. He abandoned royalty because he saw suffering in the world. Siddhartha’s father tried everything he could to provide pleasures and luxuries to his son. Yet, the moment, Siddhartha came out from his palace, he saw death, disease, old age. He saw suffering around him, he knew about suffering around. In order to find out the answer why there is suffering in the world, Siddhartha abandoned the palace. Siddhartha found why there is suffering in the world, when he became the Buddha.

We lack the spiritual illumination of Siddhartha that can help us to see far and wide, find the hidden causes of human suffering, and reveal the methods that help us to avoid suffering. Until we reach illumination, our journey in this world cannot be comfortable because suffering grabs on our each steps.

The world we are living in is just like a dark room where furniture are scattered around. There is dark, therefore, we cannot see the furniture and every now and then we bounce with furniture and hurt ourselves.  If we could press the button and light the room, we will see everything, and we can walk through the furniture. If this can happen, our journey will be safe and free from suffering.

We are living in ignorance, that’s why there is suffering in the world.          

How to End Suffering? How to Life Worry Free Life 

To end suffering as a common person, one does not need to become a monk or live in isolation, but rather adopt a mindful and balanced way of living based on the Buddha’s teachings. The first step is to recognize the nature of suffering in everyday life—stress, dissatisfaction, anxiety, and emotional pain—and to understand that these arise primarily from craving, attachment, and aversion. A common man can begin by practicing sati (mindfulness), which means being aware of thoughts, emotions, and actions without being controlled by them. For example, when anger arises, instead of reacting impulsively, one learns to observe it calmly and let it pass. This awareness helps break the cycle of unconscious suffering.

Living free from suffering also involves aligning one’s life with the Noble Eightfold Path in a practical way. Ethical living—through right speech, right action, and right livelihood—builds a stable and peaceful mind. Avoiding harmful behavior, such as lying, greed, or harming others, creates a foundation of inner peace. Mental discipline—through right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration—helps develop clarity and emotional resilience. A simple practice like daily meditation, even for ten minutes, can reduce stress and improve one’s ability to handle life’s challenges with equanimity. Wisdom—through right understanding and right intention—teaches us to accept impermanence and let go of attachment to things that cannot last.

To live a worry-free life, one must shift their mindset from constant control and fear to acceptance and gratitude. Worry often arises from fearing what might happen or regretting what has already passed. Buddhism teaches that both the past and the future are mental constructions—the only reality is the present moment. Focusing on what one can do now, rather than obsessing over what might go wrong, brings peace. Cultivating mettā (loving-kindness) and karuṇā (compassion) toward oneself and others also softens the heart and reduces emotional burdens. By living simply, practicing contentment, and letting go of unrealistic expectations, an ordinary person can experience a life that is not only free from suffering but rich in meaning and joy.