The three basic ideas of Buddhism are the Three Universal Truths.

The first truth says

that nothing lasts. This is called annica. People, plants, even things like mountains
are changing all the time. The Buddha said that because nothing remains the same
for long, there is no rest except Nibbana.

The second truth is Dukkha. This mean suffering, but is more than pain. It means
things like being bored and being uncomfortable, as well Dukkha is everything that is
unsatisfactory. For Buddhists, life is Dukkha because there is nothing that is
absolutely perfect. The Buddha said that no-one can escape Dukkha. His teaching
was a way of overcoming it.

The third universal truth is anatta, which means no soul. The Buddha taught that
there is nothing that can be called a soul. Instead, he said that people are made up
of five parts: feelings, thoughts, awareness, ideas and body. However, there is
nothing in people that carries on into another life, except the force that they make in
this life.

These ideas are important because the rest of the Buddhas teaching is based on
them.

The Buddhas most important teaching is called the Four Noble Truths. This was the main part
of the first sermon that he preached after his enlightenment. In his sermon, he told the people
who were listening about the cause of suffering and the way to overcome it. He said that when
people really understood the Four Noble Truths they would be able to change their lives.

The First Noble Truth: Suffering (dukkha) happens everywhere all the time

No-one can escape dukkha because it is the result of kamma from their
previous lives. Every life has something wrong with it. Nobody is perfect
until they reach enlightenment. So being reborn means that people always
suffer because of their previous lives.

The Second Noble Truth: Dukkha is caused by greed and selfishness

Everybody is basically selfish. We all tend to think about ourselves more

than others. We are always more concerned with what we think than with
what other people think. This selfishness is often a cause of suffering in this
world. The Buddha said that even being reborn is really selfish. People
should try to break out of the rebirth cycle.
 The Third Noble Truth: Greed and selfishness can be stopped

When you no longer want anything when you can see beyond yourself, you
can leave the suffering behind. A Buddhist believes that you can only do
this by breaking out of the rebirth cycle. This freedom is Nibbana.

The Fourth Noble Truth: The way to stop selfishness is to follow the Noble
Eightfold Path

The Noble Eightfold Path is the way of living that the Buddha discovered led
to Nibbana. He said that it is as if people are living in muddy ground. They
need helping out of it, but this help can only be given by people who are
standing on firm ground. The Noble Eightfold Path is a way of helping peThe
Buddha said that people should follow a Middle Way to find Nibbana. You should not be live
a life of luxury where you over-eat and have too much of everything (an easy life). But equally
you should not live a life where you starve yourself and punish your body (a hard life). People
who do these things will not find Nibbana. The secret is to follow a middle path between the two
extremes.

The path which the Buddha taught about is called the Noble Eightfold Path. It has this name
because there are eight steps for people to follow. All the steps begin with the word right. This
does not just mean that this is correct, it also means best possible.

The first two steps go together. Before they can begin the Noble Eightfold Path, people have to
feel that the Buddhas teaching is the way they need to live.

Right Viewpoint

The first step is looking at life in the right way. You will not reach Nibbana
unless you think in the right way. Having the right viewpoint means that
you understand and accept the basic teachings of the Four Noble Truths.
 Right Thought

Your mind is very powerful, so it needs to be used in the right way. You
should try to be unselfish, and care about other people, rather than just
concentrating on yourself.

The next three steps show how Buddhists should behave when they have decided to follow the
path.

Right Speech

You should be kind and helpful when you talk to people. You should not
gossip or tell lies. This also includes not swearing, and any other ways in
which you can hurt people with words.

Right Action

This includes not killing things and not stealing. It also means being faithful
to your husband or wife, and not drinking alcohol or taking drugs.

Right Living

Someone who wants to follow the Buddha should work to the best of their
ability. The job you do should be useful and not involve killing or hurting
others.

The next three steps are the way followers train their mind so that they can enter Nibbana.

Right Effort

You should train yourself to avoid things which are evil, and work hard at
the good things in life.

Right Awareness

You should develop the right awareness of the things around you. This
means controlling your mind carefully so that you can be aware of the things
which are happening around you and in your mind.

Right Concentration

You should train your mind so that you can let go and concentrate without
your mind wandering. This is done by meditation. When you can do this,
you will become a very calm and peaceful person
ople by showing them how they should live. It is called the Noble Eightfold
Path because there are eight steps that people should follow.