The Sequence of Practicing the Four Noble Truths

The sequence of practicing the Four Noble Truths is: comprehending suffering, severing accumulation, aspiring for cessation, and cultivating the path; or alternatively, comprehending suffering, aspiring for cessation, cultivating the path, and severing accumulation. Severing accumulation is divided into provisional severance and fundamental severance. Provisional severance refers to subduing and suppressing the mind without meditative concentration or realization of fruition, preventing oneself from committing unwholesome deeds or reducing their commission. Fundamental severance is ultimate severance; after afflictions are eradicated, the manas (mental faculty) no longer harbors the intention or impetus to create unwholesome karma. Without the need for subduing and suppressing the mind, one spontaneously and consciously refrains from committing unwholesome deeds. Thus, old unwholesome karmic seeds are eliminated, new unwholesome karmic seeds are not accumulated, and there is no suffering in future lives.

How does suffering arise? In the very beginning of life, there was neither the world of the five aggregates nor suffering. Due to ignorance, the manas clings outwardly, desiring to know. Thus, the Tathagatagarbha gives rise to the world, and subsequently produces the body of the five aggregates. The five aggregates exist within the world, and due to the ignorance of the manas, they commit various irrational, unwholesome deeds. Consequently, karmic seeds accumulate, leading to the karmic retribution of suffering in future lives. After studying Buddhism and practicing, one continuously contemplates the truth of suffering and understands that the source of suffering is the accumulation of unwholesome karma from past lives. Thus, one seeks methods to sever suffering, begins to cultivate the path to cease accumulating unwholesome actions, and only after realizing selflessness and eradicating the affliction of ignorance does one gradually extinguish suffering.