It is sort of like the old Rolling Stones song, 'I can't get no satisfaction.' The Buddha explained why we can not get any lasting satisfaction. It is because we are "looking for love [satisfaction] in all the wrong places." The Buddha taught four reasons why we wind up frustrated. These are are know as cattaro vipallasa {viparyasa} or 四 顚倒 {shi tendo}; the four inverted views or hallucinations.
- Mistaking or seeking subha 浄 wholesomeness, fortune. purity, attractiveness, desirability}; for or in that which is asubha 不淨 or 惡露 {impure, spiritually ugly, unwholesome, unfortunate}.
- Seeking sukha 樂 {bliss}; in that which is dukkha 苦 or 苦惱 {unsatisfying}.
- Searching for or expecting nicca / niyta 常 {constancy, continuity, eternity}; in that which is anicca / anitya 無常 {inconstant, temporal}.
- Identifying atta / atman 我 {an abiding self}; in that which is anatta / anatman 無我{conditional ego}.
You might recognize that the last three are the three marks of existence. "Sabbe sankhara anicca. Sabbe sankhara dukkha. Sabbe dhamma anatta." All conditioned existence is inconstant. All conditioned existence is suffering. All phenomena have no abiding self. To these is added asubha {unwholesome, inner ugliness, unfortunate, inauspecious}; which is related to ashuddha {impurity}.
The Buddha also said,"Sabbe sankhara dukkha ti yada pannaya passati atha nibbindati dukkhe esa maggo vishuddhiya." That translates as something like, "All conditioned existence is unsatisfying. When one acquires the skills of discernment and insight, then one grows weary of frustration, and seeks the path of purification." Buddhism teaches that there is a cessation of dukkha. "You can't always get what you want; but if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need." You might also notice that the reverse of the cattaro vipallasa are the four innate innate virtues; known as 四徳 Shitoku:
The Buddha also said,"Sabbe sankhara dukkha ti yada pannaya passati atha nibbindati dukkhe esa maggo vishuddhiya." That translates as something like, "All conditioned existence is unsatisfying. When one acquires the skills of discernment and insight, then one grows weary of frustration, and seeks the path of purification." Buddhism teaches that there is a cessation of dukkha. "You can't always get what you want; but if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need." You might also notice that the reverse of the cattaro vipallasa are the four innate innate virtues; known as 四徳 Shitoku:
- Subha 浄 (jo) {pure} or 清浄 (shojo) {purified} or 遍淨 (henjo) {pervasive purity}: Wholesome purity, inner beauty, innocence; actual desirability, appeal, attractiveness, good fortune. [note that shuddha 浄 pure, 遍淨 pervasive purity, and vishuddha 清浄 purification are conflated with subha or inner beauty].
- Sukha 樂 (raku) {comfort}: Sublime Bliss, spontaneous or stable joy, independent of circumstances. Note that sukha, as one of three kinds of vedana {sensation or feeling}, is the opposite of dukkha. The third kind is neutral.
- Nitya 常 (jo) or 常住 (joju) {constant} or 無辺 (muhen) {boundless, no end} or 無量 (muryo) {immeasurable}: Actual perception of constancy, continuity, permanence, timelessness, eternity, infinitude.
- Atman 我 (?) {mine; self}: Authentic identity; which is a selfless, higher self.
Perhaps you also noticed that these relate to the Four Bodhisattvas 四菩蓮 (shi bosatsu) who attend the Eternal Shakyamuni; and also satipatthana or the four frameworks of sati. smrti, 憶念, or mindfulness.
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