The Buddha identified three kinds of suffering. The first is the suffering caused by physical discomfort and by the emotional suffering that arises when things don’t go your way. The second kind of dukkha is the suffering caused by the fact that life is constantly changing. The moment you have found happiness, it disappears almost at once. The third type of suffering is the dukkha caused by life’s unsatisfactoriness due to its compositional nature. Each moment arises due to certain conditions then just disappears. There is not a lasting or substantial “there there” in daily life, thus life can seem dreamlike.

Dancing with Life, Chapter 4, pp. 34-35

For your reflection: This week practice staying mindful of your body’s response to the first kind of dukkha. Are you resisting or reacting to physical discomfort in some way that makes your suffering worse? Then observe your mind’s reaction to the second kind of dukkha. Set aside a 20-minute period to notice how many times your mind switches to a new topic. Finally, reflect on the third kind of dukkha and see if you can access this perspective. Can you imagine that discovering the compositional nature of life can free your mind from its fierce attachment to having things be a certain way?