>> Would a better translation of Dukkha be 'struggle'?
>> JODY
there seem to be MANY definitions/translations from the ancient pali.
here are some links to just a FEW things on the web regarding
"dukkha". it does seem like it is far more broad ranging & subtle
than merely "suffering" or "struggle".
google yielded APPROXIMATELY 19,200 links to the search
dukkha definition
i suspect that
dukkha translation
will yield a similarly large & probably overlapping set of hits.
i'll be back in a few years after i read all of the links.
- elk
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http://www.accesstoinsight.org/ptf/dukkha.html
"No single English word adequately captures the full depth, range, and
subtlety of the crucial Pali term dukkha. The translators of the
passages quoted in these pages have used various translations of the
word ("stress," "unsatisfactoriness," "suffering," etc.) in an attempt
to get to the heart of it. There may be value in not getting too
comfortable with any one particular translation of the word dukkha,
since the entire thrust of the Buddha's teaching is to continually
widen and deepen one's understanding into the nature of dukkha. One
helpful rule of thumb: as soon as you think you've found the best
translation for dukkha, think again: for no matter how you describe
dukkha, it's always larger, subtler, and more unsatisfactory than
that."
note: there's more on this page & other links & references
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http://huizen.daxis.nl/~henkt/buddhism.html :
"Dukkha: life inherently includes also suffering.
Dukkha has a broader meaning than suffering: it means 'heavy weather'
(literally: Birth is dukkha, aging is dukkha, death is dukkha)"
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http://www.latrobe.edu.au/asianstudies/Buddha/lectures/04.htm
"I have retained the word dukkha in all four noble truths to point
out its evidence importance in the Noble Truths and that if we are
to get a good understanding of them we will first need to
investigate the meanings of the word dukkha. The Pali form of the
word is dukkha and the Sanskrit form is du��kha, I shall purely for
convenience use the Pali form in this book. It is often
interesting to look at words and discover their derivations, the
word dukkha comes from two elements. A prefix du, which means,
�wrong, bad, incorrect� and a root sth�� which means, �standing,
location, position�. By Sanskrit laws of word formation these
combine to produce du��kha from which the Pali dukkha is
derived. So the root meaning of dukkha is something akin to
�wrong-standing� or �bad-location� or �incorrect position�.
Another way to examine a word is to look for its lexical opposite,
in this case the combination of the prefix su, which means
�correct, good, right� and sth�� which yields Skt sukha (Pali
sukkha) which means �right location� and gives a range of meanings
related to �happiness, well-being, prosperity�. Clearly then as
dukkha is the opposite of sukkha it is clear that this helps to
clarify the meaning of dukkha. However it should be noted that the
true opposite of both sukkha and dukkha is Nibb��na, a term which
will be examined in chapter six."
note: there is MUCH MORE analysis of the word "dukkha" on this page,
focusing on how the word has been used in pali, sanskrit, & modern
hindi & analysing related terms in those languages in an attempt to
get a detailed linguistic sense of its meaning-cluster(s).
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http://www.4ui.com/eart/187eart1.htm
"The Pali word "dukkha" possesses multifarious meanings. The usual
rendering of "dukkha" to mean "pain", "suffering", "unpleasantness"
does not give justice to this philosophical word. The common meaning
conveys the impression that Buddhism is a pessimistic way of life and
that the basis of its philosophical undertone is that of dreariness
and morbidity. The understanding of the term "dukkha" therefore plays
significant role towards the true understanding and appreciation of
Buddhism.
According to Nyanatiloka (The Buddhist Dictionary) "dukkha" carries
two meaning. They are:
****
Invariably, "dukkha" has to be viewed from two perspectives. They are:
(a) The Dhamma point of view and
(b) The Abhidhamma point of view
..."
etc etc etc...
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