Significance of Craving
Synonyms: Longing, Desire, Yearning, Hunger, Appetite, Lust, Thirst, Urge
In Dutch: Verlangen; In Finnish: Himo; In Spanish: Antojo
The below excerpts are indicatory and do represent direct quotations or translations. It is your responsibility to fact check each reference.
Buddhist concept of 'Craving'
In Buddhism, craving (tanha/trishna) is a powerful, often intense desire. It fuels attachment, leading to suffering (dukkha) and the cycle of rebirth. This craving manifests as a longing for experiences, existence, or sense pleasures, and is a fundamental cause of the suffering that Buddhists seek to overcome.
From: A Discourse on Paticcasamuppada
(1) Craving is one of the two root causes, along with ignorance, in dependent origination, which consists of twelve links starting with ignorance and ending in death.[1] (2) According to the provided text, feelings lead to "craving", and this "craving" develops into clinging, which can escalate to a desire for union with family or attainment of Nibbana.[2] (3) It is identified as the origin of suffering, though people mistakenly believe attachment brings happiness and a lack of it makes life dreary.[3] (4) Non arising of this means non arising of kamma and rebirth, and vipassana insight keeps off its defilement for sense objects.[4] (5) The provided text indicates that it is the cause and clinging is the effect, with craving for sensual pleasure being a factor.[5]
From: Maha Buddhavamsa—The Great Chronicle of Buddhas
(1) Craving is identified as a factor contributing to the defilement of the paramis, as it fosters attachment and hinders detachment.[6] (2) The text explains that even a gold mountain twice as high as the Himalayas cannot satisfy the craving of a person.[7] (3) It is also known as tanha, and the Five Aggregates arise due to this.[8] (4) The underlying cause of grief and fear, according to the Buddha's teaching.[9] (5) The fundamental cause of suffering, as discussed in the context of the Noble Truth of the Cause of Suffering.[10]
From: Dhammapada (Illustrated)
(1) Craving is identified as the root cause of grief and fear, as indicated in the Dhammapada verse, with the absence of craving leading to the absence of both grief and fear.[11] (2) This is the desire that leads to suffering, which the true brahmin has overcome, as described in the verse.[12] (3) An intense desire that binds individuals to the cycle of existence and leads to suffering.[13] (4) An intense longing or desire for something, particularly in a manner that leads to attachment and bondage.[14] (5) A strong desire or attachment that is to be eliminated for achieving arahatship, as instructed by the Buddha.[15]
From: Introducing Buddhist Abhidhamma
(1) Activity in the form of volition based on this binds the aggregates together; it is also the real 'creator' based on ignorance.[16] (2) A psychological force that arises with consciousness and is identified as a root cause of suffering.[17] (3) A deep, persistent desire that drives individuals towards actions resulting in suffering, marked as the cause of all suffering.[18] (4) A strong desire that arises from feeling, linked to the experience of suffering in Buddhism.[19]
From: Visuddhimagga (the pah of purification)
(1) The provided material discusses craving in detail, especially in relation to feeling and dependent origination, indicating that craving arises with feeling as a condition, and is classified into six types based on objects like visible data, sound, and mental data.[20] (2) Craving for sense desires is a condition in one way, as decisive-support, for sense-desire clinging, because it arises in relation to the objective field in which craving delights. It is also a condition in seven or eight ways for the remaining three kinds.[21] (3) A deep desire or yearning that arises as a condition in the cycle of dependent origination, contributing to the experience of suffering.[22]
From: A Manual of Abhidhamma
(1) An intense desire or longing for something, often associated with attachment.[23] (2) Craving is the desire for pleasurable experiences, which can be classified into three types: craving for sensual pleasures, craving for existence, and craving for non-existence.[24]
From: Patthanuddesa Dipani
(1) Craving arises from interactions and is a driving force behind actions among beings.[25] (2) A strong desire or longing that affects one's mental states and can lead to various forms of consciousness.[26]
From: Abhidhamma in Daily Life
(1) The origin of dukkha that leads to clinging and repeated cycles of rebirth.[27]
From: Jataka tales [English], Volume 1-6
(1) Desires that lead to suffering, specifically those related to lust, which the Bodhisatta sought to overcome but found himself enslaved by.[28]
From: Patipada (path of practice)
(1) The power that floods everything, everywhere, and is never satisfied, and one who practices the way must have constant mindfulness, and the text describes the importance of this and the practice of the way.[29]
From: Guide to Tipitaka
(1) This is identified as a cause of the heavy burden of the five groups of grasping, and is to be eradicated to achieve the Noble Truth of Cessation, according to the text.[30]
From: Vinaya Pitaka (3): Khandhaka
(1) This is conditioned by feeling and conditions grasping, according to the causal uprising that the Lord contemplated during the watches of the night.[31]
From: Catusacca Dipani
(1) It is the origin of ever continuing the arising of suffering in the lives of all beings.[32]
From: Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra
(1) It is called trishna, and is a term for when one learns and befriends the five desires.[33] (2) A powerful desire for something, driving a person to commit the act of killing, and is ultimately responsible for the karmic results, according to the teachings.[34] (3) The basis for burning and receiving the 25 existences, and its extinction leads to the cessation of the fire of karmic results.[35] (4) A result of feeling that leads to further suffering and is categorized as both a cause and effect in the cycle of events for beings.[36] (5) A powerful force that binds beings to the cycle of birth and death, often disguising itself as friendship or desire.[37]
From: Maha Prajnaparamita Sastra
(1) Known as trishna, it is the mental adherence that arises within sensation and leads to attachment.[38]
From: Apadana commentary (Atthakatha)
(1) Sakka asked the Glorious One about emancipation after proper destruction. After answering the question, Sakka became self-willed and glad.[39]
Hindu concept of 'Craving'
In Hinduism, craving can be mitigated through meditation. This practice improves emotional regulation, impacting brain regions like the prefrontal cortex and amygdala. It cultivates mindfulness and self-control, thus diminishing the intensity of cravings.
From: Journal of Ayurveda and Integrated Medical Sciences
(1) Cravings are reduced by meditation, which enhances emotional regulation, and influences key brain regions like the prefrontal cortex and amygdala, fostering mindfulness, and improving self-control.[40]
From: Yoga Vasistha [English], Volume 1-4
(1) It involves an intense desire or longing for something, reflecting a strong need or appetite that is difficult to satisfy or control.[41]
The concept of Craving in local and regional sources
Craving, as defined by regional sources, initiates the Buddhist concept of "round." This suggests craving is a fundamental starting point in the philosophical exploration of the cyclical nature of existence within Buddhism.
From: History of Science in South Asia
(1) This is one of the starting points for the exposition of the "round" in the Buddhist philosophy.[42]
From: Triveni Journal
(1) It is the source of rebirth, standing for sensual pleasure, continued existence and even for non-existence, which keeps the existence going.[43]
The concept of Craving in scientific sources
Craving, as described in the text, is a potent desire impacting those battling addiction. It manifests as an intense urge for alcohol, opioids, or tobacco, significantly affecting mental health and recovery. This strong desire is a major obstacle to overcoming substance dependence.
From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (MDPI)
(1) A strong desire or urge to consume alcohol, identified as a key predictor of alcohol drinking in patients with alcohol use disorders.[44] (2) Craving is one of the content subscales measured in the Self-rating Questionnaire for Adolescent Problematic Mobile Phone Use and is related to problematic mobile phone use.[45] (3) Craving, along with mental disorders and quality of life, was quantified to determine the effect of physical exercise, and the study also aimed to compare the effect of exercise programs with commonly used body-mind practices.[46] (4) Craving is a mediating variable that links predisposing variables like depression, anxiety, and self-esteem to problematic pornography use.[47] (5) Craving is an intense desire or urge to smoke, which can occur during a quit attempt and potentially influence adherence to smoking cessation medications.[48]
From: South African Family Practice
(1) Craving is an effect on dopamine in the ventral tegmental area which may contribute to the rewarding effect of drinking, as well as behavioural disinhibition during drinking.[49] (2) A strong desire to use tobacco, a common barrier to quitting.[50]
From: African Journal of Primary Health Care and Family Medicine
(1) This is an intense desire or urge to use a substance, such as opioids, which can significantly affect a person's mental state and recovery process.[51]
From: Asian Journal of Pharmaceutics
(1) This and withdrawal can be reduced using high-dose nicotine replacement therapy.[52]
Classical concept of 'Craving'
From: The Nicomachean Ethics of Aristotle
(1) The self-indulgent man is pained both when he fails to get pleasant things and when he is merely craving for them, indicating that appetite involves pain.[53]