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Tanha

Translations of
taṇhā
English thirst, craving, desire, etc.
Pali taṇhā, tanha (Dev: तण्हा)
Sanskrit tṛṣṇā, trishna (Dev: तृष्णा)
Burmese တဏှာ
(IPA: [tən̥à])
Chinese 贪爱 / 貪愛
(Pinyinzh-cn: tānài)
Japanese 渇愛
(katsu ai)
Sinhala තන්හාව,තෘෂ්ණාව,උපාදාන
Tibetan སྲེད་པ་
(Wylie: sred pa;
THL: sepa
)
Thai ตัณหา
(IPA: tan-hăː)
Vietnamese ái
Glossary of Buddhism

Taṇhā is a Pāli word, related to the Vedic Sanskrit word tṛṣṇā and tarśa, which means "thirst, desire, wish". It is an important concept in Buddhism, referring to "thirst, desire, longing, greed", either physical or mental. It is typically translated as craving, and is of three types: kama-tanha (craving for sensual pleasures), bhava-tanha (craving for existence), and vibhava-tanha (craving for non-existence).

Taṇhā appears in the Four Noble Truths, wherein taṇhā is the cause of dukkha (suffering, pain, unsatisfactoriness) and the cycle of repeated birth, becoming and death (Saṃsāra).

The word Taṇhā is derived from the Vedic Sanskrit word Tṛṣṇā (तृष्णा), which is related to the root Tarśa (thirst, desire, wish), which has the following Indo-European cognates: Av. Tarśna (thirst), Gr. Tarsi/a (dryness), Gothic: Paúrsus, Old High German: Durst, English: Drought & Thirst. The word appears numerous times in the Samhita layer of the Rigveda, dated to the 2nd millennium BCE, such as in hymns 1.7.11, 1.16.5, 3.9.3, 6.15.5, 7.3.4 and 10.91.7. It also appears in other Vedas of Hinduism, wherein the meaning of the word is "thirst, thirsting for, longing for, craving for, desiring, eager greediness, and suffering from thirst".

Taṇhā is an important Buddhist concept, and found in its early texts. It literally means "thirst, longing, greed", either physical or mental.

In the second of the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha identified taṇhā as a principal cause in the arising of dukkha (suffering, pain, unsatisfactoriness).


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Wikipedia

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