What does the human condition mean? Why does Buddhism believe that humans are unsatisfied in life?
In Why Buddhism Is True, Robert Wright asserts that the Buddhist concepts of dukkha (suffering) and tanha (craving) offer an accurate view of the human condition. According to Wright, modern science supports these ideas.
Keep reading to learn what the Buddhist interpretation of the human condition is.
Buddhism’s Claim: Life Is Unsatisfying
According to Buddhism, what does the human condition mean? Wright explains that the first of Buddhism’s “Four Noble Truths” is dukkha: the idea that life is chronically unsatisfying. Though it often gets translated as “suffering,” Wright says that dukkha refers not only to obvious, significant suffering like profound grief but also to the subtle state of dissatisfaction we all tend to live in.
The key to understanding this subtler degree of dukkha lies in a second Buddhist idea, tanha. Roughly put, tanha means craving. We’re constantly craving something—whether it’s the simple pleasure of a good meal, the achievement of a long-held dream, or simply a shift away from some unpleasant state or experience. This repetitive cycle of desire and temporary fulfillment keeps us perpetually unsatisfied, always reaching for the next thing we believe will make us happy.
The Scientific Support: We Evolved to Crave Things
To argue in support of these ideas, Wright turns to evolutionary science. He says that early on, simple organisms evolved to use feelings to distinguish between what was good or bad for their survival and reproduction. If something felt good, they moved toward it. If something felt bad, they moved away from it. Organisms that navigated in this way survived and passed on their genes—an example of the process called natural selection. So, over generations, life evolved to use pleasure and pain as signals for what to do and not do.
Today, all living creatures rely on this basic distinction between positive and negative feelings to navigate their environments. Like any other species, humans have inherited billions of years’ worth of learned judgments, which we experience as feelings. These feelings tell us what’s good or bad for us according to natural selection. For instance, we each know instinctively not to mess around with large snakes or drink too much salt water, both of which could kill us.
So these basic drives—to pursue pleasure or escape pain—helped us survive, reproduce, and evolve. But how do they explain why dukkha and tanha are true? Wright puts it like this: While we evolved to navigate based on feeling, we also evolved for those feelings to end. For instance, if the pleasure you felt after eating a good meal never ended, you’d never crave food again, so you’d starve.
This means that we’re always on the lookout for the next reward or threat. Modern studies support this, suggesting that our brains release more dopamine—a chemical associated with pleasure and reward—in anticipation of a reward compared to when we actually receive it. This neurological response keeps us perpetually chasing the next hit of pleasure, going in a loop that psychologists call the hedonic treadmill.
In Buddhist terms, this perpetual chase could be called tanha (craving). As Wright puts it, the scientific and Buddhist perspectives complement each other: Buddhism points out that we’re driven by craving, and evolutionary science explains why. Take them together and the picture becomes clear—living means craving, and craving means dissatisfaction. Thus, Wright asserts, Buddhism’s description of the human condition is true.
