[701] And what, friends, is the noble truth (ariyasacca) of suffering (dukkha)? Birth (jāti) is suffering, aging (jarā) is suffering, death (maraṇa) is suffering; sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair (soka-parideva-dukkha-domanassa-upāyāsā) are suffering; not to get what one wishes — that too is suffering; in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging (pañcupādānakkhandhā) are suffering.
And what, friends, is birth? The birth of the various beings in the various orders of beings, their coming to birth, descent [into a womb], production, coming forth, the manifestation of the aggregates (khandha), the obtaining of the sense bases (āyatana) — this, friends, is called birth.
And what, friends, is aging? The aging of the various beings in the various orders of beings, their growing old, brokenness of teeth, greyness of hair, wrinkling of skin, decline of vitality, ripening of the faculties (indriya) — this, friends, is called aging.
And what, friends, is death? The passing away of the various beings from the various orders of beings, their perishing, breaking up, disappearance, dying, death, completion of time, the breaking up of the aggregates, the laying down of the body, the cutting off of the life faculty (jīvitindriya) — this, friends, is called death.
And what, friends, is sorrow? The sorrow, sorrowing, sorrowfulness, inner sorrow, inner deep sorrow of one afflicted by some misfortune or other, touched by some painful thing or other — this, friends, is called sorrow.
And what, friends, is lamentation? The wailing and lamenting, the act of wailing and act of lamenting, the state of wailing and state of lamenting of one afflicted by some misfortune or other, touched by some painful thing or other — this, friends, is called lamentation.
And what, friends, is pain? Bodily pain, bodily discomfort — the painful, uncomfortable feeling born of bodily contact — this, friends, is called pain.
And what, friends, is grief? Mental pain, mental discomfort — the painful, uncomfortable feeling born of mind-contact — this, friends, is called grief.
And what, friends, is despair? The distress and despair, the state of distress and state of despair of one afflicted by some misfortune or other, touched by some painful thing or other — this, friends, is called despair.
And what, friends, is "not to get what one wishes — that too is suffering"? In beings subject to birth, friends, such a wish arises: "Oh, that we were not subject to birth! Oh, that birth might not come to us!" But this is not to be attained by wishing. This too is "not to get what one wishes — that too is suffering." In beings subject to aging, friends, … In beings subject to illness, friends, … In beings subject to death, friends, … In beings subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair, friends, such a wish arises: "Oh, that we were not subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair! Oh, that sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair might not come to us!" But this is not to be attained by wishing. This too is "not to get what one wishes — that too is suffering."
And what, friends, is "in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering"? Namely: the form (rūpa) aggregate subject to clinging, the feeling (vedanā) aggregate subject to clinging, the perception (saññā) aggregate subject to clinging, the volitional-formations (saṅkhārā) aggregate subject to clinging, the consciousness (viññāṇa) aggregate subject to clinging. These, friends, are called "in brief, the five aggregates subject to clinging are suffering."
This, friends, is called the noble truth of suffering.
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.