The solution to suffering in Christianity, Buddhism, Stoicism and Nietzsche

Christianity, Buddhism, Stoicism and the philosophy of Nietzsche are similar in that they
present solutions to the problem of suffering in this world. Buddhism calls this suffering
"Dukkha", a Buddhist term commonly translated as "suffering", "anxiety", "stress", or
"unsatisfactoriness"*.

"Dukkha is comprised of :

The obvious physical and mental suffering associated with birth, growing old, illness and
dying. The anxiety or stress of trying to hold on to things that are constantly changing. A basic
unsatisfactoriness pervading all forms of existence, because all forms of life are changing,
impermanent and without any inner core or substance." *

In short, the human condition, including pain of various kinds.

1. In Christianity the solution to this suffering is given by trust (faith) in God, as expressed
in the book of Job and in Paul, where the blessings of trust, hope and love are conjoined to
relieve such pain.

2. In buddhism, the solution to Dukkha is given by the Four noble Truths **

the first of which is

the Truth of Dukkha[suffering] is that all conditional phenomena and experiences are not
ultimately satisfying;

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dukkha

** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Noble_Truths

Since Buddhism is atheistic, one is left to one's own resources, as in Stoicism and the philosophy
of Nietzsche

3. In stoicism the relief of pain appears to arise from a change in attitude, expressed thusly:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoicism

sto·i·cism
ˈstōəˌsizəm/
noun
noun: stoicism; noun: Stoicism

a. the endurance of pain or hardship without a display of feelings and without complaint.
 synonyms: patience, forbearance, resignation, fortitude, endurance, acceptance, tolerance,
phlegm
"she accepted her sufferings with remarkable stoicism"
antonyms: intolerance
b. an ancient Greek school of philosophy founded at Athens by Zeno of Citium. The school
taught that virtue, the highest good, is based on knowledge, and that the wise live in harmony
with the divine Reason (also identified with Fate and Providence) that governs nature, and are
indifferent to the vicissitudes of fortune and to pleasure and pain.

4. Finally, in Neitzsche as somewhat in Emerson where one must become an ubermensch (a

self-reliant one), where one rids oneself of tradition, especially orthodox Christianity.

Note that Christianity flourished in Rome during a period (300 BC to 600 AD) in which stoicism
was the most popular philosophy, and similar to christianity, it sought to overcome
the faults of natural man, those being largely his desires. To the contrary, Neitzsche taught that
Christianity had weakened man, through emphasizing virtuous living, which seems counter to
all common sense. But at the same time Nietzsche opened the door to treating life as literature,
among other fruitful ideas.

The similarities between stoicism and Christianity gave rise to the philosophy of Neostoicism,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neostoicism

--
https://independent.academia.edu/RogerClough