“Pain × Resistance = Suffering”

 A

3 points — “Pain × Resistance = Suffering”

1. Pain is unavoidable; suffering is optional
Pain is part of being human — physical discomfort, loss, disappointment, fear. These arise naturally. Suffering begins when the mind adds “this shouldn’t be happening”, “I can’t handle this”, or tries to push the experience away.

2. Resistance amplifies pain
When you resist pain — by fighting it, denying it, or obsessing over escaping it — you create tension. That mental struggle multiplies the original sensation. The pain might be small, but resistance stretches it across time and thought, turning it into suffering.

3. Acceptance reduces suffering (even if pain remains)
If pain is allowed without resistance — noticed, felt, and observed — the extra layer dissolves. The pain may still exist, but the mental friction disappears. Acceptance doesn’t mean liking pain; it means not adding a second problem on top of the first.

In short:

• Pain = raw experience

• Resistance = “this must not be”

• Suffering = pain + mental struggle

Remove resistance, and suffering collapses back into just pain — which is usually far easier to move through.