Thus I have heard: One time, the Buddha was staying at the Residence of Sages in the Deer Preserve of Bārāṇasī.
It was then that the Bhagavān addressed the monks, “There are four noble truths. What are the four? They are the noble truth of suffering, the noble truth of suffering’s formation, the noble truth of suffering’s cessation, and the noble truth of the path to suffering’s cessation.
“If a monk has known the noble truth of suffering, then he has understood [suffering] … has known the noble truth of suffering’s formation, then he has ended [its formation] … has known the noble truth of suffering’s cessation, then he has realized [its cessation] … has known the noble truth of the path to suffering’s cessation, then he has cultivated [that path]. In this way, that monk has no barred gate, has leveled off the city moat, and has crossed the dangerous heights. Liberated from bondage, he’s called a noble one who has planted the noble flag.”
After the Buddha spoke this sūtra, the monks who heard what the Buddha taught rejoiced and approved.