The Buddha's First Noble Truth is that "suffering happens."  That is, he saw suffering as a normal part, and maybe even a defining element, of being human.  And it suggests that philosophy (if that's what Buddhism is) arises because of suffering.  We philosophize because we want to understand and mitigate suffering. respond in the four-fold manner (what it says, how you feel about it, what it means, and how it sheds light on our reading).  1. "Suffering is how life tells you that you are resisting or misperceiving what is real or right. It is the way Life suggests to you that you are not in harmony with what is".  - Adyashanti