Lankaweb on Buddhism

When I asked AI what the difference between Loba and Thanha in Buddhism, this is the reply I got.

Great question — they’re closely related, but Buddhism is very precise with words.

Lobha (often spelled loba)

Meaning: Greed, craving, attachment
Scope: Broad and general

• Lobha is one of the three unwholesome roots (akusala mūla):
  lobha (greed), dosa (hatred), moha (delusion)
• It refers to any mental state that clings, grasps, or wants to possess.
• It can be gross (greed for money, power, people) or subtle (liking, preference, attachment, I want this to continue”).

👉 Think of lobha as the greedy tendency of the mind.

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Taṇhā (Thanha)

Meaning: Thirst, craving
Scope: Specific, dynamic, experiential

• Taṇhā is specifically identified as the cause of suffering in the Second Noble Truth.
• It describes the felt craving that arises in experience, especially in response to pleasant or unpleasant sensations.
• Classic three types of taṇhā:
  1. Kāma-taṇhā – craving for sense pleasures
  2. Bhava-taṇhā – craving to be, to exist, to become
  3. Vibhava-taṇhā – craving to not be, to escape, to annihilate

👉 Think of taṇhā as the moment-to-moment thirst that fuels rebirth and suffering.

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Key Difference (simple analogy)

• Lobha = the character trait/root tendency of greed
• Taṇhā = the active craving that arises in a moment

Or:

• Lobha is the firewood
• Taṇhā is the flame

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How they relate

• Taṇhā is a form of lobha, but not all lobha is described as taṇhā.
• In dependent origination, taṇhā has a very specific role:
  feeling → taṇhā → clinging → becoming → suffering.
• Lobha is used more in Abhidhamma and ethical psychology;
  taṇhā is central in sutta-level explanations of dukkha.

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One-line summary

Lobha is the unwholesome root of greed; taṇhā is the craving that actively drives suffering.

If you want, I can also explain how upādāna (clinging) fits between taṇhā and lobha — that’s where it gets really interesting.

Can you please explain how upādāna (clinging) fits between taṇhā and lobha

Glad you asked — this is one of those places where Buddhist psychology gets beautifully surgical. Let’s walk it slowly.

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The basic relationship (big picture)

Lobha → Taṇhā → Upādāna

• Lobha = the root tendency to desire and attach
• Taṇhā = craving that arises in experience
• Upādāna = craving that has hardened into clinging

So upādāna is not separate from lobha — it is lobha intensified, structured, and owned.

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Step-by-step in lived experience

Imagine something pleasant appears.

1. Lobha (latent tendency)

There is already a background habit in the mind:

Pleasure is good. I want it.”

This isn’t active yet — it’s potential, like dry grass.

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2. Taṇhā (thirst arises)

A pleasant feeling arises (vedanā), and the mind responds:

I want this.”
I want more.”
I don’t want this to stop.”

This is taṇhā — the pull toward the experience.

Still fluid. Still possible to let go.

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3. Upādāna (clinging takes hold)

Now something important happens:

This is mine.”
This is me.”
I must have this.”

At this point:

• craving becomes identification
• desire becomes possession
• liking becomes psychological ownership

This is upādāna.

👉 The Buddha literally uses the word fuel” here — what keeps the fire burning.

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Why upādāna is its own stage

Taṇhā can arise and pass quickly.
Upādāna sticks.

• Taṇhā says: I want.”
• Upādāna says: I am someone who needs this.”

That shift is huge.

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The Four Types of Upādāna

Upādāna isn’t only about pleasure:

1. Kāmupādāna – clinging to sense pleasures
2. Diṭṭhupādāna – clinging to views and opinions
3. Sīlabbatupādāna – clinging to rules, rituals, identities
4. Attavādupādāna – clinging to the idea of a self

Notice:
Only the first is obvious greed.”
The others are subtle lobha wearing philosophical clothes.

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How this fits in Dependent Origination

The classic sequence:

Feeling (vedanā)
→ Taṇhā (craving)
→ Upādāna (clinging)
→ Bhava (becoming)
→ Dukkha (suffering)

• Taṇhā reaches out
• Upādāna grips
• Bhava builds an identity and a world around it

That’s how suffering gets momentum.

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Lobha’s role in all this

• Lobha is the root condition
• Taṇhā is the expression
• Upādāna is the entrenchment

Without lobha, taṇhā doesn’t arise.
Without taṇhā, upādāna can’t form.

But upādāna is where liberation or bondage really gets decided — because clinging always implies a self who is clinging.

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A sharp one-line insight

Taṇhā wants the experience; upādāna wants to be someone who has it.

That’s why insight practice often focuses on seeing taṇhā early — before it congeals into upādāna.

If you like, next we can look at how mindfulness cuts the chain specifically between vedanā and taṇhā, which is one of the Buddha’s most practical teachings.

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