Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a well-known framework in psychology that outlines human motivation and development. How does this hierarchy align with Buddhist principles? What is the emphasis on the journey toward self-realization and liberation? How do they meet? How can such a meeting be applied to daily life?
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
MHN was proposed by psychologist Abraham Maslow and is a fundamental theory in the field of psychology. It outlines a hierarchical structure of human needs, emphasizing their impact on motivation, behavior, and personal development. It is common to see MHN presented in a pyramid-like image. At the base of the triangle rests one’s physiological needs. These survival essentials dominate thoughts and actions when they are unmet. Although MHN is non-linear in experienced reality, from a developmental perspective, once physiological needs are satisfied, safety and security, both physical and emotional, are sought, following love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization are at the peak.
Buddhist Connection
How does Buddhism connect to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs? The overlap rests in the perpetual pursuit of fulfillment. In Buddhism, desire perpetuates suffering. In MHN, even after meeting each tier’s goals, individuals continue seeking more, perpetuating desire. Both systems recognize that external achievements or possessions do not create lasting contentment.
The Four Noble Truths, as proclaimed by the Buddha, emphasize the truth of suffering, origin, cessation, and the path leading to the cessation of suffering. According to Buddhism, human suffering, duḥkha, is an inherent part of existence. The cause, samudaya, of suffering is three-fold. The three kinds of suffering are:
- The Suffering of Suffering- this is the natural human characteristics of sickness, discontent, discomfort, and craving, taṇhā. Craving fuels this attachment, but even after achieving the desired goal, desire persists, perpetuating discontentment.
- The Suffering of Change- everything is impermanent and constantly changing. The attachment to impermanent states and things creates suffering. When these attachments are disrupted, the desired state or thing is no longer present, and suffering arises. Suffering can be eliminated once one can genuinely recognize the interconnected impermanence of all things and let go of desire, nirodha.
- The Byproduct of Constant Change- this is the most subtle kind of suffering that includes the mind’s tendency toward negative thoughts and emotions, which perpetuate woes. It is here that one must transform first. When cultivation occurs here, type-1 & type-2 suffering also change.
A distinct methodology was presented by the Buddha to the way leading to the end of suffering, āryāṣṭāṅgamārga, consisting of eight essential points that include, Right View, Right Effort, Mindfulness, and Concentration. The cessation of suffering is due to mental development and meditation. All of which are found directly within the Four Noble Truths.
Both frameworks, Buddhism’s Four Noble Truths, offer profound insights into human motivation, well-being, and spiritual growth. What happens when they meet one another?
The foundation of the Four Noble Truths is the truth of suffering, which teaches that even life’s precious and enjoyable characteristics turn to suffering because life inevitably involves dissatisfaction, unease, and impermanence. Though this may seem daunting, it is an indispensable truth one must acknowledge to be free from one’s own suffering. Both foundations share an inherent understanding of human suffering, desire, and craving.
Buddhism’s second Noble Truth asserts the origin of suffering—the attachment to impermanent states or things. When one achieves their desired goal, desire persists and perpetuates discontentment. Craving is in the driver’s seat here. Likewise, Maslow recognized that after meeting each tier’s goals, people continuously search for more. Case-in-point: once physiological needs are met, individuals seek safety and security, the fundamental need for physical safety—to be protected from harm, and emotional security—predictability and stability. In MHN, safety is the simple securing of basic necessities without excessive fear or anxiety.
Love and belonging come next in MHN. These are integral to human life—to feel connected and accepted. This contributes to emotional well-being, having a supportive network to help cope with life’s challenges, and gaining a sense of identity and purpose. With life’s challenges of loneliness, isolation, and rejection, the fulfillment one attains through this third tier consists of establishing healthy relationships, community involvement, and authentic self-expression. Buddhism’s third Noble Truth emphasizes that a true cessation of suffering and its causes is indeed possible. By understanding the nature of mind and contemplative practice, one can prevent suffering from reoccurring. Here, Buddhism emphasizes understanding dependent origination, while MHN emphasizes interpersonal connection.
While the third Noble Truth offers hope and the possibility of ending suffering, the fourth Noble Truth outlines a methodical way to the end of suffering—the Noble Eightfold Path. Esteem needs and self-actualization represents the pinnacle levels of MHN. These final stages emphasize inner growth, purpose, and realizing one’s full potential. Esteem needs encompass strength, personal acceptance, confidence, and respect from others. This fourth stage aligns with aspects of the Noble Eightfold Path—namely, Right View and Right Intention. The right view contains an understanding of the nature of reality—dependent origination, impermanence, non-self. Right view resonates with esteem needs by recognizing that the self is not fixed but interconnected with all existence. Likewise, the second aspect of the Noble Eightfold Path, Right Intention, comprises of cultivating wholesome intentions while releasing the harmful ones. In turn, self-respect and inner strength are cultivated.
The final state in MHN is realizing one’s intelligent and creative potential through intrinsic motivation. Within the Noble Eightfold Path are three key stages that meet MHN—Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration. Right effort is the striving to overcome harmful tendencies and develop beneficial qualities—akin to self-actualization. Right mindfulness means remembering to be fully present and aware of thoughts, feelings, and actions—a forerunner toward self-actualization. Right concentration cultivates awareness and a deep sense of meditation, which contributes to realizing one’s higher potential. Since Right Concentration refers to one-pointed meditation that leads to insight and liberation, connecting directly to Maslow’s later addition to MHN, transcendence—to go beyond individual concerns.
How does Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs meet Buddhism?
How does MHN meet Buddhism? The ultimate answer seems to rest in the Noble Eightfold Path. While self-actualization involves clearly understanding one’s potential and limitations, the right view emphasizes the four noble truths and the interdependent nature of existence. Self-actualization requires setting wholesome intentions to align one’s actions with meaning and purpose. Right intention involves cultivating intentions that lead to growth and well-being. While self-actualization demands consistent effort and dedication to personal development, right effort encourages the determination to abandon the cankers and cultivate wholesome states. Maslow emphasized the need to be fully present, aware, and mindful of our thoughts, experiences, and emotions. Right mindfulness encourages mindfulness of body, feelings, mind, and mental phenomena. In order to attain self-actualization, one needs concentration, deep focus, and flow. On the path to the cessation of suffering, one finds the right concentration as a necessitating factor—one-pointedness of mind.
Both MHN and the Four Noble Truths emphasize growth, ethical conduct, and transformation. While MHN focuses primarily on physical needs, the Four Noble Truths encompass universal well-being and spiritual awakening. Both views culminate in an invitation to explore one’s inner potential while awakening to more profound truths. As self-awareness, wholesome intention, and the interconnectedness of all beings are realized, so is no self.
Applying Insights to Personal Growth
To truly understand how both schools of thought meet one another, the reader is invited to take the journey within to see and arrive at a realization through direct knowledge. The chart below emphasizes Buddhist practices and their connections to MHN.
References/Resources
Bodhi, B. (2005). Two Paths to Knowledge. Access to Insight.
Germer, C. (2009). The mindful path to self-compassion. New York: The Guilford Press.
Jinpa, T. (2015). A fearless heart. Penguin Publishing Group.
Kaklauskas, F. J., Clements, C. J., Hocoy, D., & Hoffman, L. (2016). Shadows & Light: Theory, Research, and Practice in Transpersonal Psychology (Vol. 1). University Professors Press.
Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370 396.
Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and Personality (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.
Wilber, K. (2001). No boundary: Eastern and Western approaches to personal growth. Shambhala.