Lobha

Lobha is a term from Pali and Sanskrit that is typically translated as greed, craving, or attachment. In Buddhist ethics and psychology, lobha is one of the three poisons (klesha) that bind beings to samsara, the cycle of birth, suffering, death, and rebirth. It denotes an intense, grasping desire for sense pleasures, material objects, status, or personal gain, often accompanied by clinging and possessiveness.

In Buddhist theory, lobha is a mental factor that arises when contact with objects or experiences triggers craving. Its function is to seize and hold onto what is perceived as desirable, which can lead to unwholesome actions and further suffering for oneself and others. Lobha can range from strong, explicit desire to subtler forms of attachment, including clinging to ideas, routines, or self-image. In the Abhidhamma and early Buddhist teachings, lobha is categorized as an unwholesome root that conditions intention (cetana) and karma.

Lobha manifests in everyday life as longing for wealth, food, sensual pleasure, or social status, and it can also appear as attachment to opinions, rituals, or achievements. It is not necessarily identical to simple preference but denotes an excessive, persistent grasping that obstructs wisdom and freedom.

Overcoming lobha involves ethical restraint, generosity, and the cultivation of detachment. Practices such as sila (disciplined conduct), dana (giving), mindfulness (sati), and meditation (vipassana and samatha) help weaken craving. The path toward reducing lobha is connected with understanding impermanence (anicca), unsatisfactory nature of clinging (dukkha), and non-self (anatta), and with following the Noble Eightfold Path, especially right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration.