How is the exterior suffering? How is the exterior suffering?
In this Sutta series from SN 35.144 it says the following.
Eye etc. and its objects are impermanence, not-self, and suffering.
I understand all except that eye etc and its objects are suffering. For instance, if my eye arises as a result of a physical object, how is the physical object suffering?
https://suttacentral.net/sn35.144/en/sujato
I see that the translation in your link interprets the Pali word dukkha as &quot;suffering&quot;. Other translations have it as &quot;painful&quot; or &quot;stressful&quot; or &quot;unsatisfactory&quot;. Whatever word we use, the point being made about external phenomena is that they are not going to make us happy. The gorgeous potential romantic or sexual partner, the object my eye rests upon, may inspire in me a pleasurable feeling, but that happiness is not going to last. That happiness is not a support for the freedom from suffering that the Buddha is teaching us about.
Because they are notself, because they are impermanent, they cannot provide lasting happiness, though we tend to think they will. Instead, we'll end up discovering the things we see (hear, touch, smell, taste, think of) will disappoint us. They'll change, or disappear, causing us to suffer.