Yes, to see DO is to clearly see where does craving lead us to? Unfortunately, many people see it as their happiness.
But one needs to be careful with this statement, because many people try to let go all desire/craving at once. This is not possible, one needs to progress from courser desires to finer desires, then completely abandon all once all drawbacks have been understood.
Please look at SN 51.15.
… “This being the case, Master Ānanda, the path is endless, not finite. For it’s not possible to give up desire by means of desire.”
“Well then, brahmin, I’ll ask you about this in return, and you can answer as you like. What do you think, brahmin? Have you ever had a desire to walk to the park, but when you arrived at the park, the corresponding desire faded away?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Have you ever had the energy to walk to the park, but when you arrived at the park, the corresponding energy faded away?”
…
“In the same way, take a mendicant who is perfected—with defilements ended, who has completed the spiritual journey, done what had to be done, laid down the burden, achieved their own true goal, utterly ended the fetters of rebirth, and is rightly freed through enlightenment. They formerly had the desire to attain perfection, but when they attained perfection the corresponding desire faded away.
For example, a Stream Enterer abandons the desire to do bad things due to his right view. Hence his desire only lead to happiness in sensual realms (Human and 6 Deva realm). Once, he has abandoned the desire of sensual realms due to understanding of sensual realms drawbacks. Then, his mind will gear toward desire of happy feeling (Pity and Sukha) then he has become Non Returner. Once he has abandoned this finer feeling. He has become perfected (arahant), the whole desires will wear off over time.
There are 2 different kind of desires: desire to get more, and desire to let go.
The normal desire is the desire to get more. The desire to attain perfection is the desire to let go.
If we desire to get more then we will build up our craving, and we want more than what we currently have. If we have 1 then we want 2, if we have 2 then we want 3, and so on. But the number can increase to infinity; therefore, this path is endless.
If we desire to let go then we will lessen our craving, and we will want less than what we currently have. If we have 10 then we want 9, if we have 9 then we want 8, and so on. The number will eventually reach zero. This path will end by itself when it reached zero demand since it has nothing else to let go. It is satisfied and no longer demand anything else.
The reason we want to get more is because we think it will provide happiness, or we think that craving is our happiness.
The desire to attain perfection is not the desire to become anything. Desire to become this or that is the desire to get more than what we currently have. When one reaches “arahant”, one will want to be “Buddha”, once one reaches “Buddha”, one will want to be “Super Buddha”, and so on. However, that is not what “arahant” or “Buddha” is about.
I think you get it.
There is no desires for Selfless one, Awaken one. Buddha is also an Arahant (perfected). They are contented with what they have. Eat to survive only, wear robes to cover private part, have a place to stay to prevent heat and cold, having inward happiness (piti, sukha with jhana). Just wait for their time (i.e. this body to die whenever that is).
But not easy to get there. It is simple to say, but in practice it is hard. 
Hence the sutta/discourse look simple, but they are very deep to fully understand the meaning. Even to understand SN 56.11 is not easy.
One more thing, one who know the pros and cons will let go one by one. When one let go coarser desires, then the finer desires will arise automatically due to the understanding. There is no need to seek new desire, it is already there.
So only each individual knows where there are at. One needs to look inward individually, then one can progress.
For example, if you are working, do you still have desire to get more money? Or are you perfectly fine with the current situation, whatever that is.
How about when you see rich person, do you want to get richer (greed)? How about looking at homeless person what is your thoughts? Etc.
Also how about when you see a beautiful women, do you have desires to have her? Do you perfectly fine with current situation? Etc.
How about lying? Do you lie when you dont know something even a white lie?
So the teaching of Buddha is practical, it is 24 hours practice. It is like using the dhamma as a mirror to reflect day in and day out.
This is the starting of mind proliferation. Then one will suffer more instead, because they can’t get what they want. Hence this is what Buddha called dukkha (suffering). Moving a goal post will never reach happiness.
So start reflecting from bottom to top (Tanha to Avijja), instead of looking from top to bottom (avijja to tanha).
What coarser cravings/desires that you have that you can let go? Maybe from the morality first (kill, steal, lie, sexual misconduct).
Hope this help.
I think you also get it. One by one, with dispassion, one will relinquish then eventually one will reach cessation. That is the wisdom’s path.
Specific conditionality (Idappaccayatā) – continue
Why DO links are called specific conditionality?
First I will try to make some simple examples:
With milk as a condition, curd arises (Without milk, we cannot make curd).
However, when all milk have turned into curd, milk ceased but curd does not cease.
In this case, if the condition ceased (no more supply of milk), curd does not cease. This is normal conditionality.
Now with this example:
With the candle’s flame as condition, candle’s light arises. (Without candle’s flame, we do not have candle’s light)
Now, when the candle’s flame ceased, candle’s light ceased.
In this case, when candle’s flame ceased, candle’s light also ceased at the same time. In other word, when the condition ceased, the effect ceased. This is specific conditionality in DO. It is that specific condition that always causes the effect.
Look at the links in DO:
Birth → Aging-and-death:
With birth as a condition, there is death (If a being is born, that being cannot avoid death).
When there is no birth then there is no death (We cannot discern the death of the being if the being is not born).
Death may require different combination of conditions from birth, accident, sickness, old age…However, only birth is the condition that always relates to death. Accident is also a condition for death, but it is not always the cause of death. Obviously, not everybody dies because of accident or old age. Therefore, birth is called the specific conditionality of death. This stability of dependent origination is that special feature of birth as the condition for death:
“Thus, bhikkhus, the actuality in this, the inerrancy, the nototherwiseness, specific conditionality: this is called dependent origination. (SN12.20)
Consciousness → Name-and-form:
With consciousness as a condition, name-and-form arises.
With the cessation of consciousness, cessation of name-and-form.
Because DO link is a specific conditionality, when a DO’s condition ceased, its effect must cease at the same time. That means, if consciousness ceased, name-and-form must cease at the same time. However, many of the current interpretations of name-and-form are about mind-and-body or a being. Therefore, they have trouble explaining the state of a living arahant or a living Buddha. If name-and-form is mind-and-body or a being, and rupa is the physical body of the being, then when consciousness ceased (because ignorance ceased → volitional formations ceased), mind-and-body must cease or the physical body must cease. However, we all know that the mind and body of the Buddha did not cease after his enlightenment.
One can argue that the mind and body do not belong to the Buddha, he no longer takes them as his body and his mind. However, that physical body arises from ignorance by DO in this understanding of namarupa; therefore, with the cessation of ignorance, that physical body must cease at the same time if we take rupa as the being’s body. The rupa that must cease is that physical body, not the relation between the being and the physical body. That’s why we said “whatever is of a nature to arise is all of a nature to pass away”. Because of this dilemma, some people may argue that dependent cessation only applies for the arahant after his final death, so they can make sense the cessation of the body of the being. However, we all know that consciousness is on and off all the time. By this understanding, the body arises and ceases all the time; therefore, it must partially ceased, not completely ceased… However, all of these explanations are wild speculations.
Moreover, some people failed to recognize the importance of the definition of nama in namarupa. The three importance components in nama are intention, attention and contact. They are there for a reason. In the Chinese’s version, the composers obviously tried to force nama as a completed mind with consciousness by defining nama as feeling, perception, saṃskāra and consciousness so it can go with the rupa or the body to form a completed being. This has created many wild interpretations of DO.
According to DO, if there is birth then aging-and-death must follow. There is no escape from this process. This is “the actuality in this, the inerrancy, the nototherwiseness, specific conditionality”. It may not happen right away, but it must happen.
If we can undo birth before the arriving of aging-and-death, then aging-and-death will not come, and we can escape this process. However, after being born, we cannot undo that. Therefore, everybody including arahants and the Buddha must experience that physical aging-and-death. One can argue that the arahants and the Buddha do not experience aging-and-death because there is nobody there to do so. However, that physical aging-and-death must come because of the physical birth as its condition. This is the inerrancy, the nototherwiseness law.
Since we are physically born, we will need to deal with it. There is no escape from physically aging-and-death in this lifetime. However, this birth can be the last or one of the infinity.
Since we cannot undo the current birth, the only way to escape the cycle of birth → aging-and-death is to prevent the future birth. To prevent the future birth, we need to end its condition that is to end bhava. If we can end it in this lifetime, then we can know for sure that this current birth is the last.
In DO, aging-and-death is not a condition for birth. Bhava is its condition. Similar to birth → aging-and-death, the process of bhava → birth may not happen right away. However, birth must happen if bhava does not cease. There is no exception.
Since aging-and-death is not a DO condition for birth, we cannot say for sure that birth must happen after aging-and-death. In other words, we cannot say with aging-and-death as condition, birth arise.
If aging-and-death must immediately be followed by birth then there is no escape from birth. One can argue that the exception is for arahants and the Buddha. However, if this is the case then it is not from DO since DO is the nototherwiseness law.
Let’s look at birth again. Birth (jāti) is defined in DO as:
“The birth of the various beings into the various orders of beings, their being born, descent into the womb, production, the manifestation of the aggregates, the obtaining of the sense bases. This is called birth (SN12.2)”
To my understanding, this is a new physical birth. We can see in its definition a sense of a new being, a baby at its starting point, the changing of the baby’s form, the appearance of the baby’s senses, the womb. In other word, this has a sense of something new at its starting point. Therefore, I think it does not include spontaneous birth here because spontaneous birth does not indicate a new being at its starting point, but it is a continuing of the previous being in different dimension or realm. However, this is a debatable topic. It depends on how do we understand jāti.
Sorry this is inaccurate assumption. I think the concept has beyond your mind understanding. When mind is still under influence of feeling (block by hindrances), one can’t grasp the whole Buddha teaching.
One needs to have right view first before can proceed further.
As I do not know what you understood, I guess that you may think the Buddha does not experience his aging and death because he does not take that physical body as his body. Therefore, he does not experience what happens to that body. With this logic, the Buddha does not know if the body is in pain or not, or he knows the body is in pain, but he does not experience the pain. However, if he does not experience the pain then how can he know the body is in pain?
To my understanding, the Buddha knows what happens to the body even if he does not take it as his body. When the body is in pain, he knows that, and he mindfully endures it without any trouble with his mind detached from it. When the body needs resting, he knows that and he let it rest. He still experiences what happens to it.
DO process is a fixed law. With birth as condition, aging-and-death. There is no exception. The Buddha was born, aging-and-death must come. However, this is the last for him.
With birth as condition, aging-and-death comes to be’: whether there is an arising of Tathagatas or no arising of Tathagatas, that element still persists, the stableness of the Dhamma, the fixed course of the Dhamma, specific conditionality. (SN12.20)
It is better if you can explain your logic. If I am wrong then I will correct my understanding.
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I think you are right here that the Buddhas still experience pain, they still have to experience suffering due to past kamma but another view is the pain is not painful due to their past good kamma, good kamma can dilute bad kamma for example you are destined to experience the hot ray of sun, your good kamma could help you by the availability of umbrella in your hand at that time
an arahant don’t need to do anything they just wait until all their kamma go away at that time they attain parinibbana
but @Joe.C view can be right too as arahants don’t have attachment they don’t view that pain as theirs in the first place, since they view this pain as others they are painless they have no pain,
sn35.80
they see all signs as other. They see the eye, sights, eye consciousness, and eye contact as other. And they also see the pleasant, painful, or neutral feeling that arises conditioned by eye contact as other. …
They see the mind, thoughts, mind consciousness, and mind contact as other. And they also see the pleasant, painful, or neutral feeling that arises conditioned by mind contact as other. That’s how a mendicant knows and sees so as to give up ignorance and give rise to knowledge.”
acquisition is the root suffering
But let me ask you this.
If one has realized anatta, then they understand the complete DO about how dukkha arises and how dukkha ceases. Then, is there any who/what experiencing dukkha? I hope not.
If one ask who is experiencing birth, old age, and death? Buddha will said this is wrong question to ask. One should said dukkha arise due to conditions and cease due to conditions.
To fully understand, one needs to stop the asava with samadhi (samma sati/samma samadhi/samma vayama) on their daily life.
Buddha or arahant never born, die, age. Hence Nibbana is here and now. Nibbana is not the place that one go after death. So No need to wait till end of life. End of life is just end of the being body/khandhas for Buddha/arahant.
Refer to SN 22.1, For body pain and mental pain.
Most people right away said all existence/experience is suffering. But this is not how Buddha described in Sutta. Unless one has reached arahant which has fully understood the whole tanha (craving). Then it is just a speculation by people. There is no direct experience/practical experience on their part. Their mind hasn’t experience sensual realm, form realm and arupa realm. They don’t know the whole drawback of all these worlds.
But buddha taught these, the noble devotees can experience these even in this human world. If one has experienced these, and know the drawback. Then, they should say all experience is anatta.( Sabbe dhamma anatta)
Teaching of Buddha is direct experience and practical, not just speculate or by reading or by contemplate or by logic.
Hence one needs to stop asava(defilements) to have direct/practical experience and continue to maintain the sati/samadhi through out the daily life. You can see this mentioned in MN 117 great forty and other suttas as well.
In summary, don’t mix mundane view with supermundane teaching. Then, one can surely confused even more and lead to wrong path.
Hope this writing will clarify.
The arahant does not see pain as his pain other’s pain. He sees pain arises and pain ceases, and he knows how bad it is. However, that is still an experience. Without experience, one cannot know the arising and the ceasing of pain. The arahant does not experience mental pain, but he experiences the bodily pain.
One may think that a being cannot be found; therefore, nobody experiences anything. A being is a mere concept; therefore, nobody experiences pain. If this is the case, then we do not need painkiller pills. Since a being cannot be found, one can kill and steal as much as one likes, and nobody will be responsible for that.
Here are some examples:
The Buddha experiences the soreness of the back (MN53)
Then he addressed Venerable Ānanda, “Ānanda, speak about the practicing trainee to the Sakyans of Kapilavatthu as you feel inspired. My back is sore, I’ll stretch it.”
The Buddha experiences the sickness of the body (SN46.16)
On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rajagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. Now on that occasion the Blessed One was sick, afflicted, gravely ill.
Venerable Kassapa experiences painful feelings (SN46.14)
I hope you are bearing up, Kassapa, I hope you are getting better. I hope that your painful feelings are subsiding and not increasing, and that their subsiding, not their increase, is to be discerned.”
“Venerable sir, I am not bearing up, I am not getting better. Strong painful feelings are increasing in me, not subsiding, and their increase, not their subsiding, is to be discerned.”
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I have explained some of these points above.
This depends on how do you understand anatta. When we say the Buddha experiences the pain, it is the conventional way to address the event. There is no other way to do so.
In your logic, there is no Buddha or person to experience anything. Therefore, the one who taught the Dhamma to the monks does not exist. Who discovered the Dhamma for us?
This is wrong question to ask because it implied the person is the cause of the dependently arisen phenomena. The cause of a dependently arisen phenomena is another dependently arisen phenomena. However, this does not mean that there is nobody experiencing anything. If so, nobody needs to worry about dukkha. I think this is a misunderstanding of the sutta.
Can you quote what existence/experience is not suffering? Are they permanent?
Yes, I can see people mixed up these. This is from the misunderstanding of anatta.
Sorry can’t help further. May you gain the path knowledge in future. Please know the conditions for right view to arise.
I leave you with this DN 9.
I teach the Dhamma for the giving up of these three kinds of existence: ‘When you practice accordingly, corrupting qualities will be given up in you and cleansing qualities will grow. You’ll enter and remain in the fullness and abundance of wisdom, having realized it with your own insight in this very life.’
Poṭṭhapāda, you might think: ‘Corrupting qualities will be given up and cleansing qualities will grow. One will enter and remain in the fullness and abundance of wisdom, having realized it with one’s own insight in this very life. But such a life is suffering.’
But you should not see it like this. Corrupting qualities will be given up and cleansing qualities will grow. One will enter and remain in the fullness and abundance of wisdom, having realized it with one’s own insight in this very life. And there will be only joy and happiness, tranquility, mindfulness and awareness. Such a life is blissful.
As long as one’s present moment is always blissful and joy, one is close to Nibbana. If the present moment is not happy and suffering, then one is not close to Nibbana.
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Thanks for your help. The one who has right view always keeps right speech.
I found a sutta supports this. SN3.3
“Great king, for someone who has been reborn, there’s no exemption from old age and death…"
Even for mendicants who are perfected—who have ended the defilements, completed the spiritual journey, done what had to be done, laid down the burden, achieved their own goal, utterly ended the fetters of rebirth, and are rightly freed through enlightenment—their bodies are liable to break up and be laid to rest.
This was my first time reading a analysis in my whole Buddha Dharma Path. Thank you. 
Wonderful you did this. Very interesting
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Thanks.
Birth also refers to something what happens in real time. If the mind grasps certain arising emotions or tendencies and we consciousless feed it, we develop a certain mentallity and take birth in that mentallity or temporary existence. This is described in Abhidhamma according a teacher.
In this way all the realms in samsara can be experiences here and now, in this life. In jhana one experiences the deva state. When one has a very agonized mentallity, teared apart from hunger, in great need and mental distress, one experiences the state of a peta. Etc. The Buddha saw there is a correspondance between below and above, inner and outer world, small and large scale.
It is because one knows for oneself that one does not take birth in real time in this live anymore,–i.e there is no grasping, no Me and mine-making anymore–, that one also knows there can be no grasping a new existence after death. Why? Because at that death-moment anything that would arise, not grasped at, will grow cold. It will just vanish. The same in this life. Things that arise but are not grasped at, grow cold. Like a spark in the air. it grows cold.
I belief this is the knowledge of vimutti. It arises from the direct knowledge there is no birth in this live anymore for you personally, no grasping at formations, no Me and mine-making. Ofcourse this may be not something temporarily.
No birth in this life means no re-birth at death. It is the same proces. Without grasping there is no birth in this life. And if there is no grasping and birth in real time in this life, then also not in the death-moment. Anything which arises at that moment will grow cold.
But has one now go out like a flame? Does there remain something? I think there must be according the sutta’s, because otherwise the Buddha would teach that a fully enlightend arahant and Buddha do not exist anymore after death. That he does not.
Anyway, I do not belief that what remains is a personal eternal self.
I think we can find a clue in MN25 if we can understand the sutta.
At the end, “self” is already completely cut off regardless of what it is. Therefore, whatever remaining is indescribable if it cannot be compared or be related to anything.
are you willing to share your understanding?