Taṇhā: relation to addiction
Taṇhā is sometimes related to the Western psychological concept of addiction.
The Dalai Lama states: Much human suffering stems from destructive emotions, as hatred breeds violence or craving fuels addiction.[22] One of our most basic responsibilities as caring people is to alleviate the human costs of such out-of-control emotions.[23]
Ron Leifer states: Obsessions, compulsions, and addictions are desires out of control, desires gone wild.[24]
Mingyur Rinpoche states: Attachment is in many ways comparable to addiction, a compulsive dependency on external objects or experiences to manufacture an illusion of wholeness. Unfortunately, like other addictions, attachment becomes more intense over time.[25][26]