“Is this “pleasure” also described by the word Assāda, as in Assāda, Ādīnava, Nissarana?”
Yes. That is indeed the critical point.
- Buddha never denied that there are “pleasurable things” in this world. That is why beings are trapped in the rebirth process. They look at only the “immediate gratification” (Assāda) offered by sensory pleasures.
- The “previously unheard teachings of the Buddha” is that those “pleasurable things” have “hidden suffering” (Ādīnava.)
- When one comprehends the Noble Truths/Paticca Samuppada/Tilakkhana, one can see how such Assāda leads to Ādīnava. See “Understanding the Terms in Paṭicca Samuppāda.”
- That is when one becomes a Sotapanna/Sotapanna Anugami and starts striving for Nissarna, which means “stop traveling the rebirth process.”
- There is a series of posts on “Assāda, Ādīnava, Nissarana.”
See, for example, “Baḷisa Sutta (SN 17.2),” where the Buddha compared those who have not comprehended Buddha Dhamma to a fish who only sees the bait as “pleasure.” They do not see the “hidden suffering” in sensory pleasures. Until they see it, they will be trapped in the rebirth process (samsara.)
- In that sutta, the Buddha compared sensory pleasures to “Māra’s hook.”