Question

Why did the Buddha want to overcome suffering?

Answer 1

The basis of Buddhism is a doctrine known as the Four Noble Truths. The First Truth is that all life is suffering, pain, and misery. The Second Truth is that this suffering is caused by selfish craving and personal desire. ... The Fourth Truth is that the way to overcomethis misery is through the Eightfold Path.

Answer 2

that emphasis on the problem of suffering seems very reasonable to me. Buddhism holds that the problem with this world is suffering,

and that suffering can be alleviated by methods somewhat similar to the ones in Kaj_Sotala's post.

(The choice of the word "mindfulness" - was that a coincidence, or a reference to the Buddhist concept of the same name?)

The idea is that suffering results from unfulfilled desires, themselves a product of an uncontrolled mind.

You become upset when the world is This Way, but you want it to be That Way; and even if you try to accept the world-as-it-is, your brain is rebellious. Unpleasant feelings arise, unbidden and unwelcome.