Buddhist Hour
Script No. 426
Broadcast live on 3MDR 97.1 FM
11.00 pm to 12 midnight.
On
Friday 5 May 2006 CE 2549 Buddhist Era

This script is entitled:
"Applying the Buddha's Teachings to Everyday Life"
Part 4 - Right Speech

Tonight we will talk about the third factor of the Noble Eightfold Path; Right Speech (samma vaca). It together with Right Action and Right Livelihood are the factors of the Buddhist Path which develop virtue or sila in Pali.

Using the simile of the bow and arrow we have seen that Right Understanding allows us to put the bow and arrow in the correct position so that what follows is the arrow flying to hit the target. If we have Right Understanding we recognise what our situation is, and what method we need to practice to reduce and eventually to remove our suffering.

The goal of Buddhist practice for both monks and laypersons is Nibbana or Nirvana in the Sanskrit language – the state of no craving and no mental pain.

Right Thought follows from Right Understanding. "This factor is sometimes known as ‘Right Resolution’, ‘Right Aspirations’ and ‘Right Ideas’. It refers to the mental state that eliminates wrong ideas or notions ….. and serves a double purpose of eliminating unwholesome thoughts and developing pure thought". (Dhammananda)

From Right Thought can follow Right Speech and Right Action because thought precedes activity and speech.

Before we go on to examine Right Speech we need to look at these terms ‘unwholesome’ and ‘wholesome’ thoughts which we have been referring to in this course to find out how we can recognise whether our thoughts are unwholesome or wholesome.

From the Buddhist Canon which is called the Tripitaka in the section "Kindred Sayings" (Vol. 1 Ch. 111, Par 3) we read that King Pasenadi asked the Buddha:

"How many kinds of things, Lord, that happen in the world, makes for trouble, for suffering, for distress?"

The Buddha answered:

"Three things sire, happen of that nature. What are the three? Greed, hate, and delusion - these things make for trouble, for suffering, for distress."

The Buddhist texts explain how these three factors appear on our mind. It is explained that there are fourteen different forms that greed, hate and ignorance that manifest in our minds as mental states or mental objects.

These fourteen are referred to as unwholesome because the outcome of these are all the sufferings we have ever experienced in all our lives. The unwholesome mental objects are creating all our unpleasant mental experience.

The list below is the fourteen unwholesome mental consciousnesses (cetasikas). Following that we have also listed the wholesome consciousnesses; the ones that lead to happiness. Interestingly there are twenty five wholesome mental states we can develop.

Unwholesome mental consciousness.

1. Ignorance (moha)
2. lack of moral shame (ahirika)
3. lack of fear of unwholesomeness (anottappa)
4. restlessness (uddhacca)
5. attachment (lobha)
6. wrong view (ditthi)
7. conceit (mana)
8. aversion (dosa)
9. envy (issa)
10. stinginess (macchariya)
11. regret (kukkucca)
12. sloth (thina)
13. torpor (middha)
14. doubt (vicikiccha)

These are the mind equivalents of the periodic table of elements for matter when examined from a scientific viewpoint. So far these fourteen are only the unwholesome ‘elements’ but the full list of cetasikas which totals fifty two are the actual mental factors which we experience in our mind.

It is the task of Buddhist practitioners to recognise these mental factors operating in our consciousness from moment to moment by knowing ‘on sight’ whether the ones arising are wholesome or unwholesome. With that knowledge then we can decide what to do with them; either cultivate them if they are wholesome or reduce them if they are unwholesome.

The twenty five wholesome consciousness are:

1. Confidence (saddha)
2. mindfulness (sati)
3. moral shame (hiri)
4. fear of unwholesomeness (ottappa)
5. disinterestedness (alobha)
6. amity (adosa)
7. equanimity (tatramajjhattata)
8. composure of mental states (kayapassadhi)
9. composure of mind (citta kayapassadhi)
10. lightness of mental states (kaya-lahuta)
11. lightness of mind (citta-lahuta)
12. pliancy of mental states (kaya-muduta)
13. Pliancy of mind (citta-muduta)
14. adaptability of mental states (kaya-kammannata)
15.adaptability of mind (citta-kammannata)
16. proficiency of mental states (kaya-pagunnata)
17. proficiency of mind (citta-pagunnata)
18. rectitude of mental states (kaya-ujukata)
19. rectitude of mind (citta-ujukata)
20 right speech (samma vaca)
21 right action (samma kammanta)
22 right livelihood (samma ajiva)
23 compassion (karuna)
24 sympathetic joy (mudita)
25 wisdom (panna)

There are many stories in the Buddhist Canon of how the Buddha practiced in his former lives to make the causes to become a Buddha. The stories also demonstrate how strongly he cultivated his wholesome minds without falling back to the unwholesome minds no matter what the circumstances were. They are an excellent example to us.

In the Jataka Tales from the Tripitaka the Buddha told his disciples of one of his former lives when he was practicing patience and forbearance as a Bodhisattva. In that story the evil king Kalabu of Kasi confronted the Bodhisattva, who was then an aesthetic, and asked: "What do you recluse, teach"? The Bodhisattva replied: "I teach forbearance, Sir."

"What is this forbearance?"

"It is being without anger when people curse or strike or revile you."

The king, saying: "Now I will see the reality of your forbearance" summoned and ordered his executioner to flog the Bodhisattva. The executioner flogged the Bodhisattva until his skin was split and the blood flowed forth. Again the king asked the Bodhisattva : "What do you, monk teach?".

The Bodhisattva replied: "I teach forbearance, Sir, but you think my forbearance

is only skin deep. My forbearance is not skin deep, but it could not be seen by you, for my forbearance, Sir, is rooted firmly within my heart."

The king, who was then angry with the Bodhisattva because of jealousy over attention paid to the latter by some palace women, ordered the executioner to chop off the Bodhisattva’s hands and feet. The executioner did so and the Bodhisattva bled profusely.

Again the King taunted the Bodhisattva: "What do you teach?"

"I teach forbearance, sir. But you think forbearance is in my hands and feet. Forbearance is not there, it is firmly rooted in a deep place within me."

The King ordered: "Cut off his ears and nose." The executioner complied. The Bodhisattva's whole body was covered with blood. When questioned again by the King, the Bodhisattva replied: "I teach forbearance, sir. But don't think my forbearance resides in my ears and nose. Forbearance is firmly rooted in a deep place within my heart."

The King saying, "You can sit down and extol your forbearance", kicked the Bodhisattva over the heart and walked off.

The Commander in Chief of the army, who was at the scene at that time, wiped the blood from the Bodhisattva's body, bandaged the ends of his hands and feet, ears and nose, and begged forgiveness. "Oh aesthetic, if you would be angry, be angry with the King and not with the Kingdom."

The Bodhisattva replied that he bore no anger towards anyone, not even towards the King who had mutilated him. Nay he even wished: "Long live the King, ones like me do not get angry." The Bodhisattva died that day, while the King, it was said, was swallowed up by the Earth for his heinous deed and was reborn in avici, the Great Hell. (Visuddhacara)

Now we move onto Right Speech. After Right Thought in the Buddha's Eightfold path of training comes Right Speech.

Right Speech is one of the three factors of moral conduct in the Eightfold Path. "Right Speech involves respect for truth and respect for the welfare of others. It means to avoid lying, to avoid back bitting or slander, to avoid harsh speech (angry speech), and to avoid idle talk". (Upsaka U Nu). Right Speech includes no divisive speech and no flattery.

"We have often underestimated the power of speech and tend to use little control over our speech faculty. But we have all been hurt by someone's words at some time of our life, and similarly we have been encouraged by the words of another. It is said that a harsh word can wound more deeply than weapons, whereas a gentle word can change the heart and mind of the most hardened criminal. So to develop a harmonious society, we should control, cultivate and use our speech positively. We speak words which are truthful, bring harmony, kind and meaningful. The Buddha once said, 'pleasant speech is sweet as honey, truthful speech is beautiful like a flower, and wrong speech is unwholesome like filth’." (Hsing Yun)

The following is taken from the article 'The Five Precepts - Panca Sila’ by Maha Upsaka U Nu, published in "The Young Buddhist 1982", the annual journal of the Singapore Buddha-Yana Organisation (SBYO).

"The beneficial results of refraining from speaking falsehood: The person who vigilantly and steadfastly observes this Musavada Precept reaches the World of Devas on his death. When he expires in the world of Devas, and is reborn in the world of human beings, he is endorsed with the following qualities:"

"l. having an open-hearted and radiant appearance;
2. having sweet and faultless speech;
|3. having even and white teeth;
4. being not too fat;
5. being not too thin;
6. being not too short;
7. being not too tall;
8. having a body that is pleasant to the touch;
9. having a fragrant mouth like the sweet smell of a lotus;
10. being listened to with regard and esteem by others;
11. having a significant and impressive way of expression;
12. having a soft, thin, red tongue like a lotus petal;
13. being free from disappointment or failure;
14. being free from shocks and alarms."

To keep the precept of refraining from lying is fundamental to learning and developing good understanding.

Through Buddhist practice we wish to be able to understand the truth of the way things are. The act of lying is an act of distorting the truth or distorting the reality in a way which suits the person lying. The act of distorting the truth creates kamma for the person lying so that in the future they will find it more difficult to receive the truth in their own minds.

Either people lie to them, or they get poor information about things they wish to know, or if they are told the correct information they will tend to not believe it, discount it or mistake what they heard. Even in a worldly sense it is important to find out the truth about things.

It is a common occurrence to find that a person has believed you said something; but it wasn’t what you actually said. Quite frequently we find out we have acted on some incorrect information about something and so we have wasted a lot of time, or bought something we didn’t need, or went somewhere to meet someone and got the time or place wrong. And so on. It happens to us regularly. These types of examples of mis-information we get in our minds are caused by giving out mis-information or lying to others in the past.

For a Buddhist who is trying to understand the truth and intending to create good causes for learning and clearly comprehending it is a necessity to keep the precept to not lie.

We use our speech in Buddhist practice to make good causes that help us develop our wholesome minds and to create causes to learn the Buddhist Teachings or the Dhamma again and again in the future.

You have heard us chanting before the commencement of each evening class the Vandana for Buddha, the Five Precepts and the Refuge in Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha. These are examples of how we use speech in Buddhist practice to make good causes, good kamma.

There are practices in Buddhism based on chanting which are designed to help us develop and improve our well being in many ways. Some chanting is done to create improved health, some to increase our long life, some to increase our wisdom, or compassion, or to improve the development of our loving kindness to others.

Master Hsing Yun writes:

"Guard against the four verbal transgressions,
Frequently use encouraging speech,
Honestly admit your own mistakes,
And in these ways you will attain the Supreme voice."

One word can save a country and one word can destroy a nation. Words are very powerful. Words can be used to bring great harm to others or to bring benefit to them. The mind controls the mouth, but the mouth often seems to be able to talk by itself without forethought or any consideration for the consequences of what it says. The reason for this is language is so close to us-it is such an important part of minds-that it often becomes animated seemingly without our consent. This is why the Buddha constantly exhorted his followers to watch what they say. It is too easy to say the wrong thing.

The Sutra Concerning Four Kinds of Self-Harming says:

"In the light of truth, contemplate the tumbling and roiling of this world; observe that all of it comes from arguing over unimportant matters. Calamity issues from the mouth, causing a thousand sins and a myriad of transgressions which bind us firmly to this realm."

Wise practitioners are careful about what they say and they take the Buddha very seriously when he says to completely avoid the four transgressions of the mouth: lying, duplicity, harsh speech, and idle speech. Nothing good will ever come of them.

The Sutra on Distinguishing the Origins of Good and Evil says:

"In this world, no one should harm another through lying, duplicity, harsh speech, or idle speech. If one does not commit these transgressions, one will attain five good results. What are these five results?"

"These results are

1) one's words will always be believed,
2) one will be loved by others,
3) one's breath will be fragrant,
4) one will be reborn in heaven and be respected by all,
5) when one is reborn again in the human realm, one will get along well with others and others will not be inclined to speak harshly of one."

Lying is particularly reprehensible because lying is a deliberate attempt to increase delusion. Most people already are completely lost in delusion; to deliberately add to the problem is to turn away from the bodhisattva way and from the infinite compassion which inspires it. Lying is very damaging because it ruins trust and it causes honest people to doubt their own intuitions. The Buddha called lying one of the ten evil deeds, and he made it the subject of one of his five basic precepts.

Duplicity means to speak with a forked tongue. When we are duplicitous, we say one thing to this person and another thing to that person. If our intention in doing this is to create disharmony or confusion, we have committed a serious offense. Duplicity also means to pretend to have certain feelings while acting on the promptings of other, concealed feelings. When we deceive another person emotionally, we have committed a great offense against them.

A common form of duplicity is flattery. Flattery is always engaged in for ulterior reasons. Flattery is a form of trickery used to get someone to do something or give something they would not otherwise do or give. Whenever we smile falsely or use flattery to create false feelings among people, we are guilty of an offense against truth. Actions like these damage the natural trust that should prevail among groups of people.

Harsh speech does not simply mean loud or forceful speech. Harsh speech is speech that hurts another person. Sometimes harsh speech can be conveyed through the subtlest tones of derision. Sometimes even rough words may not actually be harsh. If we are mindful, we should know when our words are intended to cause pain.

The Introduction to the Stages of the Dharma Realm says, "Evil words intended to bring suffering to another is what is meant by harsh speech."

The Satyasiddhi Shastra says that idle speech may be defined as any one of the following: untruthful speech, truthful speech that has been spoken at the wrong time, truthful speech that leads to someone's suffering, truthful speech that has no beginning or end, truthful speech that is disorganized or presented in an unreasonable manner.

The Yogacarabhumi Shastra says that idle speech can be defined as any one of the following: false speech, ill-timed speech, speech without significance, speech employing inaccurate terms, thought-less speech, raucous speech, disorganized speech, pointless speech, speech with no larger meaning, speech that contradicts the Dharma.

Idle speech gives no value to others. It is a waste of time to listen to it. One who frequently engages in idle speech is in danger of creating senseless attachments to this world of delusion. Rambling or creative speech that has some higher goal in mind, of course, is not a form of idle speech.

"If you want to achieve true contemplation,
Contemplate only name and form.
If you want to achieve true realisation,
Realise only name and form.
Though you may choose to be ignorant,
And waste all of your time in thought,
Discriminating among myriad phenomena,
Still you will find nothing at all
That reaches beyond name and form."

-from the Mahaprajnaparamita Shastra" (Hsing Yun)

May your speech be soft, pleasing to the ear, meaningful to behold, inspiring others toward virtue, a light which dispels the sadness and confusion of others.

May you develop wholesome and pure thoughts that lead you to Nibbana.

May you be well and happy.

May all beings be well and happy.

This script was prepared and edited by Julian Bamford, Anita Carter, Frank Carter, Alec Sloman.

References

K Sri Dhammananda.1999. What Buddhists Believe. Publication of the Yayasan Belia Buddhist Malaysia. 129 Jlan Seang Tek, 10400 Pulau Pinang. 10 third Edition. p 81

Bhikkhu Visuddhacara. 1998. Curbing Anger, Spreading Love. Published by Sukhi Hotu Dhamma Book and Gift House. 42 – V, Jalan Matang Kuching, 11500 Air Itam, Penang, Malaysia. p 17 - 18.

Maha Upsaka U Nu. 1982. The Five Precepts - Panca Sila. Published in "The Young Buddhist 1982", the annual journal of the Singapore Buddha-Yana Organisation (SBYO)

Venerable Master Hsing Yun. 1998. Being Good; Buddhist Ethics for Everyday Life. Translated by Tom Graham. Published by Weatherhill Inc. 568 Broadway, Suite 705, New York, NY 10012.

Word count: 3,458

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