Buddhist Hour
Script No. 427
Broadcast live on 3MDR 97.1 FM
11.00 pm to 12 midnight.
On
Friday 12 May 2006 CE 2549 Buddhist Era

This script is entitled:
Applying the Buddha's Teachings to Everyday Life
Part 5 - Right Action

We now continue with our series Applying the Buddha's Teachings to Everyday Life with Class No. 5 presented on 6 December 2005 at the Dandenong Ranges Community Cultural Centre, Upwey.

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

We have seen that the Buddhist Path can be expressed in eight divisions. Venerable Narada Thera writes:

"To eradicate one mighty force (craving) eight powerful factors have to be developed. All these eight factors are purely mental. Eight powerful good forces are summoned to attack one latent evil force." (Narada 1991)

Using the simile of the bow and arrow we have seen that the first of the eight factors 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. Venerable K. Sri. Dhammananda says:

"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 1999)

We have examined the list of 25 wholesome types of consciousness and 14 unwholesome types of consciousness to start being able to recognise them arising in our own minds.

We saw from the example of the Buddha in a previous life when a king ordered for him to be mutilated with a sword that even in such conditions the Bodhisattva did not abandon the wholesome minds and become angry.

Venerable Piyadassi comments that:

"From Right Thought follows Right Action because if a person knows that volitional actions bring results they will avoid those actions which will rebound upon oneself and bring pain and suffering." (Piyadassi 1991)

Right Action has two aspects. One is on the restraint side - to stop doing actions the outcome of which cause harm to oneself or others now or in the future, the other is on the cultivation side - to do actions which cultivate good in oneself and are for the benefit of self or others.

If we look at restraint first; the effort of a Buddhist practitioner is to restrain the unwholesome minds in all their variations from arising.

Venerable Nyanaponika elaborates:

"Morality restrains the defilements in their coarsest form, their outflow in unwholesome actions; concentration removes their more refined manifestations as distractive and restless thoughts; and wisdom eradicates their subtle latent tendencies..." (Nyanaponika 1986)

All beings fear death
and they all fear the pain of a club.
Think: How do they make you feel?
Then do not kill and do not club;
live peacefully with all beings and
do not add to the violence of this world.
Harm no one here
and you will pass your next life in peace.

Bhante Henepola Gunuratana further explains the precept of no killing:

"The Buddha defined killing very specifically as the act of purposely taking life. In the rules set down for monks, the Buddha further clarifies the conditions necessary for an act of killing:"

"There must be a being;
You must know that there is a being;
You must intend to kill;
You must plan to use a method to kill a being;
You must kill the being, using only the planned method."

"Meat eaters do not fulfil any of these conditions. They know that what they are eating is meat and that the meat came from some animal. Yet they had no intension of killing the animal, nor did they participate in killing it." (Gunaratana)

Venerable Piyadassi adds:

"Right action entails respect for life, respect for property, and respect for personal relationships. It corresponds to the first three of the Five Precepts to be practiced by every Buddhist, that is, abstinence from killing, stealing and sexual misconduct. Life is dear to all, and all tremble at punishment, all fear death and value life. Hence, we should abstain from taking a life which we ourselves cannot give and we should not harm other sentient beings. Respect for property means that we should not take what is not given, by stealing, cheating, or force. Respect for personal relationships means that we should not commit adultery and avoid sexual misconduct, which is important for maintaining the love and trust of those we love as well as making our society a better place to live in." (Piyadassi 1991)

No Stealing

Regarding the second precept, to abstain from stealing, Venerable Gunaratana sates that "Stealing is an expression of our greed and envy." (Gunaratana 2001)

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

"The beneficial results of refraining from taking another person's property: The person who vigilantly and steadfastly observes the precept of refraining from taking another person's property 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 endowed with the following qualities:"

"1. having great possessions;
2. having untold wealth and riches;
3. having wealth that does not deteriorate;
4. being able to obtain quickly any possessions desired;
5. having riches that cannot be taken away or destroyed by inimical elements;
6. having noble wealth and position;
7. being chief or leader everywhere;
8. not experiencing any lack or unavailability of anything;
9. having a peaceful, unperturbed life." (U Nu 1982)

Not Engaging in Sexual Misconduct

The Buddha's words usually translated as abstaining from sexual misconduct actually apply to more than just sexual behaviour. The words that he used literally mean that one should abstain from abuse of the senses. Sexual misconduct is one particularly damaging form of sensual abuse.

The problem is that lust cannot be eased by fulfilling it physically. Doing so is like scratching a poison ivy rash.

The Buddha used a powerful metaphor to illustrate the common mistakes people make in thinking about sexuality. In his day, lepers could be seen gathered around fires, burning their wounds. Their disease gave them the most unbearable itching. Applying fire to their sores gave them some relief. But the fire did not heal their wounds or cure their disease. Instead, they burned themselves. Once the feeling of temporary ease left them, the sores swelled and festered from the burns. The poor sufferers were left with even more discomfort and itching than before. So, the lepers went back to the fire and burned themselves again. People do the same thing when they seek relief from their lust, the Buddha said. When they go to the fire of sexual indulgence, they get a temporary sense of release from the pain and dissatisfaction of their sexual desire. But there is no healing power in indulgence. They only burn themselves. Then how much more maddening is the craving, the itching?

Now imagining, the Buddha continued, that a great physician comes along and brings healing medicine to the leper. The leper applies the medicine and is fully cured. Now what does the leper think of the fire? No power on earth can make him want to burn himself again. His former companions call to him to join them around the fire and to burn himself again. The healed leper remembers what that was like - the insanity of the craving and the short-lived release of the fire. Nothing can make him go back to it. He feels compassion for his former companions and for his own previous suffering.

The Buddha often referred to himself as a physician and to his teaching, the Dhamma, as medicine. He is quoted as saying:

"Of all the medicines in the world,
Manifold and various,
There is none like the medicine of Dhamma.
Therefore, O monks, drink of this."

"Having drunk this dhamma medicine,
You will be ageless and beyond death.
Having developed and seen the truth,
You will be quenched, free from craving." (Gunaratana 2001)

The second aspect of Right action is to do actions which cultivate good in oneself and are for the benefit of self or others. You can see that many of these good actions are the cultivation of the positive or counter side of the three precepts we have just examined.

Instead of stealing from others we practice giving to others. This is to cultivate generosity as the antidote of greed. Instead of sexual misconduct we cultivate building good harmonious relationships with others and reducing our sensual desires. Instead of killing we practice harmlessness and loving kindness towards others.

Many Buddhists practice activities from time to time, which promote and support the life of others through, for example, saving small animals from dying, or freeing caged animals or fish, or providing funds to support orphans. The Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd has been raising money for an orphanage in Bangladesh for about 20 years. The Dhammarajika Orphanage houses up to 500 children and in the next day or so we will transfer over a thousand dollars to them. One thousand dollars in Bangladesh is a substantial sum and can generate a lot of resources.

If our cultivation of good actions is thorough and sustained eventually they become habitual. When we practice in this way our future behavior, even in our next life, will be automatically much purer and kinder. When reading stories about some of the great Buddhist Masters we can recognise their excellent cultivation of good qualities in their past lives are often evident in them, even as children.

Taiwanese Master Hsing Yun, founder of the world-wide Buddhist organisation Fo Guang Shan, is a living example of Right Action. From a very young age he showed the way to treat all other beings with kindness and compassion. From Handing Down the Light; A Biography of Master Hsing Yun is quoted:

"From a very early age (Hsing Yun) has shared an exceptionally close and harmonious relationship with his older sister, Su-hua. These affectionate siblings recently reunited after more than forty years of separation. Reflecting on their childhood, Su-hua brimmed over with the same tenderness: 'He was so different from the rest of us.' She could not remember her kid brother ever fighting with anyone. In fact, a three-year-old Hsing Yun would drag the family candy-can to the courtyard, where it's entire contents were given to friends in the neighbourhood. Others considered this generous act foolish, and teased the son of the Li family for knowing little else but how to give everything away to others."

"In looking back over their childhood, Su-hua realised that her younger brother had reflected characteristics of the Buddha nature from a very early age. She guessed that his willingness to consider monkhood probably stemmed from causes and conditions of many past lives."

"Another time, the five-year-old Hsing Yun spotted a bunch of little chicks huddling together in the rain. He carried them home, one by one, and placed them before the wood-burning furnace to help dry them off. One made a dash into the fire in panic. When the child snatched it back, he found its lower beak had been burnt quite badly. To help it to eat, he dug a tiny hollow in the earth, put in some rice, and let it feed from there. The chick was tenderly nursed back to health and eventually grew into a thriving and mature hen." (Chi-ying 2000)

The practice of Right Action and the other factors of the Noble Eightfold Path develop many virtuous qualities in a practitioners mind. These virtuous qualities are called Perfections in Buddhism. The word Perfections implies that there is more to be done than just build good qualities, it implies the qualities must be developed in a particular way to a particular level.

For example the first perfection in Buddhism is called the Perfection of Generosity. What is the difference between practicing generosity or practicing the Perfection of Generosity? The Perfection means to practice generosity for the purpose of removing craving. In the second Noble Truth we learnt that craving is the cause of our suffering.

If we just practiced generosity without using it to become enlightened we would merely accumulate causes for worldly wealth and comfort. We could be born rich over and over or live in sensual heavens for long periods of time however once all this good kamma has been used up our real situation is the same as it always was. Clouded by ignorance we are still caught in the processes that produce all our sufferings.

Therefore our practice of generosity should be directed to reduce our craving and selfishness and help us to become free of suffering. Venerable Narada adds:

"According to the Cariya Pitaka Commentary, Perfections (Parami) are those virtues which are cultivated with compassion, guided by reason, uninfluenced by selfish motives, and unsullied by mis-belief and all feelings of self conceit." (Narada 1998, p. 576)

In future classes we will further examine what it means to practice each of the Perfections. There are either Ten Perfections or Six Perfections depending on how they are classified.

1. Perfection of Generosity
2. Perfection of Morality
3. Perfection of Renunciation
4. Perfection of Wisdom
5. Perfection of Energy
6. Perfection of Patience
7. Perfection of Truthfulness
8. Perfection of Determination
9. Perfection of Loving Kindness
10. Perfection of Equanimity

You may notice Buddhist altars have flowers offered on them to the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha. For many centuries Dhamma Practitioners have understood the virtue in offering flowers to the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, family and friends. This is one example of how we practice generosity.

The Buddha taught that due to cause and effect there are ten blessings arising from the offering of flowers. By producing posies made from flowers and greenery, our Members learn each for him or herself the 10 blessings that accrue from offering flowers.

These are:

1. Long Life
2. Good Health
3. Strength
4. Beauty
5. Wisdom
6. Ease along the Buddha Dhamma Path
7. Being born in beautiful environments
8. Born with good skin, hair and beautiful to look at
9. Always having a sweet smelling body
10. Pleasant relationships with friends

Our flower stalls are an opportunity for our Members and customers to practice generosity to others.

Patrul Rinpoche says:

"Do not take lightly small good deeds,
Believing they can hardly help
For drops of water one by one
In time can fill a giant pot." (Patrul Rinpoche 1998)

Bhante Gunaratana writes how skilful action not only soothes your mind but has a positive effect on everyone around you. He recounts the story of a monk who demonstrated how mindfulness of skilful action helps others.

"The temple where the monk lived has a jackfruit tree that was bearing fruit. Each fruit is very large, with a big seed that is full of protein and a thick flesh that can be cooked in many ways. Poor families who lack food can live on jackfruit. Though jackfruit does not cost much at the market, stealing jackfruit from trees in a poor area has been known to provoke murder."

"One night the monk noticed a thief in the temple's jackfruit tree. The thief was high up in the branches of the tree, lowering each fruit by means of a string so that it would not clunk on the ground and draw attention. The thief looped the string around the fruit in such a way that when the fruit touched the ground, the string would loosen. Then the thief would pull the string up for the next fruit. The monk went to stand quietly beneath the tree. As each fruit touched the ground, he helped to loosen the string."

"Eventually the thief came down as well. He nearly fainted at the sight of the cheerful monk standing there. The monk spoke to him gently, not like a victim of theft, but more like a concerned grandparent, asking earnestly, ‘Have you gotten enough fruit? Do you need more?’ There was no need to raise a great hue and cry and risk the man being hurt in a struggle with the temples supporters. The monk’s peaceful and generous response made the thief so ashamed that he left quickly and never returned to steal from the temple."

What should you do when you have violated one of the moral principles of skilful action?

The answer is simple: Apply mindfulness. First, notice what you have done. Then if possible, make amends. Finally make a strong determination to observe the principles of Skilful Action in the future. If you have broken a precept, renew your precept vows. Then let your faulty actions go. Feeling guilty or worrying about the consequences beyond your control cannot help you. Regard your past transgressions with a generous and compassionate attitude.

Bhante then sums up the key points for mindfulness of skilful action:

"Anyone interested in spiritual progress should follow five precepts of abstention from killing, stealing, false speech, sexual misconduct and using drugs and alcohol."

"Eating meat does not fit the definition of killing."

"When we don’t kill, we can become truly harmless and practice loving friendliness."

"Stealing means taking anything not given, including others ideas."

"When we don’t steal, we can develop respect for the needs of others and practice appreciative joy."

"The precept against sexual misconduct includes rape, manipulating someone into having sex against their wishes, and sex with minors, animals, someone’s spouse, or someone protected by parents or guardians; it also includes breaking trust in a relationship."

"When we avoid sexual misconduct, troublesome lust can be abated."

"A sexual relationship with your spouse or partner is not considered misconduct."

"We should avoid all deliberate abuse of our senses. This helps us let go of our greed, and in this way, we develop a generous spirit towards others."

"Addiction to alcohol or drugs may come on quickly or may be a gradually conditioned behaviour; it causes great harm, and it is best to avoid getting started."

"When we abstain from intoxicants we can maintain a clear mind and work to remove our delusions. We can develop mindfulness and act in accordance with reality."

"Mindfulness can help us to overcome temptation, avoid quarrels, and respond compassionately to others moral failings as well as our own." (Bhante Gunaratana)

May you cultivate the path of Right Action.

May you be well and happy.

May all beings be well and happy.

1. Venerable Narada Thera. 1998. The Buddha and His Teachings.. Publisher. Buddhist Missionary Society, 123, Jalan Behala, 50470 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.. pp 98-99.

2. K Sri Dhammananda. 1999. What Buddhists Believe. Publication of the Yayasan Belia Buddhist Malaysia. 129 Jlan Seang Tek, 10400 Pulau Pinang. 10th Edition. P81, P 82

3. Ven Piyadassi. 1991. The Spectrum of Buddhism. Published by The Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation, 11th Floor, 55, Hang Chow S. Rd., Sec 1, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C. P 78

4. Nyanaponika Thera. 1986. The Vision of Dhamma. Published by Rider & Co. Ltd., 62 - 65 Chandon Place, Covent Garden, London, England. p xxi

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

6. Fu Chi-Ying. 2000. Handing Down the Light; A Biography of Master Hsing Yun., Hsi-Lai University Press.

7. Patrul Rinpoche. 1998. The Words of My Perfect Teacher,. Published by Shambala Publications. P 239.

8. Bhante Henepola Guneratana. 2001. Eight Mindful steps to happiness,. Wisdom Publications Boston.

Word count: 3,676

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