The Heart of Theravada Buddhism:

The Noble Eightfold Path

by David Holmes
Copyright 1997
Chulalongkorn Univesity

A paper presented in the Phi Theta Kappa Guest-Lecture Series, Fall, 1990,
at the University of Maryland, Munich Campus.
 Cover photo compliments of
The Central Cultural Fund of Sri Lanka
through the cooperation of the
Sri Lankan Embassy in Bangkok
Thailand

Distributed by Chulalongkorn University Book Store

Bangkok, Thailand, January, 1997

 PREFACE

Having compiled this text, it is appropriate that I first say a few words in
recognition and praise of my teachers:
I began my studies as an Honours Student at McMaster University, in
Canada, in the Department of Philosophy, at the end of the 1950’s, where they
gave me a sound foundation in the history of metaphysics and epistemology.
Like many another raw youth of the so-called “beat generation,” however, I
also owned a copy of Alan Watts' The Way of Zen without really
understanding what the author wanted to say.
In due course, after graduate work in Germany on philosophy and
literature, I became a lecturer at the University of Maryland, Munich Campus,
where I served 25 years, before joining the faculty of Chulalongkorn
University, in Bangkok, Thailand. During all this time, I had been continuing a
study of Buddhism that I began, under Prof. George Grant, in the Department
of Comparative Religion at McMaster University.
Then, by coincidence, while in Munich, teaching for Maryland, I had the
chance to participate in a seminar with Alan Watts, who was enjoying a final
European speaking tour, a few months before he passed from this worldly
existence.
Whilst listening to Alan summarize western man’s epistemological
endeavours in the history of philosophy, I had a sudden illumination on the
questions of nothingness and non-self. After fifteen years of fear and,
trembling, I passed through a gateless gate with hardly an “Ah Ha!”, and my
existential anxiety fell away, just like that.
"I've got it! I've got it!", I told Alan.
"Don't hang on too hard.", he said with an ironic twinkle in his eye. That
was good advice. He was a good Zen teacher with a keen intellect.
 After that, I read a whole bookcase full of books on Zen, Japanese and
Mahayana Buddhism, but found the readings cryptic and largely inaccessible. I
realized I needed to advance, but didn't know what path to take. The problem
was that my understanding was still too intellectual and theoretical.
In the early 1980's, I owned a 40 foot, blue-water sailing yacht, in the
South of France, and did a lot of cruising about the Mediterranean, usually
single-handed, a hundred miles from shore, in an attempt to be at one with the
universe. It was a good life, but it was only a stage. That kind of aloneness is
not the ultimate answer.
One day, in Corsica, in the port of Bonifacio, again by coincidence (or
was it?), I met an older couple from Holland, who owned a sturdy-ketch and
who talked knowledgeably about Buddhism, and I told them I wanted to go to
Asia to learn more, first hand.
"Go to Sri Lanka," the Dutch-Indonesian wife said. "My friend Tissa
will take care of you. Just write and tell him why you want to come." She and
her husband gave me Tissa’s address. The husband, a retired sea-captain with
the air of a man who knew the world, smiled kindly.
About a year later, I found myself waiting in the airport, in Colombo, for
Tissa to pick me up. It was my first journey to the East, and I was tingling with
anticipation. That was 1986, and as Ven. Ampitiya Sri Rahula Maha Thera,
who was to become my teacher, later remarked to me, I was still very "raw." I
knew what I was looking for, but I hadn’t found the correct path.
Tissa Amarasinghe was the first to help me change that. We visited many
temples in the South of Sri Lanka by way of introduction, and then he took me
to a withdrawn Meditation Center, where the monks lived in caves, and where
there was a skeleton hanging out in the open air as a meditation object on the
transience of life.
 I was received by the head monk, seated in retreat in a hollow under a
great overhanging rock. I could actually see radiant energy emitting, upward
and outward, from around his shoulders and upper body. He spoke to me with
reserve but gave me an English translation of the Buddha's Discourse on the
Breathing Meditation and directed me to go and pay respects to an elderly
German Monk in the Forest Hermitage at Kandy, called Ven. Nyanaponika,
who could answer my further questions. Little did I know what kindness I had
been shown.
I was fortunate in having Tissa's guidance. Had I turned up in Sri Lanka
on my own, just another western quester in search of Shangrila, I wouldn't have
known where to go and who to talk to, and I would not have gained access in
the places that I did.
Tissa opened doors everywhere. He even arranged for me to gain
admittance to the Inner-Sanctum of the Temple of the Holy Tooth at Kandy,
one of the most sacred shrines of Theravada Buddhism. I don't know how he
managed that, but, out of a sense of well-meaning generosity, he felt that my
just being in the proximity of the Sacred Relic of the Tooth would bring
spiritual blessing.
Tissa came from an old family. His father had been a respected Buddhist,
with a large personal Buddhist library, and his grandfather had renovated the
great Temple at Tissamaharama at his own expense, while he was a ranking
government official there, three generations before. Tissa’s family had expected
that he would enter the monkhood at Tissamaharama, but he later decided to
remain a layman. As we toured the country by car, Tissa would talk with me for
days on end about the principles and precepts of Theravada Buddhism.
In due time, Tissa, took me to the Forest Hermitage, up in the
mountains, in Kandy, to pay my respects to the Ven. Nyanaponika Maha Thera,
who was, indeed, a most renowned monk, Pali scholar, and author of The Heart
of Buddhist Meditation, plus whole shelves of other books and translations of
Pali texts. He was the head of and spiritual force behind the Buddhist
Publication Society (BPS), in Kandy and had been a delegate from Ceylon
representing the Theravada Tradition at the Sixth World Congress of
Buddhists, together with his teacher --The Ven. Nyanatiloka Maha Thera
(1878-1957) -- who was most- eminent Pali scholar and author of The Word of
the Buddha and The Path of Deliverance and numerous texts and translations
which have guided and influenced generations of Buddhists world-wide.
At the Forest Hermitage, I had the good fortune, as well, to meet
Bhikkhu Bodhi, an American monk and scholar, working under the guidance of
Ven. Nyanaponika, helping as editor of the Buddhist Publication Society. At
that time, Bhikkhu Bodhi was only known as the the author of The Noble
Eightfold Path and numerous other translation and explications on difficult Pali
texts but not yet so world famous as he later became based on his voluminous
translations disseminated by Wisdom Press. The Forest Hermitage was another
Inner-Sanctum, a haven of knowledge and wisdom.
They received me with a matter-of-fact warmth and loving-kindness
which was a lesson in itself. Very much in awe, and after some scattered
questions, I asked how I could find the real heart of Buddhism. They said to
start with the Ven. Nyanatiloka's translation of the Word of the Buddha and
then go on to practice the discipline as outlined in his Path to Deliverance.
They stressed that the emphasis must be on actual practice of the Path, as
opposed to theory, and that I would find it extremely difficult, not just at first
but all the way along, even into an advanced stage, but if I followed the word of
the Buddha and the practice, I would make progress.
In summation, when I asked them where I could discover the meaning of
Buddhism, venerable Nyanaponnika answered, "Why look anywhere but in the
actual words of the Master?" That's what Theravada Buddhism is all about and,
to my amazement, the Buddhist Publication Society (BPS), in Kandy, made it
all available, in English, and there was nothing cryptic or inaccessible about it.
I just hadn't known where to look. So I read another bookcase full of
BPS publications, this time perhaps for the right reason, and, finally, realized
that the path I had missed was the one of practical application and discipline,
applied to the thoughts, feelings and actions of everyday life, as opposed to
pure intellectual pursuit. If the mind is fine-tuned theoretically but not linked in
harmony with the body, then advancement will be blocked.
The starting place was Ven. Nyanatiloka's translation of the Word of the
Buddha, which outlines the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path
and which is the subject of the discourse in the body of this present text.
It’s a wonderful paradox that once you understand the book, you no
longer need it.
In due course, on a subsequent visit to Sri Lanka, I had the honor and
privilege of staying, in retreat, at the Peradeniya University Forest Solitude, in
the mountains above Kandy, at the invitation of the eminent teacher, Ven.
Ampitiya Sri Rahula Maha Thera, to whom I owe the deepest debt of gratitude
for his understanding, kindness, guidance and advice. The Ven. Sri Rahula
taught me how to apply in practice what I had learned from the books.
At this time, I had the opportunity, also, to discuss fine points of the
Dhamma with Ven. Dhammavihari ( formerly Prof. Joyiya Dhirasekera, of the
Dept. of Pali and Buddhism, at the University of Peradeniya, in Kandy) which
helped to deepen and strengthen my understanding of the Path.
In conclusion, I would also like to thank Prof. Lily DeSilva, the highly
respected Head of the Department of Pali Studies at the University of
Peradeniya, who always received me with gracious attentiveness and gave me
helpful insights on understanding how to pursue the path as a layman.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Although I alone am responsible for any shortcomings this small book

may contain, I would like to thank my teachers for their generous editorial
assistance and advice.
The text in the body of this book has been read and edited by the
Venerable Ampitiya Sri Rahula, and by my brother in the Dhamma, Venerable
Dhammavihari, for which I am sincerely grateful. I would hardly dare to
present it to a wider audience unless it had been checked by experts far more
knowledgeable than I.
Then, after revising my text twice, I respectfully requested Bhikku
Bodhi, through the BPS to do a final critique. He kindly took time, despite his
heavy work-schedule, and went through it with precision, fine-tuning and red-
penciling it, where the exposition could be made more explicit. Then, I revised
it again.
As with any work of scholarship, my text could benefit from further
editing, explication and revision, perhaps in a later edition. Bhikku Bodhi’s
critical faculties are indeed always acute. I have learned much from him on
fine points of the Dhamma and cannot express my gratitude to him enough.
Bhikku Bodhi also pointed out that where I had presented expansive
detail on the steps of the Eight-fold Path, I might also have allowed equal and
parallel balance for an elucidation of the Four Noble Truths. The reader who
feels the need to do more reading in this area may consult the BPS booklist for
appropriate titles, with attention to the Buddhist World of Samsara; the
sufferings inherent in the round of rebirths implicit in the First Noble Truth;
and how craving is the origin of suffering.
The textual detail on the Eight-Fold Path may, indeed, be overly-
expansive for some readers, and the distinction between the mundane and
supramundane stages might be rather too subtle for some readers lacking a firm
foundation in the Dhamma.
Such should not be seen as a problem, however. It may do no harm to
include such explication, for information’s sake, even if the general reader
finds at some point, that his personal experience no longer corresponds to what
is being described. One should simply go back to the stage where one feels
oneself on firm ground and practice, practice, practice.
I also learned, sitting at the feet of Ven. Nanaponika, that even though
we may have a theoretical or intellectual comprehension of the the Absorptions
or Jhana stages, only highly accomplished monks, achieve these states. The text
describes the highest discipline imaginable, and advancement on the path is
gradual and takes years and years of concentrated effort.
It is not enough to just believe what one reads. One should know it
through actual practice of the steps in the path. If it feels right, one will want to
keep doing it, and one step will lead to another and another and so we progrees
gradually as the sea-bed may slope gradually out from the shore.
If one feels hindered in the path to advancement, the influence and
example of a good teacher should prove to be helpful. As the Venerable Sri
Rahula reminds us, “So long as there are communities of true monks practicing
the Dhamma as it was taught by the Buddha, Buddhism will never die.”

Bangkok, 1997
 Introduction to the Phi Theta Kappa Lecture

I should like to begin by expressing warm thanks to Dr. John

Finkbohner, coordinator of the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society Guest Lecture
Series, for inviting me to give this paper.
I must stress, however, that when he first approached me, I felt two
reservations:
The first was that, within a Buddhist culture, such a talk might normally
be given by a wise elderly monk, the abbot of a temple or monastery, who had
spent 30 years meditating in preparation for deliverance and another 20 or 30
years as a teacher, guiding younger monks on the path to enlightenment, he
himself being a radiant example of what the Buddha taught.
It seemed inappropriate that a layman, especially a western layman, like
me, a university lecturer caught up in the stresses of academic life, should be
giving a talk on the Dhamma at all. The very prospect of giving such a lecture
seemed humbling.
The second reservation was that you cannot summarize 2500 years of
Buddhism into a 60 or 90 minute presentation. You cannot simplify the
wisdom of the ages into a elementary outline that a general audience will grasp
and easily understand. The fact that many college lecturers simplify the body
of knowledge and underestimate and talk down to their students is, indeed, one
of the shortcomings of contemporary university education.
BUT having finally accepted the challenge to give the lecture, as a way
of sharing the teaching and insight given me through Bhikkhu Bodhi, Ven.
Nyanaponika Maha Thera, Ven. Sri Rahula Maha Thera and the voluminous
literature made availabe by the Buddhist Publication Society (BPS), at Kandy,
in Sri Lanka, I decided to set myself four guidelines to avoid coloring the
teaching of the Buddha through personal interpretation and to avoid giving a
superficial gloss which would not represent the depth of the Buddha's wisdom.
I decided: --
1. To stick to the actual words of the Buddha as much as possible,
keeping myself out of the picture, to avoid the pitfalls of ignorance and
speculation.
2. To write everything out, word for word, and read it aloud to avoid
distorting the facts, even though I normally lecture freely, based on an outline.
3. To explicate the Eightfold Path in full detail, even if I know I won't
have time to get through it all in the actual oral-presentation.
4. To type and distribute an expanded copy of the lecture to those who
may afterwards wish to work through it more carefully, as understanding the
Eightfold Path takes time, comprehension, practice, and persistent-effort.
For this, we must thank my student-assistant, LaVette Shackelford, who
typed and produced the handout copy, complete with a Bibliography from the
Buddhist Publication Society (BPS).
 Theravada Buddhism

There is some terminology I'd like to go over, so the reader will better
understand what is meant by the Theravada Tradition:
Pali was the dialect of Sanskrit spoken by the Buddha and the language
of the sacred literature of Buddhism, the so-called Pali Canon. This body of
writings is also called the Tripitaka [three baskets] because it is divided into
three parts: Vinayapitaka, which deals with the tenets of how monks should
comport themselves in the monastic life; Suttapitaka, a collection of suttras and
dialogues of the Buddha and his disciples; and Abhidhammapitaka, a more
purely philosophical elaboration of the sayings of the Buddha. The word of the
Buddha was recited and passed on from one generation of monks to another
through oral tradition after the Buddha's death. The Pali Canon is said to have
been written down between the 5th and 3rd centuries B.C.
The use of Pali eventually died out in India, but it moved to Ceylon (Sri
Lanka) where it was kept alive by the Sangha, who continue to chant the
Dhamma in Pali even into the present day. As long as such a Sangha lives,
Buddhism will never die. It is also worthy of note that the Buddha's use of Pali,
which as we have said, was a dialect of Sanskrit, represents a break from Indian
Brahmin tradition; Buddhism may arise out of the Hindu tradition, but it takes
its own direction.
Sanskrit was the classic language of the Brahmins in India. It's earliest
form was Vedic (ca. 1500-200 B.C.) and it is in this language that the most
ancient and sacred scriptures of Hinduism were recorded. There is a large body
of literature including the Vedas the Rig-Veda, the Upanishads, and the
Bagavad Gita, but they need not concern us here because they have little or
nothing to do with Buddhism.
After the Pali Suttras were lost in India, they were rediscovered in Ceylon and
translated back into Sanskrit, returning to India and eventually travelling the
northern route going over Tibet and China, through Korea to Japan. Hence, the
different renderings of words like the Sanskrit, "Nirvana" or "Karma"
substituting for the Pali, "Nibbana" and "Kamma." The Theravada Tradition
prefers the Pali renderings as being closer to the actual words of the Buddha.
Theravada, literally translated, means the "Elders' Teachings" or the
teaching of the original followers of Buddha based upon the original Pali Texts,
which when they were eventually written down, travelled then from Ceylon to
Burma, Siam, Laos, Cambodia and Viet Nahm, and took firm-hold in that part
of the world. Simply put, Theravada means staying close to traditional
Buddhism as it was practiced by the Sangha during the lifetime of the Buddha.
It means sticking to the original forms of practice.
Hinayana, literally translated, means "The Narrow Way." It denotes
exactly the same path as that of Theravada Buddhism. Hinayana means
keeping to the path of individual salvation through the practice of self-
discipline following the Doctrines of the Elders (Theravada). This is the path
of the Sangha. The narrow path means keeping close to the monastic path.
Mahayana, literally translated, means "the Broad Way," not the
traditional Theravada path, but a more common, general approach with less
monastic asceticism and less stress on individual self-discipline and more
emphasis on the world, life, nature, culture, the common everyday acts of the
moment, and on the common and general good and man in society at large. It is
not the path of the Sangha only; it is a path more suitable to the layman and the
house-holder.
There is nothing wrong with Mahayana Buddhism. The Buddha had
many different ways of teaching according to the level of awareness of the
person(s) who appeared before him. There are many dialogues where he talks
with laymen and attempts to assist them on the path (See The Buddha and His
Teachings, by Narada Maha Thera, Kandy: BPS, 1980.)
The Buddhism that went the northern route, was Mahayana Buddhism,
which became predominant in China, Korea, Japan and Tibet. This does not
mean that strict monasticism was not practiced in those places, though it is
interesting to note that Buddhism did not come to Tibet until about 630 A.D.
when it was combined with Tantric practices and the monks had land and wives
and children. It wasn't until the 14th century that celibacy was re-introduced
and the dynasty of the Dalai Lama was founded, in an attempt to purify Tibetan
Buddhism (Noss Man's Religions).
Similarly, it was not until 522 A.D. that Buddhism was introduced by
Prince Shotoku as the national religion of Japan and mixed with influences
from the Tang Dynasty of China, Shintoism and emperor worship, militaristic
nationalism and extreme self discipline, individualistic Zen Satori and other
influences, and further development continued, so that, by 1955, a total of 32
different sects attended the 3rd Buddhist Congress, representing the Broad Path
at its broadest point.
What they discovered, however, was that they weren't so far apart as one
might have expected and that there was a general desire to come more in-line-
with Theravada Buddhism. There are no ultimate contradictions between the
different forms of Buddhism; the differences are simply in stress and emphasis
according to the form of the teaching and to whom it is directed (Malalasekera
2500 Years of Buddhism).
It may be of interest to mention, as a final point, that at the Temple of the
Holy Tooth in Kandy, there is a conspicuous great temple bell which has been
donated by Japanese Buddhists as a way of emphasizing their ties to theoriginal
roots of Buddhism and the Teaching of the Elders in-the Theravada Tradition.
 The Heart of Theravada Buddhism: The Noble Eightfold Path

Buddhism concerns itself with pain, suffering, moderation, balance,

equanimity, self-discipline, purification, wisdom, virtue, kamma, rebirth,
tolerance, loving-kindness, meritorious action, selflessness, universal
compassion, the law of opposites, non-attachment, meditation, freedom,
enlightenment, emptiness, nothingness, nibbana, and all of these aspects blend
together into one, immeasureable, inter-related whole.
But "If a Buddhist [were] asked, 'What did the Buddha teach?', he would
rightly reply: 'The Four Noble Truths and The Noble Eightfold Path.'
If then questioned further, he should be able to define them accurately
without uncertainty, ambiguity or recourse to his own ideas.
[In other words, it is] “ very important that the words of the Buddha are
not distorted, either through ignorance or through one's own speculation”
(From Bhikkhu Khantipalo's introduction to The Noble Eightfold Path, by Ledi
Sayadaw).
This is what the present discourse is going to attempt to achieve.
First, however, let us address the life of Siddartha Guatama, who by his
own effort, became a Buddha, or Enlightened One, at age 35, after meditating
under a Bo tree and achieving the perfect embodiment of all virtues.
Having attained Buddhahood, he chose to come back into the world, out
of boundless compassion and loving-kindness for others, particularly the fellow
ascetics who had deserted him in the Deer Park near Benares, to share his
wisdom, teaching the path to enlightenment.
He devoted the rest of his life to serving humanity through his own
example, teaching the path to deliverance from suffering, through selfless-love
for others, for the next forty-five years, until he succumbed to the laws of
nature and passed-away in his eightieth year.
 The Lord Buddha was a human being, albeit an extraordinary one, who
was born, lived, and died, just like anyone else. He was not a divine being or a
god, but through his own striving, without supernatural help, he became a
perfect example of virtuousness, to show others the way to deliverance, through
the path of righteousness, through self-reliance, self-dependence, and self-
discipline, following the path to enlightenment.
Anybody may strive to achieve this state, but you have to find it within
yourself, and not even the Buddha can make that effort for you. He can only
tell you the way. The rest depends on you. The only hindrances are delusion
and attachment.
The first step to removing these hindrances is through moral self
purification (sila)--an aspect of Buddhism which is sometimes understressed by
seekers who ay concentrate too much on theory and knowledge and not enough
on developing actual purity in everyday moral actions. One cannot reach the
final step without taking the first step of developing purity, goodness, and
virtue through observing the precepts of right action, speech and livelihood.
One must first purify oneself to arrive at higher insight.
The Buddha was not only the perfect example of wisdom but also of
virtue, and his followers had the chance to be in his proximity duringr a
ministry of 45 years and learn by his word and example: an example which
was even more convincing because of his inner-tranquillity and outward-
radiance and the loving-kindness and universal wisdom that accompanied his
presence (Narada Thera, Buddhism in a Nutshell).
Once he achieved enlightenment, the Buddha could have turned his back
on a world of sorrow, but he did not. He chose, through love and compassion
for humanity, to help those still suffering in a world of temporality
impermanence and spiritual pain.
 We have a very good record of what the Buddha said, after having
achieved enlightenment and during his lifetime as a teacher. The Buddha's
discourses were, in fact, rehearsed and codified by his followers a few month's
after his passing away, and then transmitted scrupulously by bands of monks
especially-trained for this task. The documentation is comprehensive and
exact. Indeed, Buddhist scriptures taken together constitute a body of literature
eleven times the length of the Christian Bible, the difference being that in the
Buddhist scriptures everything emanates from one mind and thus coheres
consistently together.
As every Buddhist knows, the basis of the Buddha's teaching is to be
found in the Four Noble Truths:

1. Suffering
2. The Cause of Suffering
3. The Extinction of Suffering
4. The Middle Way: Noble Eightfold Path as
the way to the extinction of suffering.

He said that supreme and unsurpassed enlightenment had only come to

him after the realization of these four truths (Nyanatiloka The Word of the
Buddha):
The first was the Noble Truth of Suffering: Man is born into a world
of suffering. Birth is suffering. Decay, disease, old age and death are
suffering. Life is full of sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair. Not
getting what one desires is suffering. Being exposed to unpleasantness is
suffering. Being cut-off from desired-objects and pleasures is suffering, to
make us sometimes wish we had not been born.
The Second Noble Truth is the Cause of Suffering which is Craving.
The root of suffering is craving the delights and pleasures of the eye, ear, nose,
tongue and body. Where such craving arises and takes root, there will be
suffering. Craving for delight and pleasure of the mind causes suffering.
Craving eternal-existence, higher forms of existence, continued-existence,
immaterial existence, and craving the continued-existence of the self all bring
suffering. Craving the cessation of pain brings suffering.
The Third Noble Truth is the Cessation of suffering. What may bring
about the extinction of suffering? The complete fading away and extinction of
craving. Liberation and detachment from craving, that craving may vanish and
be extinguished. The forsaking of desire for delightful and pleasurable things.
Breaking free of the cankers of attachment and seeing the things of this world
as impermanent, miserable, transitory, and elusive will bring about the
annihilation of sorrow. Freedom from desire will bring about the extinction of
suffering.
The Fourth Noble Truth is the truth of the Path that Leads to the
Extinction of Suffering. It is the MIDDLE WAY that avoids the two extremes
-- the base, vulgar, unholy, unprofitable path of SENSUAL PLEASURE in
opposition to the painful, unpleasant, unholy unprofitable path of SELF-
MORTIFICATION. It is the MIDDLE PATH beyond those two extremes
which leads to liberation, peace, discernment, enlightenment and Nibbana.
Further, the Noble Eightfold Path leads to the extinction of suffering,
namely:

1. Right Understanding
2. Right Thought } Wisdom

3. Right Speech
4. Right Action } Morality
5. Right Livelihood

6. Right Effort
7. Right Mindfulness } Concentration
8. Right Concentration
 These eight factors of the Middle Way are steps to be followed in
sequence and practiced concurrently in preparation for the extinction of
suffering and ultimate release from the sorrows of this world. It makes sense to
practice them more-or-less in order, as later stages assume mastery over earlier
ones, though continued-practice on the level of mindfulness or concentration
brings a deepening of understanding on the initial level.
To re-cap, the Buddha is saying that to be free from suffering and attain
Nibbana one must begin by developing--
RIGHT UNDERSTANDING, which means being free from wrong views
and attitudes which block the right way of seeing. It is knowing the difference
between right and wrong. What is a good action and what is a bad deed. It
means knowing what is morally good and why. The same way one knows it is
right to care, to give, to love and feel compassion. Right understanding leads to
willing the good, through actions of body, speech, or mind.
The mind's willing an action is called "KAMMA." Another word is
"volition," a mental force seeking to actualize the mind's will. Kamma is an
action of the will that results in something wholesome or unwholesome arising.
Right Understanding is knowing what is a wholesome action and what is an
unwholesome action (see Bhikkhu Bodhi, The Noble Eightfold Path).
An action of the mind is UNWHOLESOME when it is harmful or
blameworthy, when it can be hurtful to something or someone when it can
cause suffering for oneself, for others or for the world or when it is detrimental
to spiritual development for oneself or others. In short, unwholesome
KAMMA does harm and should be avoided. In Buddhist teaching, anything
that does harm should be avoided.

The Buddha said we should avoid unwholesome Kamma and avoid the
following bad actions:
 1. Destroying life
bodily{ 2. Taking what is not given
3. Wrong sexual conduct

4. False speech
speech{ 5. Slanderous speech
6. Harsh speech
7. Idle chatter

8. Covetousness
mental{ 9. Ill will
10. Wrong views

Unwholesome Kamma must be grasped and extinguished at its root

before it has a chance to take hold and grow. One who seeks to have a
wholesome motive rather than an unwholesome motive should be on the path of
right understanding. There can be wholesome deeds without right view,
however, and one should avoid doing the right thing for the wrong reason.
GREED, AVERSION, and DELUSION are particular enemies of
wholesome Kamma and must be resisted wherever they have the chance to arise
in the mind. Resisting negative thoughts is not easy. In fact, it is one of the
hardest things in the world. The secret lies in turning away from negative
Kamma and willing the contrary. It means abstinence, self-control and mind-
control. This takes intensive training based on denying what is not good for
one and one's spiritual development and replacing it with its opposite.
Right Understanding leads to meritorious action which leads to accrued
merit which opens the way to a deepening in understanding the nature and
cause of suffering, its cessation, and Nibbana.
Wrong Understanding leads to wrong views, wrong motives, wrong
actions, and more-and-more bad Kamma, and more-and-more suffering. Right
Understanding of the effects of bad Kamma is enough to make one want to stop
it. Delusion leads to more-and-more evil (see Ledi Sayadaw The Noble
Eightfold Path).
One is the owner of the Kamma one makes. This means one reaps the
fruit of one's actions in this life or the next.
The second factor in the Noble Eightfold Path is called RIGHT
THOUGHT, but a more effective translation from the original Pali word might
be RIGHT INTENTION.
Pali translates only with difficulty and one reason is that these ideas
existed more than 2000 years before English became a literary language. As
there is almost no cultural overlap, English equivalents are hard to find, and the
words that we use have connotations, within a western cultural context, which
tend to confuse and obscure the original meanings in Pali. That's one of the
main reasons Theravada Buddhists learn Pali and study original Pali texts.
Deeper understanding sets the mind moving towards goals seen through
the new vision of right understanding. RIGHT INTENTION is the application
of the mind towards these goals.
The Buddha explains that Right Intentions are three-fold: intentions of
Renunciation; intentions of Good Will; and intentions of Harmlessness.
These three Right Intentions are the OPPOSITE of the Wrong Intentions
of Desire, Ill-will, and Harmfulness. Just as thought is the forerunner of
action, so right thought is the forerunner of right action. Similarly, suffering
will be the result of wrong thought or wrong intention.
The Buddha has told us (Majjhima Nikaya 19) that, whilst meditating
prior to enlightenment, he found his thoughts could be divided into two
opposite classes. Whenever he noticed thoughts of desire, ill-will, and
harmfulness arising, he replaced them with thoughts of renunciation, good will,
and harmlessness. He understood that the former kind of thoughts lead to harm
for oneself and others and obstruct the path to wisdom. Hence, he developed
the wisdom to eliminate the obstruction and open the path (see Bhikkhu Bodhi
Eightfold Path).
Ven. Ledi Sayadaw gives us another important insight when he writes
that one may claim to be a Buddhist and even espouse Right Understanding,
but that does not mean one will put it into practice automatically. To know the
good is not to do it. Such a would-be Buddhist may still have enmity for others
and speak slanderously about them. "All one's book learning will not change
harmfulness into loving kindness." Only actual application and practice can
bring this about. As Ledi Sayadaw concludes: "This means hard work on
oneself which may be painful emotionally but then the result of accomplishing
just a little here is that one becomes a 'solid' Buddhist" (Sayadaw 44).
The Buddha, at the time of his enlightenment saw that everything
contains its opposite. He saw the DUALITY in NATURE. In a moment of
insight, he realized that everything can be replaced by its opposite; that
intentions of good will and harmlessness offer the ANTIDOTE to aversion, ill-
will and suffering,
He saw that thoughts of anger, hostility, and resentfulness lead to cruelty,
aggression, and destruction, and he saw that replacing intentions of
harmfulness with intentions of harmlessness opened the path to wisdom (Bodhi
33). The Buddha once said that his teachings are contrary to the way of the
world. The way of he world is one of unenlightened desire, of seeking
happiness by seeking the objects of desire, whilst imagining that the attainment
of these objects will bring fulfillment and happiness.
The Buddha says the exact opposite of this: unfulfilled desire is the
ROOT of unhappiness and dissatisfaction and the way to get rid of such
suffering is to get rid of the Craving or Desire, to pull-out the root of
unwholesome desire through RENUNCIATION. The Buddha goes against the
stream. He flows the opposite way, breaking free of craving and finding
happiness in lack of desire.
The mind is in the habit of grasping. We have to break this habit and
teach it to let go. If we examine the root of desire and see the unhappiness it
leads to, we should, eventually, with effort and practice, learn to resist and
abandon desire. If we learn that freedom from the hold of attachment is the key
to happiness, then, one-by-one, we should be able to get unwholesome desires
under control and ultimately rise above the level of such bondage.
This does not mean we must all run off to the monastery and abandon the
household-life. It means that each, according to the level of his understanding
and the power of his will, should strive as best he can to eradicate the root of
craving and rise above the suffering that it causes. It becomes a very personal
and individual thing, and you make progress only in accordance with the level
of your understanding. Another reason why it's personal is no one can make
the effort for you. You must understand it and do it yourself.
It is one thing to know you have to let go of attachment, but quite another
to do it. The mind meets a powerful inner-resistance. It seems impossible to
overcome this resistance through an act of the will. This is sometimes called
the problem of how to break the SHACKLES of DESIRE. Just to REPRESS
our desires doesn't work, because it only drives them below the surface to rise
again at some other opportunity.
One device the Buddha taught us is to subject desire to analytic
investigation and observation. Instead of unrealistically imagining the
gratification of desire and the pleasure and happiness it would bring, we look
realistically at the desire and the unhappiness that eventually follows in its
wake. If we explore the roots and motives of our mental actions and see that
they do not lead to the expected results, sooner or later we become wise to the
truth of the matter and alter our behavior accordingly.
 "When desire is scrutinized close-up, we find it is constantly shadowed
by dukkha"(Bodhi 35). "Dukkha" means suffering. When you stop to think of
it, the moment a desire arises, we sense a lack of fulfillment, an emptiness, a
strain of discontent. Wanting is just another form of pain we would be better-
off without. When desire is not fulfilled, there is "frustration, disappointment,
sometimes despair” (Bodhi 36).
Even fulfilled-desire does not guarantee happiness. What if it does not
last? What if we lose the object of desire? What happens when the
gratification is over with? What will fill this void? This is called GRASPING.
Sometimes we hang on too hard and become the cause of our own unhappiness.
We must realize that the fulfillment of desire is impermanent, that nothing lasts,
whether it be sensual pleasure or wealth or fame or power. The pursuit of such
pleasures brings pain, and the pain of separation from the desired object
increases in intensity in proportion to the degree of attachment.
Another device the Buddha taught us is to counteract ill-will with its
opposite, which Buddhists call "metta" or loving-kindness. Feelings of ill-will
can cause rancor, resentment, hatred, irrationality and violence which are
harmful both to the object of ill-will and the subject feeling intentions of ill-
will. The answer is to play a trick on nature and slow the flow of negative
feeling through directing "metta" towards the object. Depending on the
strength and force of the sense of universal love which we are able to develop
in ourselves, eventually we may be come capable of slowing the effects of ill-
will down to a trickle or of stopping them altogether.
The secret to success in using this device is the more you can develop the
feeling of metta and make it a habit-of-mind and the less you allow yourself to
feel ill-will towards others, the easier it will be to direct loving-kindness to
such an object of anger or resentment. Experience will show that greater
happiness arises from this mode of practice, and it thus becomes motivated and
strengthened. Remember, this is the same loving kindness felt by the Buddha
and in practicing "metta," you are emulating him and following the right path.
A valuable technique which can help one develop feelings of loving-
kindness is to consciously set aside time each day for the development of
thoughts of loving-kindness. This is a form of meditation which proves most
useful to seekers who have problems overcoming feelings of aversion and ill-
will.
One begins with thoughts of kindness for oneself, because one must
value oneself before one can value others. Then one develops feelings of
loving-kindness for those who are closest to one: family members, those who
depend on one for support, etc. Then, one thinks about those who are neutral to
oneself, and eventually, to thoughts of loving-kindness for all living beings.
One begins with oneself at the center and expands outward in ever-
widening circles until one has developed feelings of love for every living being
in the universe, in awareness of the world's need for love; loving the other as
you love yourself.

One form of this meditation is to contemplate as follows:

"May I be well and healthy

May those near to me be well and healthy
May those neutral to me be well and healthy
May all living beings be well and healthy."

It must be noted that "metta" is a generalized, selfless, non-personalized

love. It is not self-love even though it begins with self. It simply means you
love yourself in the same way that you love everything else in the world, no
more or no less. It is a feeling of great benevolence and magnanimity for all
things. It is not to be confused with egocentric love or selfish attachment.
Another device which helps overcome cruel, aggressive or violent
thoughts towards an object of repulsion is COMPASSION. Instead of having
unwholesome feeling towards someone because of that person's unwholesome
intentions, we place ourselves subjectively in his position and wish that he be
freed from the sufferings caused by his unwholesome Kamma.
Developing compassion may be practiced as a meditative exercise: one
thinks of a person whom one knows to be suffering because of misguided views
or intentions and one imagines that this person wishes to be free of this
suffering. One identifies with the person's suffering until a strong feeling of
compassion swells up in one's heart. Then one uses the same method applied to
other individuals who cause themselves suffering, and one wishes that they too
may be freed from that suffering. Once one gets in the habit of mind of feeling
compassion, one can catch oneself reacting with resentment to certain persons
and replace the resentment with compassion. Feeling compassion for those
who would be your enemies is also very disarming.
"The unwholesome thought is like rotten peg lodged in the mind; the
wholesome thought is like a new peg suitable to replace it. The actual
contemplation functions as the hammer used to drive out the old peg with a
new one” (Bodhi 43).
To use another analogy, through renunciation and methodological
contemplation, thoughts of greed and aversion may be shed like leaves from a
tree. The change is not sudden and spontaneous. It comes only through
persistent and continued-practice, dislodging one leaf at a time until the
branches are finally bare.
This is why Buddhists world-wide do meditation exercises, practicing
renunciation, metta, and compassion as a way of going against the stream.
The Buddha has warned us that "whatever one reflects upon frequently
becomes the inclination of the mind. If one frequently thinks sensual, hostile,
or harmful thoughts, desire, ill-will, and harmfulness become the inclination of
the mind” (Bodhi 44). That's not quite the same as saying, "You are what you
think," but it comes close. How much better it is to train the mind to become
positive in its inclinations, for the direction we take always comes back to us.
The merit we attain reflects the course of our lives. The evil we do returns to
us.

The first two factors of Right Understanding and Right Intention are
perhaps the most difficult to grasp. The three factors that follow: Right
Speech, Right Action, and Right Livelihood, are easier to comprehend because
they are less-abstract and have to do with the direct practice of right intentions
in everyday behavior. Simply put, we are talking about acts of speech and
MATTERS OF THE BODY in daily life.
We must not forget, however, that this is the Buddha talking, telling us
how to purify ourselves through our actions as a means to progress towards
higher understanding. The purpose of practical ethics is ultimately spiritual. It
is no coincidence that Bhikkhu Nanamoli's translation of the classic manual of
Buddhist doctrine and meditation (Visuddhi Magga) is called The Path of
Purification.
A monk once asked the Buddha for a brief summary of his teaching and
the Buddha said: "First, establish yourself in the starting point of wholesome
states, that is, in purified moral discipline and in Right View. Then when your
moral discipline is purified and your view straight, you should practice the four
foundations of mindfulness” (Samyutta Nikaya XLVII 3) --in other words:
follow the Noble Eightfold Path, being sure you purify yourself in accordance
with good Kamma as a preparation to deeper insight through meditation. The
problem is if you don't have that purity, you'll encounter the greatest of
difficulty in going forward.
In his translation of The Word of the Buddha, Ven. Nyanatiloka Maha
Thera informs us the Buddha said one should abstain from lying and tell the
truth, be reliable and worthy of confidence. Never deceive. Always tell what
one knows and admit when one knows nothing. One should tell what one has
seen and what one has not seen. One should never knowingly speak a lie for
one's own advantage or the advantage of others, or for any advantage
whatsoever (Anguttara Nikaya X 176).
This is the Buddha's first statement on the subject of Speech. Condensed
to one short maxim, it means abstain from FALSE SPEECH. (Note the
emphasis on ABSTENTION which implies replacing bad Kamma with good
Kamma.) Speech can give wisdom, heal division, and create peace, but, falsely
used, it can break lives, create enemies and start wars. The law of opposites
works where speech is concerned, as well.
One should never have the intention to deceive or to lie because of
motives of greed or hatred. Never delude others for any reason, not even when
exaggerating, joking, or jesting because deception can lead to ill-effects and
cause harm. Lying corrupts society. Lies lead to more lies and affect one's
credibility. Lies lock one in a cage of falsehood, creating a corrupt world from
which it is almost impossible to escape.(Bodhi 51)
The Buddha also said that when you lie, you lose merit and go backwards
rather than forwards. He illustrated the point, talking to his son and disciple,
Rahula, by taking a bowl with a little bit of water in it and turning it upside
down and saying:--
"Do you see how the water has been discarded? In the same way one
who tells a deliberate lie discards whatever spiritual achievement he has made.
In the same way he turns his spiritual achievements upside down and becomes
incapable of progress” (Majjhima Nikaya 61).
The second statement on the subject of Speech made by the Buddha was
to ABSTAIN from SLANDEROUS SPEECH. In other words, one should not
repeat the bad things one has heard about others: one should not repeat things
that cause dissension. Instead, one should use speech to unite those who are
divided, create agreement and harmony, and good will instead of disagreement.
One should ABSTAIN from speech motivated by cruel intentions or by
resentment; speech which tears down another's image, questions his virtue or
success; or is intended to hurt others by getting-ahead of them, or to hurt them
just for the sake of perverse satisfaction. The root of slander is hate, and hate is
one of the most unwholesome forms of Kamma, a pitfall very much to be
avoided.
"The opposite of slander," as the Buddha indicates, "is speech that
promotes friendship and harmony. Such speech originates from a mind of
loving-kindness and sympathy. It wins the trust and affection of others” (Bodhi
54-55). When you feel like saying something slanderous about your neighbor,
catch yourself and turn that impulse into loving-kindness. More good will
come of it.
The third statement the Buddha made about Right Speech is that one
should ABSTAIN from HARSH SPEECH, uttered in anger and intended to
cause pain. Instead, one should use speech that is gentle, soothing to the ear,
loving and readily reaches the heart. Speech that is courteous, friendly and
agreeable.
One should ABSTAIN from motives that provoke language that is angry
or abusive, reproving, bitter, insulting, hurtful, offensive, demeaning, sarcastic,
or ironic with intent to injure. There is no good reason for such language, and
the main argument against it is that it arises out of anger and aversion. It is an
impulsive action without deliberation which can lead to destructive
consequences for oneself and others. The impulse has to be restrained to avoid
the HARM it can do.
The opposite of anger is PATIENCE. The ANTIDOTE to anger is
TOLERANCE for the shortcomings of other's criticisms, comments and
actions. One should, in fact, learn to tolerate abuse without the need to retaliate
(Bodhi 55).
The Buddha once gave a remarkable example:
"Even, o monks should robbers and murders saw through your limbs and
joints, whoever should give way to anger thereat would not be following my
advice. For thus ought you to train yourselves: 'Undisturbed shall our mind
remain, with heart full of love, and free from hidden malice; and that person
shall we penetrate with loving-thoughts, wide, deep, boundless, freed from
anger and hatred”(Majjhima Nikaya 21).
The fourth statement of the Buddha about Right Speech was to
ABSTAIN from IDLE CHATTER. In other words, to avoid frivolous speech
and pointless talk that has no depth. Instead, one should speak appropriately at
the right moment in accordance with the facts, saying what is useful, speaking
of subjects like the Dhamma and the discipline.
One should ABSTAIN from talking and listening to chatter which is
shallow and only stirs up defilements and restless thoughts which can lead one
astray. One should abstain from any sort of loose talk or valueless patter which
leaves the mind vacant and sterile. This is especially true of frivolous
entertainments which block development on a higher, spiritual, aesthetic,
contemplative level.
The opposite of idle chatter is to make every word have meaning, so that
speech becomes like a treasure, uttered appropriately, at the right moment,
accompanied by moderation, reason, and good sense, inspiring listeners in
matters of good conduct and the pursuit of the path. Another thing to
remember is that while speech has its place, meditation leaves the limits of
speech behind. Calm is the opposite of restless chatter. Thus ends the
discussion of Right Speech.
 Next, comes a consideration of RIGHT ACTION: Having learned to
discipline ourselves with regard to right speech, we turn to bodily actions:
The Buddha subdivided the fourth factor of Right Action into three
categories: 1. Abstaining from killing living creatures.
2. Abstaining from taking what is not given, and,
3. Abstaining from sexual misconduct.
In the words of the Buddha, one should ABSTAIN from killing living
beings, without stick or sword. One should be conscientious, full of sympathy
and desirous of the welfare of all living beings (Anguttara Nikaya X 176).
This means one should ABSTAIN from the killing or destroying of
beings either by physical action or by verbal incitement, ranging from killing
the eggs of bugs and lice to causing abortion or the slaughter of living sentient
beings, especially human beings (Sayadaw 49). This means to refrain from
destroying any form of life, for all living beings love life, fear death, seek
happiness, and avoid pain; it applies even to animals and insects, not including
plants which lack full-fledged consciousness, which explains the monk's
primarily vegetarian diet.
It is of interest to note here that the Buddha did not require a fully
vegetarian diet of his monks. They were to accept whatever was given them as
almsfood. Fish (and even meat) were allowable provided that they had not
been killed especially for oneself (Jivoka Sutta, Majjhima Nikaya 55).
It should be obvious that one ought to avoid killing oneself by suicide
and harming and/or torturing sentient beings without killing them. Killing by
accident is not accompanied by any degree of negative Kamma, as there is no
intention. The higher the sentient being, the more negative is the Kamma. The
MOTIVE for killing also carries grave weight, and killing because of greed,
hatred and delusion is of the worst kind (Bodhi 58-59).
 The ANTIDOTE for abstaining from taking-life is loving-kindness and
compassion for all sentient beings, identifying with such beings with heartfelt
sympathy and wishing their welfare. Right intention here means good will,
harmlessness and concern for others. One who feels this concern will be so
imbued with feelings of love for other sentient beings that he will not be able to
harm them.
The next subdivision is ABSTAIN from TAKING WHAT IS NOT
GIVEN: another way of saying to avoid stealing in any of its forms. On this
point, the words of the Buddha are clear:
He tells us to ABSTAIN from taking, with intention to steal, living
beings or non-living materials which have an owner. Refrain from removing or
appropriating them without the owner's consent either by physical effort or by
inciting another to do so (Sayadaw 49).
We should not take with thievish intent what another possesses whether
it be in the village, outside in the woods, or nature, although it is not wrong to
take things like wood, stones, earth, or gems in the earth which do not have an
owner. It is equally wrong to withhold from others what ought to be rightfully
theirs. Similarly, stealing, robbery, snatching, fraudulence, and deceit, carry
bad karmic weight and hinder spiritual development.
The ANTIDOTE is honesty, having respect for the property of others and
their rights, having contentment with one's livelihood, showing generosity of
heart, not coveting the wealth and possessions of others, and even giving away
one's own wealth and possessions to benefit others.
The third subdivision is ABSTAIN from SEXUAL MISCONDUCT and
here again the word of the Buddha is clear:
The Buddha tells us to ABSTAIN from wrong sexual conduct in sensual
pleasures which will cause pain for others. Examples would be adultery, rape,
intercourse with minors, and the perversion of others (Sayadaw 51). Laymen
should avoid sex with illicit partners such as those who are married or
betrothed or still under the protection of the family. The point is to curb sexual
desire so it does not lead to moral transgression. One should avoid a banal
attachment to promiscuity because it blocks the path to PURIFICATION.
Instead, it is the ANTIDOTE that must be stressed. The opposite of
desiring somebody as an object to fulfill one's sensual NEEDS is to see that
person for what he/she really is, a sentient human being worthy of care --
regard, compassion -- feeling a form of loving kindness that transcends the
limits of mere grasping and desire. The point is to protect such persons from
the negative effects of unwholesome Kamma and to protect marriage and the
family as a way of avoiding suffering for a great many, promoting trust,
confidence, union and harmony, and last but not least promoting progress on
the path to spiritual development by removing hindrances from the PATH.
Still, sensual pleasure wreaks havoc in the lives of laymen and
householders, and monks and nuns avoid distraction by living celibate lives.
This brings our discussion of Right Action to an end and leads us on to the next
factor:
RIGHT LIVELIHOOD is the fifth factor of the Noble Eightfold Path,
and it explains the practice of right intentions in the acts of the layman in daily
life where earning a living is concerned. The Buddha, who thought of
everything also gave us a code of economic conduct to follow: In short, he said
we should AVOID gaining a livelihood by doing anything harmful to others:
by acting illegally, using coercion, violence, trickery or deceit, dealing in
weapons, or human beings, like animals to be slaughtered, poisons, intoxicants,
soothsaying, trickery, usury, or any livelihood that violates an understanding of
right speech and right action.
The ANTIDOTE is to gain one's living by doing no harm and benefiting
others, in a righteous way, legally, peacefully, honestly, openly, courteously in
such a way as to gain merit and avoid the pitfalls of greed and delusion.
Similarly, workers should fulfill their duties in an honest and trustworthy
manner, avoiding idleness, deceit, and pocketing the employer's goods. One
should show respect and consideration for customers, colleagues and employers
– and employers should follow the same practice with employees. Articles
should be represented and sold honestly without deceptive representation of
quality, quantity, etc. (Bodhi 65-66).
The Buddha also says: "When the noble disciple, avoiding wrong living,
gets his livelihood by a right way of living, this is called ‘Mundane Right
Livelihood’ which yields worldly fruits and brings good results.”
But the avoidance of wrong livelihood, the abstaining, desisting,
refraining therefrom, the mind being holy, being turned away from the world,
and conjoined with the path, the holy path being pursued: this is called the
“Supramundane Right Livelihood” which is not of the world, but is
supramundane and conjoined with the path” (Majjhima Nikaya 117).
The point of the above is that once you have got Right Livelihood in
order, and you combine it with the practice of Right Understanding, Right
Effort, and Right Mindfulness, you are on your way to supramundane
understanding on the path to wisdom. To understand this, however, we must
understand the next three factors, which have to do primarily with MATTERS
OF THE MIND.

RIGHT EFFORT is the sixth factor of the Noble Eightfold Path. If you
are to reach a supramundane state beyond the mundane state, you must do it
through effort of the mind. What kind of effort is Right Effort?
First, it is an effort that no one can make for you. You must make it for
yourself. It means making the effort to arouse the energy of the mind and focus
it on cleansing the mind of its impurities through SELF-DISCIPLINE so that it
may be LIBERATED to work on a SUPRAMUNDANE LEVEL.
It sounds like the exercise of mind over matter, but it's not as difficult as
it may appear. The Buddha explains Right Effort in systematic disciplined
steps, which Bhikkhu Bodhi's book on The Eightfold Path; The Way to End
Suffering explains as follows:
In Anguttara Nikaya IV 13-14, the Buddha says we must practice mental
control:
First prevent the arising of UNWHOLESOME MENTAL STATES
BEFORE THEY ARE AWAKENED. Which is to say that we must stem the
arising of the FIVE HINDRANCES: of sensual desire, ill will, dullness,
restlessness, and doubt before they arise, so they are not awakened.
These are explained as follows:

1. SENSUAL DESIRE means lust for pleasurable states:

sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, or for wealth, power, position, fame, and
their accompanying pleasures.

2. ILL WILL means hatred, anger, resentment, and repulsion.

3. DULLNESS means mental inertia and accompanying

DROWSINESS or mental sinking into heaviness of the mind.

4. RESTLESSNESS or WORRY means states of agitation,

excitement, frenzy, stress which keep the mind from focus.

5. DOUBT means lack of resolution and indecisiveness which

hinder right effort.

The ANTIDOTE is to BLOCK the FIVE HINDRANCES before they

have a chance to arise in the mind. This is, in fact, a form of Buddhist
meditation: to watch the workings of the mind and check the five hindrances
before they arise. To nip them in the bud, so to speak, though, if one analyzes
carefully, one sees that to “sever at the root” would be a more appropriate
analogy. You have to watch the workings of your mind and when you observe
one of the five hindrances in the process of arising, you have to catch it and
drive it out of the mind.
The secret is to check uncontrolled response with a controlled response.
The goal is to evoke the OPPOSITE RESPONSE; for example, equanimity and
focus in the place of unfulfilled desire and agitation. Practice this for long
enough, and you begin to feel the positive effect of MIND CONTROL, which
is reason enough to keep doing it. When this is working it's time to consider
the next step:
Second, PREVENT THE ARISING OF UNWHOLESOME MENTAL
STATES: Replace unwholesome thoughts with equal and opposite thoughts,
the way the carpenter uses a new wooden peg to drive out an old and rotten
one. A device you can use, for example, when your mind is agitated by a
stressful worrying thought is to say: "I drive out this old peg with a new peg,"
and picture a new peg pushing out the old one. The picture in your mind will
replace the worrying thought and push it out. This is a simple trick but it works.
In fact, there are many forms of Buddhist Meditation which replace
unwholesome thoughts with wholesome ones. The Buddha taught his disciples
how to ward-off unwanted attachment to objects of the senses, replacing or
pushing them out with thoughts of the IMPERMANENCE of LIFE or with
thoughts of change and DETERIORATION AND DECAY OF THE BODY. In
fact, meditation subjects such as these are good ANTIDOTES for those who are
stuck on gratification of the senses.
LOVING KINDNESS is a good antidote for hate, aversion, rancor, etc.
Meditating on a BALL of LIGHT is a good antidote to counteract
dullness and drowsiness and mental inertia.
BREATHING Meditation is an antidote for calming the agitated mind.
 INVESTIGATIVE ANALYSIS or inquiry is a good antidote for doubt,
and so on.
Yet another device for countering unwanted-thoughts is to direct the
mind away from an unwholesome thought, the way you might look away from
an undesirable sight, or the way you might change the subject when an
undesirable topic is brought up. Catch the thought and change the subject.
Monks often change the topic when sensual and unsavory questions are
brought up. It's not that they want to avoid a question they can't answer.
Avoiding the topic is the answer, which the questioner will figure out if he is
perceptive.
There are in fact, numerous meditation topics and devices which wise
and caring older monks give to struggling younger monks to help them along
the path, but we would stray from the purpose if we dwelt on them here.
Instead, we shall continue on to the next step in Right Effort.
Third, AROUSE UNARISEN WHOLESOME STATES. In other words,
strive to stop unwanted mental states from arising and strive to replace them
with WHOLESOME MENTAL STATES.
The Buddha is very specific about how this works. He explains the
SEVEN STEPS TO ENLIGHTENMENT as follows:

1. Mindfulness
2. Investigation
3. Energy
4. Rapture
5. Tranquillity
6. Concentration
7. Equanimity

1. Through MINDFULNESS or MEDITATION, clear the mind of

delusion and wandering and focus clearly on objects of nature in
the now.
 2. Through INQUIRY or INVESTIGATION analyze the true
nature of phenomena. In other words, once you SEE the object of
THOUGHT clearly, make a new step to investigate its nature:
"What is this thing really, that fascinates me this much?"
3. Quicken the ENERGY of the effort of your inquiry, shaking-off
lethargy and inertia, awaking enthusiasm, gathering momentum,
and using PERSEVERANCE, so the power of motion
overcomes inertia and cannot be stopped. You push hard until
you have overcome all obstacles, and you see the true nature of
things the way they really are, without delusion.
4. Enthusiasm builds to RAPTURE, ascending to ecstatic heights,
but this is a rapture that is accompanied with an excitement and
restlessness of mind which, first, has to calm down so the
restlessness is subdued.
5. Rapture then becomes a TRANQUILLITY in which the work of
CONTEMPLATION proceeds with self-possessed SERENITY.
6. Tranquillity brings CONCENTRATION to ripeness and the seeker
achieves ONE-POINTED UNIFICATION OF MIND
7. The final state is one of EQUANIMITY in which the mind through
deepening concentration, free from inertia and excitement,
becomes balanced and stays that way on its own, without effort or
restraint, watching the play of phenomena (Bodhi 79-81).

This brings us to the last step in the discipline of Right Effort:

Fourth, MAINTAIN ARISEN WHOLESOME STATES. What this
means is to guard the balance of the mind and concentration on the positive
state, so it is not lost but continues on constantly at the forefront of the mind,
until the mind reaches its ultimate goal or fulfillment. In other words, keeping
the mind controlled and directed on positive states.
Keeping the positive balance of the mind takes constant practice. It is
not as simple as it may sound. It's easier to lose that balance than it is to gain it,
and that's where Right Mindfulness comes in.
In talking about Right Mindfulness, to avoid the hindrances of ignorance
and delusion, and in order to explain accurately, without uncertainty or
recourse to our own ideas, we shall adhere to the words of the Buddha as they
are translated and expounded by respected PALI scholars and teachers of the
DHAMMA.
In The Road to Inner Freedom, Ven. Nyanaponika writes:
Right Mindfulness is the quality of awareness. It insures
complete awareness of all activities of the body as they occur,
complete awareness of all sensations and feelings as they occur,
complete awareness of all activities of the mind as they occur and
complete awareness of all mental objects when the appropriate
situations arise. This attitude of complete awareness brings about
powerful results. It sharpens to the finest degree man's powers of
observation, induces the deepest calm and insures that nothing is
said or done or thought unguardedly or hastily, mechanically or
without deliberation. He who develops this factor is able to take
count of every single and minute activity of the mind, even such
activities as are generally considered to occur when the mind is
passive and receptive; so penetrating and powerful is his sense of
awareness (70).

The point of the exercise is to realize a total awareness of the true nature
of phenomena as objects of thought the way they really are. This takes mind-
training and can only be realized by disciples advanced in this discipline,
which, incidentally, the Venerable Nyanaponika Maha Thera outlines in The
Heart of Buddhist Meditation (London: Rider, 1983.)
Ledi Sayadaw explains the problem of focusing such awareness:
 The minds of most beings are never steady but fly about
here and there. They have no control over their minds and so
cannot fix them steadily on a subject of meditation. As they
cannot control their minds, they resemble mad or mentally
deranged persons . . . To eliminate the unsteady and flighty mind
and to fix it continuously on the meditation subject one has to
practice the Four Applications of Mindfulness(Sayadaw 56).

The Ven. Nyanatiloka translates the words of the Buddha on this

particular subject (Word of the Buddha 61):
"The only way that leads to the attainment of purity, to the overcoming of
sorrow and lamentation, to the end of pain and grief, to the entering upon the
right path and the realization of Nibbana, is by the FOUR FOUNDATIONS of
MINDFULNESS."
We will, of course, want to know what these foundations are, and the
Buddha tells us:
"Herein the disciple dwells in contemplation of the Body, in
contemplation of Feeling, in contemplation of the Mind, in contemplation of
the Mind-Objects; ardent, clearly comprehending them and mindful after
putting away worldly greed and grief."
What this means is that the disciple should examine the root of his bodily
perceptions, his feeling perceptions, his mental perceptions, and the objects of
contemplation of the mind, to bring them out in the light and to examine them
in the immediacy of the present to determine if they are confounded with
delusion and attachment. Nothing is what it seems because the mind
embellishes experience.
Bhikkhu Bodhi helps when he writes:
Clearing up the cognitive field is the task of right
mindfulness. Mindfulness brings to light experience in its pure
immediacy. It reveals the object as it is before it has been overlaid
with interpretations. To practice mindfulness is thus a matter not
so much of doing but of undoing: not thinking, not judging, not
associating, not planning, not imagining, not wishing. All these
 "doings" of ours are modes of interference, ways the mind
manipulates experience and tries to establish its dominance.
Mindfulness undoes the knots and tangles of these doings by
simply noting. It does nothing but note, watching each occasion of
experience as it arises, stands, and passes away. In the watching
there is no room for clinging, no compulsion to saddle things with
our desires. There is only a sustained contemplation of experience
in its bare immediacy, carefully precisely and persistently (Bodhi
86).

In other words, the mind observes, free of meanderings, the clear nature
of every experience, by separating the original experience from its
embellishments, and examining it closely to see what it really is.
Buddhists practice clearing the cognitive field in four ways which can be
worked on concurrently or on a step-by-step basis. The first is to examine the
material side of existence through the CONTEMPLATION OF THE BODY.

To enable us to quiet or calm the mind, so it is in a stable state to

contemplate the body's actions, the Buddha tells us (Nynanatiloka 61) about
BREATHING MEDITATION:

Herein the disciple retires to the forest, to the foot of a tree,

or to a solitary place, seats himself with legs crossed, body erect,
and with mindfulness fixed before him, mindfully he breathes in,
mindfully he breathes out. When making a long inhalation, he
knows: "I make a long inhalation"; when making a long
exhalation, he knows: "I make a long exhalation." When making a
short inhalation, he knows: "I make a short inhalation"; when
making a short exhalation, he knows: "I make a short exhalation."
"Clearly perceiving the entire (breath-) body, I shall breathe in:
thus he trains himself; clearly perceiving the (breath-) body, I shall
breathe out: thus he trains himself." "Calming this bodily
function, I shall breathe in": thus he trains himself; Calming this
bodily function, I shall breathe out: thus he trains himself.
Thus he dwells in contemplation of the body either with
regard to his own person or to other persons or to both. He
 beholds how the body arises; beholds how it passes away; beholds
the arising and passing away of the body. A body is there . . .

Mindfulness of Breathing has several uses. It is used for tranquilization

and calming the body, preparatory to the achievements of higher states called
ABSORPTIONS (jhana) and preparatory to the development of Insight
Wisdom.
It makes the disciple realize that he is not the body he is contemplating and that
the personality he thought he was contemplating does not really exist. Through
examination of the origin of the breath, he gains a physical stability or
composure in which state he has a better control over his mind. Eventually, as
development continues, he realizes there is a mental process outside of self,
watching the arising and passing away of breath, and this brings him closer to
an understanding of non-ego.
There are other forms of Mindfulness of the Body besides breathing.
The Buddha also recommended concentrating on the FOUR POSTURES OF
THE BODY, whilst WALKING, STANDING, SITTING, and LYING, until the
disciple realizes that there is no "real" self who walks, stands, sits, etc.
Similarly, the Buddha recommended mindfulness of acts such as bending
and stretching, eating, drinking, chewing, tasting, discharging excrement and
urine, and other bodily actions to give the disciple a clear conception that an
action of the body is an impersonal process devoid of an actual ego-entity.
Another exercise is the contemplation of LOATHESOMENESS of the
body from the top of the hair to the tip of the toes, the sack-of-skin stretched
over the frame, filled with impurities: . . . sinews, marrow, kidneys, heart, liver,
diaphragm, spleen, lungs, stomach, bowels, excrement, bile, phlegm, pus,
blood, sweat, lymph, tears, skin oils, saliva, mucus, urine, etc. The purpose of
this meditation is freedom from the illusion of the attractiveness of the human
body by concentration on its opposite. It helps to counter infatuation with the
body and sexual desire.
A similar exercise is to imagine the parts of the body the way a butcher
might slaughter and prepare a cow into separate portions, until you no longer
see it as a unified body but just as so many parts. Then, you must dissect the
body mentally until you no longer see it as a material entity with existence of
its own, when it is in fact nothing more than a compilation of the four elements
of solid, gas, heat, and liquid.
Another is CEMETERY MEDITATIONS which help the disciple
overcome the idea that he is never going to die. Imagine your corpse thrown on
a charnel ground, one, two or three days, dead, swollen-up, blue-black in color,
and full of corruption and decay, until you realize the opposite and you are free
of delusion of infallibility.
There are more such meditations on the body which can be studied in the
Pali Canon. These exercises may sound grotesque, but their purpose is not to
develop aversion, but rather, to explode false illusions which keep a tenacious
hold on the mind.
Once contemplation of the body begins to take effect, the result is
POSITIVE. The disciple will develop mastery over discontent, anxiety,
exposure, deprivation, slanderous attacks and even physical pain. He will
develop the four ABSORPTIONS (jhana) which purify the mind and bestow
happiness (Nynanatiloka 67).
The second of the four foundations of mindfulness is the
CONTEMPLATION OF FEELING.
The Buddha said (Digha Nikaya 22), "in experiencing feelings” the
disciple knows: "I have an agreeable feeling," or " I have a painful feeling" or
"I have an indifferent feeling . . ."
 Thus he dwells in contemplation of the feelings, either with regard to his
own person, or to other persons, or to both. He beholds how feelings arise,
beholds how they pass away . . .
The word "feeling" here means how the mind is disposed when it
encounters an object of experience. When a pleasant feeling arises, it may have
its origin in greed and desire. An unpleasant feeling may arise out of fear, hate,
or aversion. Neutral feelings may arise out of delusion.
The secret to this meditation exercise is to look at experience and cut off
the root of unwholesome volition when it begins to arise and interact in feeling.
If we just let the mind play in an uncontrolled manner, the defilements will
exert a role in coloring experience. If, however, through mindfulness, we
watch an experience as it arises and as it passes away, we can catch unwanted
Kamma and defuse the attachment, aversion or indifference. Through
mindfulness we can turn the experience back into a bare mental event, shorn of
subjective interplay.
The secret is to learn to let the flow of events arise and dissolve without
being subjectively involved. When the unwholesome root of feeling loses its
hold on events, events lose their illusory sense of permanence and become part
of the impermanent flux of the stream of events. With subjective feeling thus
suppressed in connection with observation, there is no sense of a permanent
ego interacting with events. This is what non-involvement means. It is the
detachment necessary for right mindfulness.
The third of the four foundations of mindfulness is
CONTEMPLATION OF THE MIND.
The Buddha said:
Herein the disciple knows the greedy mind as greedy; knows
the hating-mind as hating, and the not-hating mind as not-hating;
knows the deluded-mind as deluded, and the undeluded-mind as
undeluded. He knows the cramped mind as cramped, and the
scattered mind as scattered; knows the developed-mind as
 developed and the undeveloped mind as undeveloped; knows the
surpassable-mind as surpassable, and the unsurpassable-mind as
unsurpassable; knows the concentrated-mind as concentrated, and
the unconcentrated mind as unconcentrated; knows the freed-mind
as freed, and the unfreed mind as unfreed.

The word "mind" here means consciousness and should not be

confused with "thinking" which would necessitate a verbalization and/or
discursive thinking. Mind is a sequence of momentary mental acts as opposed
to being an enduring separable entity. Neither is it connected to a sense of self
or belonging to a self. Mind is a bare state of consciousness free of subjective
association.
As meditation practice deepens, the sense of the "observer" becomes
more and more detached and there is more and more sense of detachment until
all there is is detached mind.
As this happens, the unwholesome roots of greed, aversion, and delusion
become less-and-less capable of interacting in consciousness, and it becomes
less-cramped and scattered and more-developed, concentrated, and free. The
mind becomes more-and-more pure.
"As contemplation deepens, the contents of the mind become
increasingly rarefied. Irrelevant flights of thought, imagination, and emotion
subside, mindfulness becomes clearer, the mind remains intently aware,
watching its own process of becoming . . . The mind itself -- the seeming solid,
stable mind -- dissolves into a stream of "cittas" flashing in and out of being,
moment-by-moment, coming from nowhere and going nowhere, yet continuing
in sequence without pause"(Bodhi 99-100).
The last of the four foundations of mindfulness is
CONTEMPLATION OF THE MIND-OBJECTS:
The Buddha said:
Herein the disciple dwells in contemplation of the mind-
objects, namely of the Five Hindrances:
 He knows there is LUST in him: "In me there is lust.";
Knows when there is ANGER in him: "In me is anger."; Knows
when there is TORPOR and SLOTH in him: "In me is torpor and
sloth."; Knows when there is RESTLESSNESS and MENTAL
WORRY in him: "In me is restlessness and mental worry.";
Knows when there are DOUBTS in him: "In me are doubts." He
knows when these hindrances are not in him: "In me these
hindrances are not." He knows when they come to arise; knows
how once arisen they are overcome; and he knows how they do not
rise again in the future.

The term "MIND-OBJECTS" here means the bare facts of events colored
by the FIVE HINDRANCES of lust, anger, sloth, restlessness, and doubt.
The purpose of the exercise is to free the event from the effects of the
five hindrances through the ANTIDOTE of the seven FACTORS OF
ENLIGHTENMENT. The Venerable Nyanaponika puts it concisely when he
points out that it deals "with qualities to be abandoned and qualities to be
acquired" (The Heart of Buddhist Meditation 73). Again, we counter negative
factors by replacing them with positive ones.
For example, lust arises through unskilled-consideration of the agreeable
and delightful, but it may be suppressed through the skilled-application of the
seven factors: Mindfulness, Investigation, Energy, Rapture, Tranquility,
Concentration, and Equanimity, as we have discussed them earlier. Through
mindfulness, we block unwholesome arisen states and, through concentration,
bring the mind to one-pointedness and balance. Right mindfulness is a matter
of maintaining this clarity and balance, so the mind can concentrate purely on
the path to enlightenment and Nibbana.
Stress must here be placed upon the importance of the disciple's
mindfulness of how unwholesome states arise and pass away, how
consciousness arises and passes away, how investigation takes place and passes
away, how energy, rapture, and restlessness come into play and pass away, how
tranquillity, concentration come into play and pass away, how knowledge of
these states arises and is further developed, how it is in oneself and when it is
not, how one can continue to develop the path and how one can be hindered in
advancement on the path (see Nyanatiloka 72-74).
The disciple contemplates how the mind-objects arise and pass away . . .
"and he lives independent unattached to anything in this world. Thus does the
disciple dwell in the contemplation of the mind-objects. . . entering upon the
right path, and the realization of Nibbana . . ."(Nyanatiloka The Word of the
Buddha 73).
Remember, the Buddha only points out the steps in the path. It is up to
the disciple to follow those steps. As we said before, no one can do it for him.
It would behoove him, however, to have a good teacher to guide him on the
path to keep him from going astray through ignorance and delusion. The
teacher's loving-kindness will also serve as a factor to guide him on the path.
This is why disciples take REFUGE in the Buddha, the Sangha and the
Dhamma -- the Holy Triple Gem. Instances have also been recorded, however,
of laymen achieving Nibbana, so joining the SANGHA is not the only way,
though it is possibly the least-difficult of difficult alternatives. Thus ends the
discussion of the seventh factor of the EIGHTFOLD PATH.

The final factor of the Eightfold Path is RIGHT CONCENTRATION.

In The Road to Inner Freedom, Ven. Nyanaponika writes:
Right Concentration . . . ensures one-pointedness of mind.
It is the ability to focus steadily one's mind on any one object and
one only, to the exclusion of all others. There are many exercises
in mind concentration. Long-continued practice of mental
concentration makes the mind highly-penetrative. It becomes like
a high-powered light which can thoroughly illuminate any object
on which it is focused. Hence any object of thought which
presents itself to such a mind is thoroughly penetrated and
comprehended . . . Now this concentration of the mind like virtue
 is not an end in itself. The purpose of developing this Samadhi or
Concentration is to make use of its penetrative power to
understand existence and thereby realize the Highest Wisdom.

We now come to . . . Panna or Wisdom. When this highly-

concentrated mind, abiding in Samadhi, is made to focus its
attention on the three great characteristics of existence, namely
Impermanence, Suffering, and Egolessness . . . the mind is able to
see things as they actually are. The result is the dawning of the
Highest Understanding, which is the first factor of the Eightfold
Path, and, when perfected, its culmination, one sees Reality. This
realization coincides with the cessation of Craving and the
attainment of Nibbana (72).

This the goal of the path, which may be broken-down and explained in
further detail:
The Buddha said, "What now is Right Concentration? Having the mind
fixed to a single object (one-pointedness of mind) : this is
concentration"(Majjhima Nikaya 44).
Right Concentration depends on one-pointedness, but there are different
levels of one-pointedness. Just being able to concentrate on one mind-object to
the exclusion of all else is not enough. It may help to sort-out the tangle, but
one-pointedness is not an end in itself. It must be directed to higher-purposes
and right understanding, so the mediator should avoid concentration on bodily
or unwholesome mind states. Someone practicing tantra sensuality may have
one-pointedness; a warrior about to kill with his sword may have one-
pointedness, but they are missing the point of Buddhist Meditation. One has to
transcend the level of worldly states and concentrate on an object in a manner
that causes wholesome states to arise.
Right Concentration reflects the achievements of all the factors of the
Eightfold Path, playing a role simultaneously in helping to maintain the right
kind of one-pointedness, but it also looks forward to the achievement of new
mental states.
 It looks back to and draws upon Right Understanding
Right Effort
Right Intentions
Right Mindfulness

It reflects the Four Foundations of Mindfulness:

Contemplation of Body
Contemplation of Feeling
Contemplation of the Mind
Contemplation of the Mind-Objects

It requires the Four Great Efforts:

I. Abandon Unwholesome Mental States Before They Arise

by blocking The Five Hindrances:

Sensual Desire
Ill-Will
Dullness/Drowsiness
Restless Worry
Doubt

II. Abandon Arisen Unwholesome States through

concentration upon

The Impermanence of Life

Deterioration of the Body
Loving-Kindness
Compassion
Breathing Meditation
Investigative Analysis
and other meditation forms
suggested by the Buddha.

III. Arouse Wholesome Unarisen States through the Seven

Steps to Enlightenment:

1. Mindfulness
2. Investigation
3. Energy
 4. Rapture
5. Tranquillity
6. Concentration
7. Equanimity

IV. Maintain Arisen Wholesome States through illuminating the

Four Noble Truths:

The Nature of Suffering

The Cause of Suffering
The Extinction of Suffering
The Middle Way.

This is where Right concentration looks forward to a realization through

Right Mindfulness of

Impermanence of the Moment

Fleeting Nature of Existence
Transitory Nature of Being
The Vanity of Grasping
The Illusory Nature of Consciousness
Freedom from the Delusion of Self
Deliverance from Worldly Desire
Detached-Concentration
Rapture
Tranquillity
Equanimity

Accompanying detached observation, watching the play of events, after

extended practice, the mediator comes to learn about two methods of
concentration:
In the first one, INSIGHT MEDITATION, he "does not deliberately
attempt to exclude the multiplicity of phenomena from his field of attention.
Instead, he simply directs mindfulness to the changing states of mind and body,
noting any phenomenon that presents itself; his task is to maintain a continuous
awareness of whatever enters the range of perception, clinging to nothing. As
he goes on with his noting, concentration becomes stronger moment-after-
moment, until it becomes established one-pointedly, on the constantly changing
stream of events" (Bodhi 117). When this technique is practiced sufficiently, it
leads to a breakthrough to the final stage of the PATH TO FREEDOM,
INSIGHT , and WISDOM.
The second method is called TRANQUILLITY MEDITATION:
In this discipline, the mediator concentrates firmly upon one object,
presumably the meditation object given to him by his teacher. While doing his
breathing meditation, "he focuses his mind on the object and tries to keep it
there, fixed and alert. If the mind strays, he notices this quickly, catches it and
brings it back gently but firmly to the object, doing this over and over as often
as it is necessary"(Bodhi 109).
This is called initial application. Sustained-application anchors the
attention on the object and holds it there until the mediator begins to experience
RAPTURE (delight or joy) which accompanies having achieved pure
concentration and HAPPINESS (pleasure) which accompanies the restful and
refreshing nature of continued-concentration. The process culminates in one-
pointedness.
As one continues to meditate, these factors combine, complement one
another and pick-up-power to steer the mind to mental states called
ABSORPTIONS which are "beyond the reach of the five-fold sense activity,
attainable only in solitude and by unremitting perseverance. In these states, all
activity of the five senses is suspended. No visual or audible impressions arise
at such a time, no bodily feeling is felt. But although all other sense
impressions have ceased, the mind remains active, perfectly alert, fully
awake”(Nyanatiloka 79).
 The term ABSORPTION has been translated as a "state of trance," but
this rendering is vague and misleading, and Pali scholars call the FOUR
ABSORPTIONS the JHANA STATES.
The Buddha speaks explicitly on this subject:
"Detached from sensual objects, detached from evil things, the disciple
enters into the first Absorption, which is accompanied by Thought,
Concentration, and Discursive Thinking, is born of detachment, and filled with
Rapture and Happiness" (Digha Nikaya 22).
This is the first of the Absorptions. "It is attained when, through strength
of concentration, the five-fold sense activity is temporarily suspended, and the
five hindrances are likewise eliminated" (Nyanatiloka 80).
"This first Absorption is free from five things and five things are present.
When the disciple enters the first Absorption, there have vanished the five
hindrances: Lust, Ill-will, Torpor and Sloth, Restlessness and Mental Worry,
Doubts; and there are present: Thought Conception, Discursive Thinking,
Rapture, Happiness, Concentration" (Majjhima Nikaya 43).
"And further: after the subsiding of Thought Conception and Discursive
Thinking, and by the gaining of inner tranquillity and oneness of mind, he
enters into a state free from Thought Conception and Discursive Thinking, the
second Absorption, which is born of concentration, and filled with Rapture and
Happiness.
And further: after the fading away of Rapture, he dwells in equanimity,
mindful, with clear awareness: and he experiences in his own person that
feeling of which the Noble ones say: 'Happy lives he who is equanimous and
mindful';--thus he enters the third Absorption.
And further: after the giving-up of pleasure and pain, and through the
disappearance of previous joy and grief, he enters into a state beyond pleasure
and pain, into the fourth Absorption, which is purified by equanimity and
mindfulness.
The four Immaterial Absorptions which are based on the fourth
Absorption are produced by meditating on their respective objects from which
they derive their names: Sphere of Unbounded Space, of Unbounded
Consciousness, Nothingness, and of Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-
Perception"(Nyanatiloka 82).
These absorptions, reached by the path of serenity meditation, as exalted
as they are, still lack the wisdom of Insight and so are not yet sufficient for
gaining deliverance"(Bodhi 116).
TRANQUILLITY Concentration does not guarantee freedom from
unwholesome states and does not lead as a matter of course to the sort of
breakthrough that can be expected with INSIGHT CONCENTRATION.
THE WAY TO WISDOM is fulfillment of the Eightfold Path through
Understanding and Right Intention, making a final Effort to overcome the Root
of Suffering. The key achievement of this goal of the Mind is to find its
resolution in the OPPOSITE extreme of the Body, in the Root of Worldly
KAMMA. It means a final realization of the significance of the FOUR NOBLE
TRUTHS: realizing the path to Freedom from Suffering by breaking the final
Shackles of Desire; it means bringing about the EXTINCTION OF
SUFFERING and letting go of the world to be free to enter NIBBANA.
The Root of Suffering is a simple and powerful truth and should be
obvious to the perceptive disciple. But Understanding the ROOT is one thing
and ERADICATING it is quite another. The problem is that the source of the
affliction is latent and dormant, and we can't get at it if we don't know about it.
Even highly developed and very advanced-disciples can have hidden-remnants
of desire below the level of awareness which hold them back from making the
final step to freedom. In other words, IGNORANCE of deep-seated powers
that dominate volition can hold back even the most strong and gifted.
Ignorance distorts perception and causes DELUSION; thus the disciple,
in spite of his good intentions, seeks permanence in the impermanent,
satisfaction in the unsatisfactory, self in the selfless, and gets a distorted-view
of reality which hinders his progress on the path. In spite of knowing better, he
unconsciously perceives himself as a self-contained ego which has the innate
right to pleasure (Bodhi 120).
WISDOM is the ANTIDOTE to ignorance and delusion because the most
pernicious of cognitive distortions is a sense of a permanent self that craves
permanent pleasures in a permanent world, the solution is to focus the burning
light of concentration on illuminating the delusory nature of cognitive
perception.
Trapped in a dichotomy where the mind has the volition to go in one
direction but the innate tendency to go in the opposite direction, the disciple
must catch the mind in its tendency to take the path of least resistance and force
it through intense effort to go the other way: to go against the stream.
Wisdom centers on the development of INSIGHT, "a deep and
comprehensive seeing into the nature of existence which fathoms the truth of
. . . being" (Bodhi 120). This necessitates DISCURSIVE THOUGHT and
ANALYSIS of the true nature of being, getting at the root of experience before
it is colored by unconscious defilements, through the powerful light of the mind
to reduce experience to the bare fact without any subjective involvement.
Eventually, if the disciple pushes investigation to its end, he will
discover that there is really no independent self observing. There is only the
bare fact arising. There is mere detached observation. Similarly, he will
discover there are no permanent facts of existence to grasp onto for pleasure or
any other reason.
 The ANTIDOTE to the dissatisfaction connected to ideas of permanence,
pleasure, and self is through INSIGHT MEDITATION to observe or
concentrate upon IMPERMANENCE
UNSATISFACTORINESS
SELFLESSNESS

Impermanence means that things are in constant flux and perish as soon
as they arise. The objects of perception are mere strings of momentary
sensation, bubbles about to pop that can't be grasped. The stream of mental
events is made up of images that are constantly breaking-up.
Unsatisfactoriness means that if nothing lasts, there is nothing to hang on
to that will give lasting pleasure. Selflessness means that if we are not the
owners of the perceptions which we try to grasp and hold, then the very idea of
SELF is just another such TRANSITORY perception which has no lasting
permanence.
"When the course of insight practice is entered, the eight path factors
become charged with an intensity previously unknown. They gain force and
fuse together into the unity of a single cohesive path heading towards the goal. .
.The factors of the concentration group keep the mind firmly fixed upon the
stream of phenomena”(Bodhi 125).
As the wisdom of insight deepens, Right Understanding deepens and
Right Intentions intensify in an effort to penetrate the world of arising events.
This stage is called THE MUNDANE PATH: contemplation of the events of a
conditioned-world. When insight meditation pushes beyond the mundane
world, it enters THE SUPRAMUNDANE PATHS, which mean contemplation
and realization on unconditional-levels.
The Supramundane truths of IMPERMANENCE,
UNSATISFACTORINESS, and SELFLESSNESS are the ANTIDOTE to the
inherent defilements of the Mundane Path. The mind breaks through worldly
delusions and realizes that the opposite of the natural inclinations of the mind
represent the truth of nature. It frees the mind from the root of delusion about
permanence, pleasure, and self and brings the mind to the point where it is
finally ready to comprehend the FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS -- the starting point
and the culmination of the Buddha's teaching.
The mind sees the nature of suffering, the cause of suffering, the
extinction of suffering, and the way to the extinction of suffering, through the
Middle Way and the Noble Eightfold Path. When all the factors of the path are
functioning without hindrance, the mind works with powerful intensity
through Right Understanding and Right Intention to focus on attainment of
Nibbana.
When the SUPRAMUNDANE PATHS are entered, the EXTINCTION of
the latent tendencies to defilement is implicit:
Theravada teaching classifies these FETTERS as follows:

personality view
doubt
clinging to rites and rituals
sensual desire
aversion
desire for fine-material existence
desire for immaterial existence
conceit
restlessness
ignorance

The FOUR SUPRAMUNDANE PATHS eliminate certain layers of

defilement (Bodhi 128). The first supramundane path, which is called
STREAM ENTRY, strikes at the roots of the first three fetters: (1) Personality
View is cut-off when one begins to see that a permanent self is illusory; (2)
Doubt is eliminated when through a sense of accomplishment, one gains firm
confidence in pursuit of the path; (3) Clinging to Rules and Rites is abandoned
when one realizes that truth is not imposed through outside conventions but
must come from within.
The second stage, which is called the path of the ONCE-RETURNER,
does not eradicate the defilements entirely but greatly reduces the roots. In this
stage, the practitioner reaps the FRUIT of stream entry, enjoying a sense of
peaceful bliss which accompanies momentary release from the first three
fetters, giving a glimpse or insight into Nibbana before the mind sinks back into
defilement. The disciple who has experienced this FRUIT can never turn back.
He has finally entered the stream leading to deliverance and Nibbana. He may
have to be reborn to do it, but he will eventually overcome these impurities. He
has acquired the essential REALIZATION needed to achieve
Nibbana, and there will be no turning him back from that ultimate goal.
The third stage is the path of the NON-RETURNER in which the disciple
cuts-off the roots of the fourth and fifth fetters: (4) Sensual Desire and (5) Ill-
Will. Never again will he feel the need to be reborn in a human state of
existence Instead, he will be reborn in a higher state in a "fine-material world"
and there attain deliverance (Bodhi 130).
The fourth state is the path of ARAHATSHIP, in which the aspirant cuts-
off the five remaining fetters: Desire for (6) fine-material existence (7)
immaterial existence; and the bonds of (8) conceit, (9) restlessness, and (10)
ignorance. He has practiced the Eightfold Path and followed it to FULL
FRUITION. "Endowed with its eight factors in full-PERFECTION, he lives in
the enjoyment of their fruits, enlightenment and final deliverance" (Bodhi 130).
He is free from all bondage in the round of Samsara. Fulfillment of the Path is
transcending and going beyond the need for it.
"The understanding of the relaxation of endeavour is Knowledge of
Fruition" (Patisambhidamagga 171). The Path performs the task of breaking-up
defilements, which leads to the bliss of Nibbana when this demanding exertion
subsides.
As we have been following Bhikkhu Bodhi's outline of The Noble
Eightfold Path, we shall also quote one of his concluding statements:
"The higher reaches of the path might seem remote from our present
standing, the demands of practice difficult to fulfill. But . . . [the] only
requirements for reaching the final goal are two: to start and to continue”
(Bodhi 131).
Certainly, talking about the final stages of the path is difficult, as it is
like navigating uncharted waters. Certainly talking about the higher states is
unsuitable material for teaching, as they must be EXPERIENCED rather than
thought-about and discussed, but therein lies the answer: the aspirant must
practice the factors of the path step-by-step, stage-by-stage, through gradual
practice and gradual progress, until he begins to reap the fruit of his efforts.
"Experience" of the higher states will come even if progress seems slow and the
need for effort seems relentless.
Progress in the path is like rubbing two sticks together to make fire. If
you stop for a rest, you'll lose most of the progress you've made and have to
start over, but if you continue in an unrelenting manner, you will eventually
succeed. Start and continue and you will see where your effort leads.
It starts with Right Understanding of Suffering and the Origins and
Cessation of Suffering and the Middle Way leading to the Cessation of
Suffering. It continues through Right Intentions of Renunciation of
Unwholesome Kamma and Wholesome Intentions of Good Will and
Harmlessness, Abstaining from false, slanderous, harsh or idle speech,
Abstaining from taking life, stealing, sexual misconduct and Abstaining from
earning one's livelihood by Unwholesome Means. It continues through Right
Action into Right Effort of restraining and abandoning the defilements and
developing and maintaining wholesome states, with the help of Right
Mindfulness, Contemplation of the body, the feelings, the mind, and the objects
of perceptions of the mind, so that the aspirant achieves Right Concentration,
passing through the stages of Jhana and the Four Supramundane States directed
towards final deliverance from the round of Samsara and release into a state of
Nibbana.
It is difficult to conceive of something more difficult than continued and
unrelenting adherence to the path. Rubbing two sticks together to make fire is
actually child's play by comparison. A more-appropriate analogy would be to
say that following the path is like trying to put out a fire which has spread
everywhere and seems to be out of control. It's harder to put out such a fire
than it is to start one, YET that is what Buddhist practice concentrates upon --
blowing out the fire of desire little-by-little, bit-by-bit, until the last flicker
disappears, bringing release and achievement of Nibbana. Start and continue
and see where effort leads.
Before concluding, we must leave the reader with one final thought. The
approach in this explication of the Noble Eightfold Path has been strict and
rigorous, grasping the discipline of the path, and going at it with unrelenting
fervor, hanging-on hard with a determination that is extreme. Here, it is good
to be reminded that perception of the opposite of every extreme helps to bring
perspective into balance. You won't achieve Nibbana while in a state of stress.
Thus the aspirant will realize that having followed the rigors of the path to
fruition, he must learn to let go. It's a paradox, but in the resolution of that
paradox is the answer: the aspirant will only be able to achieve Nibbana when
he learns to let go.
While there is more that could be said about DELIVERANCE FROM
SUFFERING and ACHIEVEMENT OF NIBBANA, this brings the present
exposition to an end. More detailed explications by eminently qualified
scholars on difficult points of practice may be found in the booklist of the
Buddhist Publication Society (BPS). The student who wants to know more
should find the guidance he needs in these sources. The rest is practice and
experience.
Speaking of qualified scholars, we shall conclude with a quotation from
Prof. T.W. Rhys Davids, founder and first president of the Pali Text Society of
London, which seems eminently appropriate: "Buddhist or not Buddhist, I have
examined every one of the great religious systems of the world, and in none of
them have I found anything to surpass in beauty and comprehensiveness, the
Noble Eightfold Path of the Buddha. I am content to shape my life according to
that Path."
Works Cited

Bodhi, Bhikkhu. The Noble Eightfold Path. Kandy: B.P.S., 1984.

Ledi Sayadaw. The Noble Eightfold Path and its Factors Explained. Kandy:
B.P.S., 1977.

Malalasekera, G.P. 2500 Years of Buddhism. Columbo: Lanka Buddha

Mandalaya, [no date]

Nanamoli, Bhikkhu. The Path of Purification(Visuddhi Magga). Kandy:

B.P.S., 1975.

Narada, Mahathera. The Buddha and His Teachings. Kandy: B.P.S., 1980.

------------------ Buddhism in a Nutshell. Pondicherry, India: Ashram Press,

1959.

Nyanaponika, Mahathera. The Road to Inner Freedom. Kandy: B.P.S., 1982.

---------------------- The Heart of Buddhist Meditation. London: Rider, 1983.

Nyanatiloka, Mahathera. The Word of the Buddha. Kandy: B.P.S., 1967.

Note: For those who are interested, The Buddhist Publication Society (BPS) is
a non-profit organization dedicated to making known the word of the Buddha
by publishing scholarly and authoritative translations from the Pali Tipitaka,
the earliest Buddhist scriptures, in the Theravada tradition, as well as later
commentorial literature, and other writings by highly-regarded Buddhist-
scholars, including contemporary expositions of Buddhist thought.

The BPS booklist and more information

is available at <www.bps.lk>

Buddhist Publication Society Inc.

P.O. Box 61, Kandy,
Sri Lanka.

This book explains the actual words

that the Lord Buddha said and taught

to his disciples, over 2500 years ago,

about following the path to

enlightenment and nibbana,

with an emphasis on personal discipline,

in daily Buddhist practice,

in the thoughts and actions of life,

avoiding causation of harm and

developing the moral and spiritual purity

 needed for achieving higher-levels

of concentraton and understanding

on the path to the cecessation

of the needs which cause the sufferings of the world.