The Way — Noble Eightfold Path

Related to The Way to Buddhahood verse: no. 79

Verse 79

That which can eliminate suffering and accumulation 

Is only the way of the One Vehicle. 

The three studies and the eightfold right path 

Can lead to Nirvāṇa.

Article Reading: 

(1) The Noble Eightfold Path by Walpola Sri Rahula

(2) The Noble Eightfold Path of Organic Gardening by Wendy Johnson

* suggestion: read both articles, start with the article by Ven. Rahula for definition of Eightfold Path, then only follow by the sharing by Wendy, see how she applies the Eightfold Path in daily living.

Food for thought:

How do you perform the Eightfold Path in your daily life or work?

Questions on Jan 17th (replied on 2021-01-23):

1. How do the 3 poisons (greed, hate, ignorance) contribute to each step on the noble eightfold path?

~> any kind of poison can ruin our Path in whole. However, we still can analyze them separately:

~> ignorance mainly affects our Right Understanding and Right Thought (we can’t get a clear understanding and right thinking because of ignorance or wrong views)

~> hate will influence our Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood (we normally out of control verbally and physically when we were angry, and those misbehavior will affect our livelihood in certain scale)

~> greed typically affects our Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration (when we irrationally “attach to” and “crave for” something or someone, our focusing mind will become weak due to the distractions)

2. How can we apply "right livelihood" in the modern world when everything is so interconnected?

~> You are definitely right that nowadays we are so interconnected, compared to the living style in the past which was not so complicated.

~> To overcome this dilemma, my suggestion is do our best to avoid below situations while we make money for living :

(1) the resources that related to killing people or human trafficking

(2) the resources that related to stealing or fraudulence 

(3) the resources that related to debauchery, especially things that destroy the harmonious family life of others

(4) the resources that related to false speeches mainly on the issues that involved lawsuits and will put people into prison.

~> in short, do our best to decrease the harm to oneself and others

3. What is meant by "Idle chatter" ? We talked about how during the pandemic older people and lonely people just need to be heard.

~> accompanying older people and lonely people during the pandemic and listening to them, even telling jokes to make them happy and laugh occasionally, I don’t think those are “idle chatter". 

~> “idle chatters” are something purposeless, useless and innutrition; however, talk to older people and lonely people, we have an obvious purpose which at least for maintaining their health physically and mentally.

4. Right effort seems to be categorized differently by different masters mainly how it relates to the different factors? Can you explain why this would be so and how we should view it?

~> Since there are three essential elements of Buddhist practice—moral conduct, mental discipline, and wisdom, when Right Effort is put into the practice of moral conduct, then this Right Effort will definitely be related to Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood.

~> Similarly, when we focus our Right Effort on Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration, then it will definitely can be categorized into the group of Mental Disciplines (the focused mind)

~> And that’s why different masters will relate it to the different factors.

5. Is right understanding the same as "Right View"?

~> Yes.

Questions on Jan 31st (replied on 2021-02-02):

1. What are the pratyekabuddhas? we understand that they are on the Mahayana path.

I see that they are talked about in detail in Chapter 5. Should we go there next?

When we talk about “the ultimate spiritual achievements” in Buddhism, there are four different categories, which are: śrāvaka 聲聞, pratyekabuddha 緣覺, bodhisattva 菩薩 and Buddha 佛

And, they all are enlightened beings, regardless of the school of Theravāda or Mahāyāna. 

The characteristic of pratyekabuddhas are :

(1) solitary realizer, which means their realization needs nobody to guide them, they can achieve enlightenment by themselves. Hence, they usually appeared in the period when the world didn't have any Buddha. And, that’s why sometime we translate pratyekabuddhas as 獨覺in Chinese. The first character 獨 means solitary, and the second character 覺 is enlightenment (or realize).

(2) self-enlightened one, who lives apart from others and attains enlightenment alone, or for himself, making a contrast with the altruism of the bodhisattva.

(3) they usually enlightened through contemplation of dependent arising, especially as defined in the twelve dependent origination, so one of the Chinese translation for pratyekabuddhas is 緣覺. The first character 緣 is dependent origination, and the second character 覺 is enlightenment.

2. What is meant by one vehicle?---is it the only way to practice? Some of us agreed with this statement while others wondered. Maybe the question is ...Is the only way to practice the Bodhisattva path? even for different capacities?

First of all, the idea of “vehicle（乘）” is a cart literally. A transportation that takes people to an ultimate place, which is the ultimate spiritual achievement, the so-called Nibbana / Nirvana, the goal of the Buddhist Path.

Sometime, we saw “lesser vehicle” and “great vehicle” in the doctrines, there should be no demeaning to any party, because both can achieve enlightenment. However, lesser vehicle can just bring one person to the goal, while the great vehicle is like a big coach or big cruise that can bring many people to the ultimate destination in one time.

When the “vehicle (乘）” refers to “path”, then it means the Buddhist Way. There are many combinations to say the way/path. Sometimes, we call the Buddhist Way as Middle Path, and here you have learned the phrase “One Vehicle”, it is just as same as the Only Path or the One Way.

Either Only Path, the One Way or the One Vehicle here, is referred to the practices which will bring us to achieve the ultimate spiritual achievement.

If we still ask, “what's that Only Path?” We can say that the Noble Eightfold Path is that so-called The Only Path. We also can say that, all the practices mentioned in the book (The Way to Buddhahood) is that so-called The Only Path. This is because all the practices mentioned in the book are interrelated with the Noble Eightfold Path.

Lastly, can we say that “the three essential elements of Buddhist practice—moral conduct, mental discipline, and wisdom” as “The Only Path / One Vehicle”? Absolutely, because when we expand the practices, they are also related to the Noble Eightfold Path.

3. Is Accumulation referring to the 12 links of dependent origination?

~ In short, Yes. 

~ The 12 links of Dependent Origination is actually pointed out as “the cause of suffering”, which means it explains “the reasons why we have all sorts of suffering”.

~ “the cause(s)”, and “the reason(s)” are the factors that make us suffer, or we can say it the other way round, we accumulate all sorts of suffering from those  “the cause(s)” and “the reason(s)” .

~ All  “the cause(s)” and “the reason(s)” here, we usually translate into “Accumulation” in English, and it is actually “the Second Noble Truth” in the Four Noble Truth.

Questions on February 7th (replied on 2021-02-10):

In the article the author says:

RIGHT VIEW is to have no fixed view of what a garden is and to allow the voice of the uncultivated watershed to guide the design.

How should we interact in our daily life with no fixed view? While practicing right/view?

~> RIGHT VIEW is to have "No fixed view on something or somebody”, is a casual way to highlight “the view of impermanence” and “the  view of no-self”.

~> In daily life, we do our best to make sure everything runs smoothly, then we will easily fall into the view of “I must get this outcome”, “I should get that as consequences” etc. We assume that everything/everyone will go our way, that is the so-called “fixed view” and tend to leave behind the Right View teachings.

~> The author suggests “No Fixed View” for us to cultivate our Right View. Once we do our best in all aspects of our life, and the rest is just to be ready to accept all the possible results. Be grateful for everything that turns out great, and learn to accept and improve if out of our expectations.

The Bodhisattva Aspiration

 Related to The Way to Buddhahood verse: no. 114

Not tolerating the decline of the noble teachings,

Not tolerating the suffering of sentient beings,

Through the arising of great compassion,

Enter into the Great Vehicle.

Article Reading: 

An Everyday Aspiration by Manjusura

Food for thought:

How can I turn my common daily task into an Everyday Bodhisattva Aspiration?

What are effects of environment on dharma?

We, beings interrelated with environment inseparably and cooperatively. In Buddha’s teaching, we have a buddhist term which is “the karmic retribution of direct and circumstantial”, in chinese is called “依正二報”. 

“The Direct Retribution” refers to our body and personality, while “The Circumstantial Retribution” refers to the world, country, family, etc., in which we are born. In other words, the former is about oneself (the being), and the latter is the environment. 

Our current situation, no matter oneself or the environment we have, is the karmic results of our past; and of course we are affecting and influencing our future. As buddhist practitioners, we do our best for a better future, in aspect of our “Direct Retribution” as well as “Circumstantial Retribution”.

The reasons are as below:

(1) Environment provides us the nutrition. Most of the elements in our body are related to environment, we need water, air, soil etc., to survive.

(2) Environment heal us physically and mentally. When you are upset, try to have a walk in the park or woods, you will definitely experience the healing process run spontaneously.

(3) Environment is part of the Dharma. Environment — the climate, the season, the ecology etc., tell / teach us impermanence, non-self (the lack of existence of an inherent self), and even the teaching of emptiness.

Maybe, there are certain people destroying the environment, never infuriated by their wrongdoings. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean to turn a blind eye to that bad situation. What we have to do at first is, back to our mind and purify it.

With a clean and clear mind, the best solutions will arise, and from that moment onwards, we are actually initiating the good and wholesome influence to beings and environment, by means of physical and mental actions.

For Habits

The very 4 keywords for habits:
Use PREVENT & OVERCOME for your unhealthy habits;
Use CULTIVATE & MAINTAIN for your wholesome habits.

To bridle or to discern

Never try to control, 

the unmanageable circumstances.

Why not recognize thoroughly,

everything is just in continual transformation?

控制？識別？

決不試圖支配，

無法控制的情況。

何不徹底認識，

一切都在不斷變革中？

Cope with Uncertainty

There is no choice to meet with the uncertainty of life,

but react wholesomely should always be our preference.

應對無常

面對生命中的無常，

我們別無選擇；

惟務必確保地是：

良善應對之。

Is time to back to an art you interested

Buddhist Thank-You Cards

By Carolyn Gregoire

Finding a bridge to pass through our tragedy to the land of understanding and compassion.

Excerptions :

“No mud, no lotus” ......it is from suffering that we learn compassion, from loss that we learn understanding, and from overcoming struggles that we come to discover our own strength and beauty.

The phenomenon of post-traumatic growth has now been observed in more than 300 scientific studies, and research has found that up to 70 percent of trauma survivors report some positive psychological growth.

Art seeks to make sense of everything from life’s smallest moments of sadness to its most earthshattering tragedies......And last, art can be a vehicle for the development of compassion.

......

Click here to read the article: Buddhist Thank-You Cards

Yes or No reaction modes

Ask yourself these questions before saying “yes” or “no” to anything

By Lisa Evans

Do we always reply “yes” or “no” out of fear? Fear of being rejected by others, we become Mr/s Yes; fear of failure, we become Mr/s No. 

What are the questions that we have to introspect before we say “Yes” or “No”?

Perhaps this article will help us out of the tags of “Yes” or “No” person.

Excerptions :

When you say yes to something that doesn’t align with your goals or interests, you are saying that someone else’s goals are more important than your own.

......saying “no” too often can cause some backlash. People may stop offering opportunities......

......

Click here to read the article: Ask yourself these questions before saying “yes” or “no” to anything

Worry or Angry ?

Don’t Worry, Be Angry

By Thanissara

Angry again? Let see how the author share with us the ideas of make good use on the energy of anger.

Excerptions :

Looking on at the mindless destruction of the planet, how can we not feel outraged?

Anger burns us up, injures others, or, when we repress it, collapses us into depression.

Anger is a warning that something is invading and overwhelming us. If we don’t take heed, disorder and destruction will follow.

This energy, when distilled into clarity and wisdom, burns away the dross of self-seeking desires and fears.

Anger as a healthy response to injustice has a different quality. It is clarifying. 

If we prematurely condemn or repress anger because we think it unworthy to feel, then we will fail to transform it.

......

Click here to read the article: Don’t Worry, Be Angry

Healing thru writing

On Writing Letters to Famous Strangers

By A. M. Home

Came across this article unexpectedly.

Love reading it.

Share with me your thoughts, if you read.

Excerptions :

As a teenager, I wrote letters to strangers.

I didn’t write to strangers because they were famous. I didn’t want an autographed eight-by-ten. I wanted to tell them about my life, my day at school. I wanted to drive a wedge between my childhood and the larger world that I hoped I might join one day. I wanted a way out. 

We are all in more communication with each other than ever before: email, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc. But when you think about communicating, think about reaching beyond what is familiar. You can reach into the lives of others. You can reach into the heart of the world.

Click here to read the article: On Writing Letters to Famous Strangers

Dementia vs Mindfulness Practice

Who Are We Without Our Memories?

By Pamela Gayle White

Excerptions :

For people living with dementia, mindfulness practice—especially guided meditations of the “leaves drifting down a stream” sort—can be very beneficial.

For care partners, working with memory loss and dementia is an invitation to shift away from the habitual focus on past and future, and to more fully embrace the freshness of not knowing, not doing—to simply accommodate what is happening right now.

Awareness of the truth of suffering and impermanence always provides fertile ground for spiritual practice.

Recognizing the emptiness component is essential to letting go, and letting go is essential to well-being and realization.

Click to read the article: Who Are We Without Our Memories?

Stop texting while driving

Kick off a right action by stop texting while driving.
Tiny little habit brings big change!

正行，從「開車不滑手機」開始。
巨大變化來自微小習慣！

The Ecstasy of Surrender

Tired of arguing, resisting, holding back, fighting, overthinking, torturing yourself with self-doubt?

Spend 20 minuets with Dr. Judith Orloff and learn the skill of “surrender”—— an ability to give yourself wholeheartedly to something.

Perhaps, “surrender” is a gateway to “let it be” and “let go”.

＜令人欣喜若狂的臣服＞

對「爭論、抵制、阻攔、鬥爭、想太多、用自我懷疑來折磨自己」感到厭倦嗎？

用20分鐘與Dr. Judith Orloff學習「臣服」的技巧——一個讓自己全心全意投入的能力。

或許，「臣服」是步入「隨順」與「放下」的途徑。