1) RIGHT VIEWS: Do not allow your intellect to be overrun by your emotions or desires. In all spiritual pursuits reason must be maintained and satisfied.

2) RIGHT INTENT: Decide if enlightenment is what you truly want. Committed, disciplined, attention to the Path is required for spiritual growth. Make sure you are not easily distracted by spiritual trends and things of the world.

3) RIGHT SPEECH: Pay close attention to the things you say. Make note of every time you speak an untruth or say something unkind. Ask yourself why you resorted to lies or meanness. Face the ego that requires these defenses to hide behind. Avoid not just lies, gossip, and slander, but subtle forms of verbal abuse: belittling, tactlessness, insults disguised as “advice”, and insulting humor.

4) RIGHT CONDUCT:

Follow the Five Precepts:

- Do not kill.
- Do not steal.
- Do not lie.
- Do not be unchaste.
- Do not drink intoxicants.

6) RIGHT EFFORT: Reaching the goal requires hard work. “Those who follow the Way,” said Buddha, “might well follow the example of an ox that marches through the deep mire carrying a heavy load. He is tired, but his steady gaze, looking forward, will never relax until he comes out of the mire, and it is only then he takes a respite. O monks, remember that passion and sin are more than filthy mire, and that you can escape misery only by earnestly and steadily thinking of the Way.”

7) RIGHT MINDFULNESS: Look inside and seek to understand your true nature. Recognize that your thoughts and feelings flow in and out of your awareness and are in no way who you are. Witness thoughts and emotions non reactively, neither condemning nor holding on, notice them,and let them pass.

8) RIGHT CONCENTRATION: Sit in meditation daily. Train your mind to overcome the distractions of the physical body.Practice deep breathing exercises. Put concentrated (8) effort (6) into mindfulness (7).

CONCLUSION

The main source for this brief look at Buddhism is “The World’s Religions” by Huston Smith. For a more in depth examination of the Buddhist tradition and the Path of the Buddha I highly recommend reading “The World’s Religions.”




I will conclude with Huston Smith’s description of the Three Vows of Buddhism:

I take refuge in the Buddha,the fact that there was an explorer who made this trip and proved to us that it can succeed.

I take refuge in the dharma, the vehicle of transport, this boat to which we have committed our lives in the conviction that it is seaworthy.

I take refuge in the sangha, the order, the crew that is navigating this ship, in whom we have confidence. The shoreline of the world has been left behind. Until we set foot on the further bank, these are the only things which we can trust.