The Buddha’s Eight-fold path (EFP)
1. Right Understanding It is the ability to fully comprehend the four noble truths. It also entails the capacity to distinguish between the right and the wrong.
2. Right mindfulness: The causes that lead to suffering are rooted in the mind. It is essential, therefore for us to free our minds from the passions that are responsible for the suffering, not only to us but to others as well. What names can we give to these passions? Hatred, cruelty, craving, desire, expectation, greed, etc. are the passions we should guard against. If we observe carefully, we could point to the emotions of worry and anger being inalienably linked to these passions. Obviously, if these passions are responsible, as they actually are, for our suffering as well as that of others, there cannot be any extinction of suffering, unless we free ourselves from these passions. Liberation from suffering therefore is contingent upon riddance from these passions.
3. Right speech: Speech is the most important instrument of making our social life meaningful; the medium of expression of the self as well as a tool for relating with others, But weshould not forget that it is through the medium of speech that our passions get expressed, too, and in that process cause harm to ourselves and others. “In words lie the seeds of all dis sension,” so goes the age-old saying, that is valid even today. So speech can damage and destroy amity, harmony, peace, loving relationships. So what does right speech mean? Should we tell lies that the truth may hurt others? No, there is no alter native to the truth, but we have to be careful in the choice of words as well as the tone guarding against any undesired, neg ative effect on the psyche of others. Besides, loose talk and gossip can cause untold harm, particularly if we don’t fight shy of lying and using foul language.
4. Right action: It means not doing certain things: striving not to kill any living being, dispossessing no one of what right fully belongs to them, and abstaining from acts that do not behove cultured human beings. Elimination of actions that may be harmful to the self as well as others would leave space only for actions that nobody will find reason to disapprove of. The actions that invite either wrath or ridicule or disapproval are to be consciously avoided. In a way, it amounts to cleansing the mind-body system of the toxins that might instigate one to do the undoable.
5. Right Living: Simply put, it means the means of earning one’s livelihood should be such as harm nobody. In all scrip tures, social and legal codes, the world-over, certain things like robbery, extortion, ransom, sex trafficking, accepting or giving bribes are recognized as violation of right living. The value of whatever we contribute to society in no way should be less than the remuneration we receive for It. Whatever we get in exchange for what we give should never outweigh the latter.
6. Right effort: Engaging oneself in and directing one’s energies to the quest of enlightenment, in a nutshell, is the right effort. It signifies the capacity to watch one’s mind, keep it incheck and not allowing it to entertain thoughts that might cause harm to the self or the others. Shakyamumi Buddha had sub divided this path into four categories with a view to ensuring mastery over the right effort.
(a) Avold: Avoiding negative thoughts and evil acts would lead to creation of positive thinking, which in turn would result in well-thought out actions. Avoid if you and others are being harmed. Avoid also if the self remains unharmed but others are subjected to harm. Do, and freely do, if it hurts neither the self nor the others.
(b) Overcome: Overcome what had already entrenched itself before the effort to avoid was made. Overcome the nega tivity that has settled in the mind. Overcome the dirt that has afflicted the mind and is reflected in action.
(c) Cultivate: Whatever is good and beautiful is to be cultivated. All that is positive has to be developed. Cultivate detach ment, compassion.
(d) Maintain: Whatever is good and positive in thought and action has to be maintained. The more the space is occupied by good things the less would the space be left for harmful things. Whatever virtues and good acts have been willfully and con sciously mastered need to be maintained. Positive attitude has to be strengthened.
7. Right attentiveness: Right attentiveness needs to be interpreted in the context of the power and capacity of aware ness in general, and self-awareness in particular. What does it mean? It means that we have to be all the time aware of what ever is happening and whenever, on our body-mind-speech planes. Just observe and not be swept away by it. Remaining aware (and also demonstrating that we are just observers saakshi bhaav in Kabir’s lexicon) would save us from being swept away. If we can avoid being swept away, we’ll be saved the labour of working at the ‘overcoming level (cf. Right effort), apart from being able to undertake a new effort (cf Right effort, again). If we are carried away, we’ll get entangled in the game of ‘snake and ladder’ and the snake very surely will pull us down into a much lower level of consciousness.
8. Right Concentration: It trains our mind to focus one pointedly (in a cusp-like manner) and unwaveringly on a specific issue or subject. Training the mind in such a manner aims at being able to overcome the futile and vain wanderings and fancies of the mind which lead to negative and harmful action, sig nailing a deviation from our chosen path. Such an eventuality also adversely affects right attentiveness. For mastering point ed concentration it is always advisable to seek guidance of a master meditator. Being able to overcome the wanderings of the mind is not an easy job, for it is said about these thoughts that the more you resist them, the more they persist.
The value of Shakyamuni Buddha’s eight-fold path as a means to liberation from suffering and pain is immense. And so is that of the four noble truths that constitute the cornerstone of the path. Likewise, the five Reiki principles adopted by Dr Usui as the directive principles for Reiki masters/ healers are immensely valuable, too. And since both have their origin in the mind of Shakyamuni Buddha, it is only natural and understand able that at a deeper level, the two are intertwined. So why not try and analyze each one of the five principles in the light and context of the Eight-fold path
vinodhan,