The path is a process to help you remove or move beyond the conditioned responses that

obscure your true nature. In this sense the Path is ultimately about unlearning rather than learning
- another paradox.

In Buddhism, the eightfold path is meant as a guideline, to be considered, to be contemplated,

and to be taken on when, and only when each step is fully accepted as part of the life you seek.
Buddhism never asks for blind faith, it seeks to promote learning and a process of self-discovery.

These eight factors aim at promoting and perfecting the three essentials of Buddhist training and
discipline: namely: (a) Ethical Conduct (Sila), (b) Mental Discipline (Samadhi) and (c) Wisdom
(Panna).

THE NOBLE EIGHTFOLD PATH

Right Understanding/view (Samma ditthi)

Right Thought/intent/resolve (Samma sankappa)
Right Speech (Samma vaca)
Right Action (Samma kammanta)
Right Livelihood (Samma ajiva)
Right Effort (Samma vayama)
Right Mindfulness (Samma sati)
Right Concentration (Samma samadhi)

The word Samma means 'proper', 'whole', 'thorough', 'integral', 'complete', and 'perfect' - related
to English 'summit' - It does not necessarily mean 'right', as opposed to 'wrong'. However it is
often translated as "right" which can send a less than accurate message. For instance the opposite
of 'Right Awareness' is not necessarily 'Wrong Awareness'. It may simply be incomplete. Use of
the word 'right' may make for a neat or consistent list of qualities in translations. The down side
is that it can give the impression that the Path is a narrow and moralistic approach to the spiritual
life. I use variant interpretations so you consider the depth of meanings. What do these things
mean in your life right now?
The first step of the eightfold path is Right Understanding or Right View.

This is a significant step on the path as it relates to seeing the world and everything in it as it
really is, not as we believe it to be or want it to be with an understanding of the Four Noble
Truths. When you fully understand the marks and truths, then you see the world and yourself
without delusion, hatred, greed, etc. This understanding is the highest wisdom which sees the
Ultimate Reality. Real deep understanding or “penetration” (pativedha) is seeing a thing in its
true nature, without name and label. This penetration is possible only when the mind is free from
all impurities and is fully developed through meditation.

The Unwholesome and the Wholesome

Right view also entails understanding what is unwholesome and avoiding it, and

understanding what is wholesome and doing it.

What did the Buddha say were the causes of the unwholesome? They are any and all
forms of greed, hatred, delusion, and the belief in a separate self.
What did the Buddha say were the causes of the wholesome? They are equanimity
and renunciation, compassion and loving kindness, wisdom, and releasing the
"conceit" of self.

The second step on the Eightfold Path is Right Intent. Right Understanding shows us what
life really is and what life’s problems are composed of, Right Intent urges us to decide what our
heart wants.
This is a broad aim of not causing pain, loss, or destruction to any living thing. At a
minimum, this is a sweeping resolution to avoid any whit of harm to another human
being. The implications are far-reaching, since most of us participate daily in
activities whose requirements or ripples may involve harm to others (e.g., use of
fossil fuels that warms the planet, purchasing goods manufactured in oppressive
conditions).
But what we can do is to have a sincere aspiration toward harmlessness, and to
reduce our harms to an absolute minimum. And that makes all the difference in the
world.

Right speech
Abstinence from false speech
Do not knowingly say what is not true. But note that this does not mean you have to
tell people everything.

Abstinence from malicious speech

This links to the intention of non-ill will. Malice has to do with intention, but those
intentions are often unconscious or fleeting. If you are about to say something but
you're getting a funny feeling, you probably shouldn't say it.
Abstinence from harsh speech
"Harsh" is a matter of both content and tone. Sometimes the best course is to say
something that is true, useful, and timely - even if not welcome - and the art is to say
it in a clean way.

Right Action
Introduction
These are restatements of three of the five basic precepts.

Abstinence from the destruction of life

At a minimum, this means not killing human beings through murder or through
war. For example, unlike other major religions, there has never been a war in the
name of the Buddha.

Abstinence from taking what is not given

Beyond the obvious action of not stealing, it's interesting to reflect on broader notions of not
taking what is not freely offered. What about glancing at a letter sitting out on another person's
desk; were its contents freely offered to you? Or looking at the photo of an actress sunbathing
snapped by a paparazzi; did she offer you her image voluntarily? There's $10 lying on the
sidewalk: do you pick it up?
Abstinence from sexual misconduct
Obviously, this means not engaging in infidelity, rape, molestation, or incest; for monks and
nuns it goes farther and includes touch, being alone with a member of the opposite sex, etc.

Right livelihood.
This is a livelihood based on correct action the ethical principal of non-exploitation. The basis of
an Ideal society.
Right Livelihood means that one should abstain from making one’s living through a profession
that brings harm to others, such as trading in arms and lethal weapons, intoxicating drinks or
poisons, killing animals, cheating, etc.,
"These five trades should not be taken up: trading in weapons, living beings, meat,
intoxicants, poisons."

Right Effort means cultivating an enthusiasm, a positive attitude in a balanced way. Like the
strings of a musical instrument, the amount of effort should not be too tense or too impatient, as
well as not too slack or too laid back. Right Effort should produce an attitude of steady and
cheerful determination.

In order to produce Right Effort, clear and honest thoughts should be welcomed, and feelings of
jealousy and anger left behind. Right Effort equates to positive thinking, followed by focused
action.

You could be working at a place that does service to others, but if you are treating coworkers
unfairly, or you are cheating your employers out of hours or money, then you might want to
examine your intentions. This is an area that is worth deep and detailed exploration. The
Eightfold Path helps us learn to make our own judgement calls on where we work, how we can
make the most of it, and how we interact with others while doing our jobs.
Right Mindfulness never be absent minded, being conscious of what one is doing; this, states
Harvey, encourages the mindfulness about impermanence of body, feeling and mind.
Mindfulness is simply a continuous, non-judgmental, accepting awareness of your
inner and outer world - especially your inner one: the flow of experience. It is a very
grounded awareness, not some kind of lofty mystical state.

Right concentration
implies that we select worthy directions for the concentration of the mind, although everything in
nature, beautiful and ugly, may be useful for concentration. At deeper levels, no object or
concept may be necessary for further development.

The benefits of Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration are significant as they teach the mind
to see things, not as we are conditioned to seeing them, but as they really are. At the same time,
they also lead to a feeling of calm and peace with the world. By being in the moment and being
able to concentrate effectively, a sense of joy in the moment is felt. Release from the control of
past pains and future mind games takes us closer to freedom from suffering.

Now, in Ethical Conduct (Sila), based on love and compassion, are included three factors of the
Noble Eightfold Path: namely, Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood.

Next comes Mental Discipline, in which are included three other factors of the Eightfold Path:
namely, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration. (Nos. 6, 7 and 8 in the list).

The remaining two factors, namely Right Thought and Right Understanding, constitute Wisdom
in The Noble Eightfold Path.