We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track. If this problem persists help us by reporting it so we can investigate it.
Watch this talk
Login or create a free account to watch this talk and discover other teachings from Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.
Log in or create an account
Right View is the Foundation of Ethics
In meditation, mindful breathing and walking are two foundational practices: breathing in, we bring all mental formations to a stop; breathing out, we release and let go. Each step touches the “wondrous life,” both nourishing and healing us. “Stopping” (samatha) is to come to rest and relax; “looking deeply” (vipassanā) is to look into the nature of suffering—its causes, its cessation, and the path, from which insight arises. Sitting meditation according to the Ānāpānasmṛti Sūtra is to use the breath to “take sovereignty over body and mind,” so that body and mind become one—“the mindful body” and “the embodied mind”—generating the joy of meditation as real nourishment for daily life.
Buddhism offers the three trainings (mindfulness–concentration–insight), also known as precepts–concentration–insight, in which:
- Precepts (sīla) = mindfulness, the foundation of ethics;
- Concentration (samādhi) = inner tranquility;
-
Insight (prajñā) = understanding the Four Noble Truths.
The Noble Eightfold Path, with its eight elements beginning with Right View (Interbeing), leads to right thinking, speech, action, livelihood, diligence, mindfulness, and concentration—not only for monastics but as the ethical foundation for everyone in daily life.