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The Noble Eightfold Path: The Path of Interpenetrating Cause and Effect

Thich Nhat Hanh · August 21, 1988 · Plum Village, France · Audio Only

The Noble Eightfold Path is the path of eight right practices, discovered by the Buddha under the Bodhi tree and taught throughout his 45 years of ministry. “Bát” means eight, “Chánh” means right or straight, the opposite of wrong, and “Đạo” means the path. Before passing away, the Buddha affirmed to Subhadda, his last monastic disciple, that wherever the Noble Eightfold Path is practiced, there will be the fruit of practice and enlightenment. These eight elements hold a central position in the teachings; they are not separate but inter-are; each element contains the other seven, serving as both cause and effect of one another.

The content of the talk analyzes in detail the first five elements:

Right View: The correct view of all things and oneself. It is both the cause for right action and the fruit of the practice. Transmission via language is only a map, not reality itself; the practitioner must personally experience it to transform knowledge into solid insight.
Right Thinking: Thinking and discovering the true nature of reality, such as impermanence and nonself; equivalent to the factor of investigation of phenomena in the Seven Factors of Awakening.
Right Speech: Speech that accords with reality, capable of guiding, reconciling, and creating peace and joy. One must avoid four types of wrong speech: speaking untruths, speaking with a double tongue, speaking harsh words, and speaking with exaggeration.
Right Action: Bodily action; the correctness of action depends on the perception derived from Right View and Right Thinking.
Right Livelihood: A right means of livelihood that does not harm humans or nature, nor cause suffering and social injustice.

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