ACTION FOR INCREDIBLE HAPPINESS: Bring Dharma to Work Everyday

I’d like to share an important subject to our overall well-being, as well as our spiritual practice—the contemplation of how our work in the world can be both a support for our material needs, as well as a vehicle for deepening insight. I want to focus on the issue of right livelihood. One of the things we can do is investigate our relationship with earning money. Do we earn money in a wholesome way? And what is wholesome, or right, livelihood anyway?

We need money to live, don’t we? Money is an important part of our society. Generally, we need it to live, to eat, and to take care of ourselves also family. Because of the importance of money in our world, therefore we work to earn money. Most of us spend more than half of our waking hours at work, and our jobs deeply influence every aspect of our lives: the time we spend with family and friends, the material security and comforts we enjoy, the education we can provide for our children, the places we travel to, the people we know.

What is right livelihood? Your job may be something you love doing, or not. You may see yourself as serving humanity, or not. People may admire you for your profession. Does this matter to Buddhist practice? In his first sermon after his enlightenment, the Buddha explained that the way to peace, wisdom, and nirvana is the Eightfold Noble Path.

1. Right View

2. Right Intention

3. Right Speech

4. Right Action

5. Right Livelihood

6. Right Effort

7. Right Mindfulness

8. Right Concentration

The fifth "fold" of the path is Right Livelihood. What does this mean exactly, and how do you know if your livelihood is a "right" one?

Along with Right Speech and Right Action, Right Livelihood is part of the "moral conduct" section of the Path. Remember, this is a foundational part of the Buddha’s original instruction. The eightfold noble path is the fourth of the Four Noble Truths, and so it is one part of the most central teaching of the Buddha. Many keys towards worldly success. So, whatever your goal, the Buddha’s guidance will help. We can apply the lessons of the eightfold noble path to understand the Buddha’s teachings on hard work.

The principle of Right Livelihood states that practitioners should earn a living without causing harm or, even better, by making ethical contributions to the society. The three principles of Right Speech, Right Action, and Right Livelihood constitute guidelines for ethical conduct, which in turn are derived from the Five Precepts. Also not to do anything which encourages other people to act in destructive ways. These are the basic criteria. To have a job where you don’t have to act unethically and where you don’t have to encourage anybody else to.

The Buddha encouraged his disciples to make their living in a way that does not cause harm and ideally that is ethically positive. In the Vanijja Sutta (this is from the Sutra-pitaka of the Tripitaka), the Buddha said, "A lay follower should not engage in five types of business. Which five? Business in weapons, business in human beings, business in meat, business in intoxicants, and business in poison."

Sure, it would be nice to have a job that does amazing things for the world, but most of us are doing well to just be able to survive. The method by which we make a living can be ethical or unethical in many ways, both subtle and obvious.

And what is wrong livelihood? Scheming, persuading, hinting, belittling, & pursuing gain with gain. (Mahā-Cattārīsaka Sutta, MN 117). Also Right Livelihood is a livelihood that abandoned the wrong livelihood, maintains its life with the right livelihood. (Vibhaṅga Sutta, Magga Vibhaṅga Sutta, SN 45.8).

There are some of causes that can make your livelihood wholesome or not. A good general indicator is whether it feels wholesome to you or not, we can know this if, when we work, we are free of anger, greed and ignorance. If we want to do right livelihood in the way the Buddha encourages, we will choose intentions, goals and methods that are peaceful, harmless, and compassionate. It seems so simple and unproblematic: don’t earn money in a profession that brings harm to others. The basic thing is to try to not break the five precepts in one’s way of making a livelihood.

The fundamental moral position of Buddhism is ahimsa — which means non harm or less harm. The Buddha clearly understood what is harm and what is not harm. This meant avoiding occupations such as butcher, tanner, or soldier — if possible. It also means to be honest and ethical in business dealings — not to cheat, steal or lie, and in general make one’s living in an upstanding way. When a person does not have a job and cannot support his or her family, that is harm as well — there is no question about it.

“The way you do one thing is the way you do any thing” For work to be Right Livelihood we must take full responsibility for what we do – and for how and who we are in doing it! Taking full responsibility for what we are doing - which means doing our job properly and sincerely to the best of our ability. Help when we notice that help is needed – look beyond our immediate concerns.

Honesty is number one. There is no way that a person can hide his dishonesty forever. Sooner or later, it will manifest itself. A person in any sort of job might be asked to be dishonest. You may work for an educational book publisher, which would seem to be a Right Livelihood. But the owner of the company might expect you to boost profits by cheating the vendors—typesetters, freelance artists—and sometimes even the clients. In Buddhism, honesty goes beyond simply not telling lies, it also means using speech to benefit others, and not to use it to benefit only ourselves. Stay aware of what’s happening around you.

People have to make a living, after all. In Buddhist life, what you do and don’t do to earn your daily bread is important. Right Livelihood doesn’t mean that everyone should become a doctor, teacher, nurse, or social worker. “Right livelihood” also can be a wrong livelihood if you are doing your job with the wrong intention, even if you aren’t involved in any of the above wrong livelihoods. Like let’s say you’re a doctor and you really want more people to be sick so that you’ll get more patients and more money. That right livelihood becomes wrong livelihood.

The closest idea in order to come to right livelihood may be to hold the right intention and do our best. In this sense, right livelihood may simply mean keeping your eyes and ears open to the sources you use and the effects of what you do, and responding to what you learn as much as you can.

In the final analysis, what makes our livelihood "right" may not be the nature of the work or the consequences of our actions—although these factors certainly do have some importance—but the qualities of heart and mind that we bring to it is more importance. To create the causes of happiness now and in the future, let’s integrate our Dharma practice into our work. Generating a good motivation each morning; being mindful of what we say, do, and think when we are with others; and applying antidotes to unproductive habitual behaviors are a good way to do this. As for Right Livelihood, you set your mind on providing for your livelihood exclusively in a right way. You're firm in not making a livelihood in ways that are wrong, not acting in ways that are wrong, not speaking in ways that are corrupt and wrong. You won't make any effort in ways that go off the path, you won't be mindful in ways that lie outside the path. You'll keep being mindful in ways that stay on the path. You make this vow to yourself as a firm determination. The Buddha says: “When the noble disciple, avoiding wrong living, gets his livelihood by a right way of living—this is called ‘Mundane Right Livelihood,’ which yields worldly fruits and brings good results.”

Remember the idea of right livelihood. Remember that it’s in your power to control your intentions, actions and make them beneficial. If your job is draining you more than nourishing you, consider a change.

May the way we earn our living be beneficial to all involved and harmless to none. So, before we get busy doing hard work, and also when we are doing it, let’s make sure it is good hard work, and beneficial to all.

Today I hope this topic will inspire you, others and create a little more peace and love in the world. May all beings have all the happiness and the cause of happiness.