To help beings put an end to their afflictions and reach Nirvana, the Buddha taught the Noble Eightfold Path. It offers simple guidelines anyone can follow and practice in daily living.

I. Definition

The Noble Eightfold Path is the right way, in eight branches, that leads a person toward a life of perfection and enlightenment.

II. Characteristics

1. Right Understanding (Samma Ditthi): Deep and thorough understanding.

a. Correct understanding:

• Understand that things are a union of many causes, impermanent and destined to disappear.
• Understand the results of all actions and ideas.
• Understand the worthiness of life — one's own, others', and all living beings'.
• Understand that all living beings share the same pure mind.
• Understand that karma is the result of actions, both good and bad.
• Accept true morality as one's goal.

b. Incorrect understanding:

• Thinking the existence of things is merely natural.
• Accepting a God and denying the law of cause and effect.
• Believing in predestination, denying the results of karma.
• Distinguishing classes and ranks to separate humans from one another, or humans from animals.
• Following myths and superstitions.

2. Right Thought (Samma Sankappa): Thinking truthfully — thought that is beneficial to oneself and to everyone.

a. Correct thoughts:

• Think about precepts, concentration and wisdom in order to practice liberation.
• Think of the causes of suffering in order to explain them and encourage all beings to practice.
• Think of one's mistakes and bad intentions in order to repent and correct them.

b. Incorrect thoughts:

• Think of witchcraft to deceive people.
• Think of harmful ways to hurt humans and animals.
• Think of tricky schemes to take revenge on enemies.
• Think about wealth, lust and reputation.

3. Right Speech (Samma Vaca): Speaking honestly with beneficial, skillful words.

a. Right speech:

• Honest and clear speech.
• Straightforward, unbiased speech.
• Amiable, clear and simple speech.
• Beneficial, harmonizing, encouraging and consistent speech.

b. Incorrect speech:

• Untruthful speech.
• Crooked, partial, flattering, distorting and sophistic speech.
• Harmful, bad-tempered, cursing, scolding, slanderous and ill-mannered speech.
• Divisive speech that harms all beings.

4. Right Action (Samma Kammanta): Right conduct — action that is wholesome and beneficial to everyone.

a. Right actions:

• Act reasonably, respecting the life and shared happiness of humans and animals.
• Respect people's occupations and properties.
• Maintain pure conduct and avoid debauchery.
• Be responsible and dedicated to one's work.
• Know how to make worthy sacrifices to free oneself and others from suffering.

b. Incorrect actions:

• Cruel killing.
• Theft and seizure.
• Living in luxury and corruption.
• Inventing dangerous weapons to kill humans and animals.
• Making fake goods to lie to and deceive people.
• Taking advantage of the arts to incite debauchery and dissipation.

5. Right Livelihood (Samma Ajiva): Making an honest living through an occupation that is decent and does not rely on cruelty or degradation.

a. Right livelihood:

• Work hard for a living, but without harming other people or animals.
• Use one's genuine talents to earn a living, not deceit or fraud.
• Live nobly, never demeaning oneself without reason.
• Follow the true Dharma, not superstition.

b. Incorrect livelihood:

• Making a living by harming living beings.
• Living off astrology, fortune-telling and divination.
• Living by flattering the powerful, brokering deals and glib talk.

6. Right Effort (Samma Vayama): Working diligently at whatever benefits oneself and others.

a. Right effort:

• Seeing one's own faults, diligently repent and give them up.
• Where evils and faults have not yet arisen, diligently cultivate wholesome deeds to guard against them.
• Lacking meritorious deeds, diligently strive to build them.
• Having meritorious deeds, diligently maintain and develop them further.

b. Wrong effort:

• Diligence in killing.
• Diligence in cunning and theft.
• Diligence in debauchery.
• Diligence in lying, distorting and flattering.
• Diligence in drinking and extravagance…

7. Right Mindfulness (Samma Sati): Recollecting rightly — remembering the past, observing the present, and reflecting on the future.

a. Remembering the past (rightly):

• Remember the kindness of parents, teachers and friends in order to repay them.
• Remember the debt to one's country in order to serve and protect it.
• Remember the help of living beings in order to repay them.
• Remember the grace of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha in order to practice.
• Remember past mistakes for repentance and correction.

b. Incorrect recollection:

• Remember someone's faults to mock and criticize them.
• Remember old hatred for revenge.
• Remember old sensual pleasures, weakening one's will.
• Remember treacherous and cruel deeds with pride and self-satisfaction.

c. Right contemplation:

• Contemplation of compassion: Observe the hunger, illness and ignorance of living beings in the present, and the countless misfortunes to come, so as to develop a compassionate heart, to help, and to seek ways to protect them.
• Contemplation of wisdom: Observe the causes of the arising and changing of the universe and all things — sentient and insentient, hatred and love, good and evil — in order to cultivate and teach clearly, concisely and freely.

d. Wrong contemplation:

• Dwelling on lustful forms.
• Dwelling on means of killing.
• Dwelling on cruel schemes and deep plots.
• Dwelling on deceitful words.
• Dwelling on savory delicacies.

8. Right Concentration (Samma Samadhi): Practicing right meditation, and not practicing wrong meditation.

a. Right meditation:

• Meditation on impurities: Contemplate the impurity of things in order to remove craving and lust.
• Meditation on compassion: Contemplate that all beings share one true, equal mind, in order to grow in respect and compassion and to end all hatred.
• Meditation on causation: Contemplate all things — large as a mountain, small as a microbe — as merely conditioned, temporary and unreal, in order to remove ignorance and clinging.
• Meditation on the elements: Distinguish and observe the provisional nature of the eighteen realms (six sense faculties, six sense objects, six consciousnesses) to see there is no true self or fixed dharma, uprooting attachment to self and to phenomena.
• Meditation on breathing: Follow the in-and-out breath to counter a scattered, restless mind.

b. Incorrect meditation:

• Cultivating extinction meditation (extinguishing the seven consciousnesses) to seek a false Nirvana.
• Cultivating formless meditation (extinguishing the first six consciousnesses) to seek pleasure in the heavenly and non-Buddhist realms.
• Cultivating meditation to attain supernatural powers, longevity and miracles.

III. Classification

1. Faith / Wisdom (Saddha): Right Understanding and Right Thought.
2. Morality (Sila): Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood.
3. Concentration (Samadhi): Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration.

IV. Effectiveness

1. Improve oneself: All wrong deeds, distorted speech and deluded thoughts come from going against the Eightfold Path. One who practices it transforms all of this and builds a true, beneficial and wholesome life.
2. Improve surroundings: Circumstances are shaped by the mind and are the results of action. Acting according to the Path makes the world a peaceful and beautiful place.
3. Foundation of enlightenment: The Eightfold Path is the first foundation of the true enlightenment of all Buddhas. A Buddhist who wishes to reach the highest fruit must follow it.

V. Benefits

Practicing the Noble Eightfold Path yields:

1. Right understanding that cannot be deceived or deluded.
2. Right thought that is not clouded by delusion.
3. Right speech that benefits oneself and others.
4. Right action that harms neither people nor living beings.
5. Right livelihood that earns the respect of others.
6. Right effort that brings good results.
7. Right mindfulness that helps one understand situations and reap good fruit.
8. Right concentration that develops wisdom and makes Buddhahood easier to attain.

VI. Conclusion

The Noble Eightfold Path sets out sound principles to apply in every situation of life, to correct all the faults and wrongs of living beings. It is the foundation of enlightenment and the basis of liberation from suffering. As a Buddhist, one needs to learn and practice these Noble Ways to better one's own life and to change the world around us.