Answer: The Truth of the Path Leading to the Cessation of Suffering (Magga) refers to the way leading to the end of suffering and the attainment of transcendent Nirvana. It can be described as a method, an approach, or a roadmap. The Truth of the Path is a comprehensive system of practice in Buddhism, vast, perfect, thorough and detailed, encompassing a long journey from basic to advanced stages. It includes the following eight components, known as the Noble Eightfold Path:
- Right Comprehension: Understanding Buddhist doctrines for practice correctly is crucial because misunderstanding or holding wrong views leads to erroneous practices, making practitioners stray from the Right path, resulting in wrongdoing and more suffering. However, people with misguided views on cultivation always insist that they are right, making it very difficult for them to change. There are two critical aspects of Right Comprehension in Buddhism: understanding the Law of Karma and the goal of enlightenment which is being free from the self (ego).
- Right Consideration: Based on Right Comprehension, one must think and reflect in alignment with the Dharma to transform the mind to become pure and virtuous, eliminating wrong thoughts and perfecting deep morality. The process of filtering out wrong thoughts is challenging and solitary, as no one else can see our mind to assist us. Thus, we must evaluate our own thoughts in solitude to make adjustments. Correct thinking also creates merit.
- Right Speech: With Right Comprehension and the ethics of Right Consideration, one should convey only positive and meaningful messages that help others progress in their practice. Our language and attitude must be cultured, ethical, and beneficial, forming virtuous karma and increasing blessings through speech.
- Right Action: These are actions that interact with and influence other sentient beings, the community, and the minds and lives of others. Practitioners must actively create positive impacts, helping beings to be happy, well-provided, knowledgeable, moral, and inspired towards enlightenment, thereby accumulating increasing merit that supports spiritual practice and meditation.
- Right Livelihood: This refers to earning a living through righteous means. Everyone needs a job to earn income for food, clothing, housing, and necessities. Monastics live by alms and offerings given by the faithful, a form of Right Livelihood. Laypeople work in various businesses or professions to make a living. The merit from Right Actions enables one to choose a righteous livelihood, avoiding harmful or unethical jobs. A Right Livelihood helps one earn more and more merit over time.
- Right Endeavour: This is the effort in meditation practice. Meditation is the final path to spiritual enlightenment, requiring control of the mind and cessation of wandering thoughts to reach the ultimate truth. However, concentrating the mind in meditation is extremely difficult, and most people fail. Right Endeavour refers to the stage where one practices a meditation method without attaining any immediate results, yet persists without giving up. The term ‘Right’ also implies the correctness of meditation methods, as many unknowingly practice incorrect meditation methods. Practitioners should pray to find a true Zen master who can guide the correct meditation approach, to avoid wasting effort.
- Right Mindfulness: At this stage, meditation practice begins to yield results. Wandering thoughts no longer dominate, and the practitioners frequently experience mindfulness. This stage is not yet extraordinary, as the mind remains flawed and still prone to faults, but mindfulness serves as a guiding light. The term ‘Right’ in this stage indicates that practitioners must understand that, even with mindfulness, they remain flawed and must continue to practice diligently without becoming complacent or relaxed, which could lead to regression. Mindfulness can also give practitioners additional motivation to continue their spiritual practice.
- Right Ecstasy: At this stage, a conscious effort is no longer needed to focus the mind, as the mind naturally abides in tranquillity. There are four levels of Right Ecstasy: First Jhana, Second Jhana, Third Jhana, and Fourth Jhana. These indicate different depths of tranquillity. Though the mind is tranquil, depth varies, and not all tranquil states of mind are the same. In daily life, practitioners maintain mindfulness (Right Mindfulness) and enter deeper meditative states whenever they want. In the Third Jhana, one delves into the subconscious, understanding the autonomic nervous system’s secret workings. In the Fourth Jhana, one perceives the universe’s profound nature, far beyond scientific understanding.
The Noble Eightfold Path is an extensive system of practice requiring many lifetimes for a being to be able to attain liberation and enlightenment in Nirvana.
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