The five precepts

Isis SG

The Five Precepts:

1. Panatipata veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from destroying living creatures.
2. Adinnadana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from taking that which is not given.
3. Kamesu micchacara veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from sexual misconduct.
4. Musavada veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from incorrect speech.
5. Suramerayamajja pamadatthana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from intoxicating drinks and drugs which lead to carelessness.

Five faultless gifts

"There are these five gifts, five great gifts original, long-standing, traditional, ancient, unadulterated, unadulterated from the beginning that are not open to suspicion, will never be open to suspicion, and are unfaulted by knowledgeable contemplatives & priests. Which five?

"There is the case where a disciple of the noble ones, abandoning the taking of life, abstains from taking life. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share in limitless freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression. This is the first gift, the first great gift original, long-standing, traditional, ancient, unadulterated, unadulterated from the beginning that is not open to suspicion, will never be open to suspicion, and is unfaulted by knowledgeable contemplatives & priests...

"Furthermore, abandoning taking what is not given (stealing), the disciple of the noble ones abstains from taking what is not given. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share in limitless freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression. This is the second gift...

"Furthermore, abandoning illicit sex, the disciple of the noble ones abstains from illicit sex. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share in limitless freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression. This is the third gift...

"Furthermore, abandoning lying, the disciple of the noble ones abstains from lying. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share in limitless freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression. This is the fourth gift...

"Furthermore, abandoning the use of intoxicants, the disciple of the noble ones abstains from taking intoxicants. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share in limitless freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression. This is the fifth gift, the fifth great gift original, long-standing, traditional, ancient, unadulterated, unadulterated from the beginning that is not open to suspicion, will never be open to suspicion, and is unfaulted by knowledgeable contemplatives & priests. And this is the eighth reward of merit, reward of skillfulness, nourishment of happiness, celestial, resulting in happiness, leading to heaven, leading to what is desirable, pleasurable, & appealing; to welfare & to happiness."

Isis SG

sianz.. i retake my 5 precepts last sunday and i manage to break two of them..

Esp on the part of right speech, it isn't easy to tell the truth all the time.

Embarassed

An Eternal Now SG

Be repentant, learn from mistakes, practice harder and be observant of your conduct Wink

Spnw07 SG

Yeh, very hard actually to tell the truth all the time. That's why I didn't formally undertake to observe 5 precepts with Sangha witnesses.

According to what I understand from scriptures, you break one, means you qualify for bad karmic rebirths in the 3 evil realms, with hell being one of them.. Cos you made a formal undertaking to observe the five precepts. Same for the 8 precepts and monastic precepts. Bodhisattva precepts, not so sure though what happens when you break one of them.

I just try to observe the 5 precepts on my own without formal rites of undertaking.

Isis SG

hey i just found out from my friend that we can always repent to purify our karma if we break any of the 5 precepts.

upholding the 5 precepts is to actually protect us and not constraint us. Smile

Spnw07 SG

Yes, indeed we can always repent. However, it's not so easy to be sure whether our repentance has actually and completely purified our bad kamma for breaking any of the 5 precepts. Cos not many people can stay the course after repenting due to various circumstances.

It is said in Kisitigarbha Bodhisattva vow sutra: ""O Ksitigarbha, all the sentient beings in southern Jambudvipa Realm are unpredictable in their wills and dispositions.

Most of them are accustomed to evildoing. Even if they decide to do good, they may retreat from their good intentions in an instant. If they are surrounded by evil environmental conditions, their evil wills increase and intensify moment by moment.

For this reason, I transform myself into hundreds of thousands of millions of other forms to convert, deliver, release and liberate them in accordance with their respective roots and dispositions.

That said, my personal views on 5 precepts is, Buddhists should undertake those that they think they can really keep under any circumstances, after clearly understanding the various conditions which are considered to be breaking the precepts or not breaking the precepts.

I will neither encourage nor discourage any Buddhist, old or new, to formally undertake the 5 precepts, etc. But if and when you are very clear and sure about doing it, as a friend, as a fellow Buddhist, I will of course be truly happy for you, be full of respect for your determination and perseverance.

Amituofo. Sadhu, sadhu! ^_^

kumangal SG

then is sex with the same sex breaking the precepts of sexual misconduct

An Eternal Now SG

What is considered sexual misconduct in accordance with Abhidharmakosha --

Wrong partner-- a married person, a minor, someone in a relationship, an incompetent.

Wrong time -- day time

Wrong place -- in public, in shrine, etc.

Wrong orifice -- oral, anal.

kumangal SG

if i kenna this Wrong orifice—oral, anal how cos my bf like

kumangal SG

then how then how

Isis SG

There are many approaches to go about it.

But firstly have you taken the five precepts ?

Isis SG

The Healing Power of the Precepts.

The Buddha was like a doctor, treating the spiritual ills of the human race. The path of practice he taught was like a course of therapy for suffering hearts and minds. This way of understanding the Buddha and his teachings dates back to the earliest texts, and yet is also very current. Buddhist meditation practice is often advertised as a form of healing, and quite a few psychotherapists now recommend that their patients try meditation as part of their treatment. After several years of teaching and practicing meditation as therapy, however, many of us have found that meditation on its own is not enough.

The Buddha's path consisted not only of mindfulness, concentration, and insight practices, but also of virtue, beginning with the five precepts. In fact, the precepts constitute the first step in the path.

There is a tendency in the West to dismiss the five precepts as Sunday-school rules bound to old cultural norms that no longer apply to our modern society, but this misses the role that the Buddha intended for them: They are part of a course of therapy for wounded minds. In particular, they are aimed at curing two ailments that underlie low self-esteem: regret and denial. When our actions don't measure up to certain standards of behavior, we either (1) regret the actions or (2) engage in one of two kinds of denial, either (a) denying that our actions did in fact happen or (b) denying that the standards of measurement are really valid. These reactions are like wounds in the mind. Regret is an open wound, tender to the touch, while denial is like hardened, twisted scar tissue around a tender spot. When the mind is wounded in these ways, it can't settle down comfortably in the present, for it finds itself resting on raw, exposed flesh or calcified knots. Even when it's forced to stay in the present, it's there only in a tensed, contorted and partial way, and so the insights it gains tend to be contorted and partial as well.

Isis SG

Only if the mind is free of wounds and scars can it be expected to settle down comfortably and freely in the present, and to give rise to undistorted discernment. This is where the five precepts come in: They are designed to heal these wounds and scars. Healthy self-esteem comes from living up to a set of standards that are practical, clear-cut, humane, and worthy of respect; the five precepts are formulated in such a way that they provide just such a set of standards. Practical: The standards set by the precepts are simple -- no intentional killing, stealing, having illicit sex, lying, or taking intoxicants. It's entirely possible to live in line with these standards. Not always easy or convenient, but always possible. I have seen efforts to translate the precepts into standards that sound more lofty or noble -- taking the second precept, for example, to mean no abuse of the planet's resources -- but even the people who reformulate the precepts in this way admit that it is impossible to live up to them. Anyone who has dealt with psychologically damaged people knows that very often the damage comes from having been presented with impossible standards to live by.

If you can give people standards that take a little effort and mindfulness, but are possible to meet, their self-esteem soars dramatically as they discover that they are actually capable of meeting those standards. They can then face more demanding tasks with confidence.