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Week Four – Eightfold Path – Wisdom

“It is for the full comprehension, clear understanding, ending and abandonment of suffering that the Noble Eightfold Path is to be cultivated…” Dukkhata Sutta SN 45.165

The Eightfold Path is the path to be developed leading to lasting happiness and peace. It is the fourth of The Four Noble Truths. The Eightfold Path is the framework for Dhamma practice. All eight factors are to be integrated into the life of a practitioner of the Dhamma. Each factor contributes to a cohesive system of developing insight and understanding of impermanence and the distraction of stress. 

The Eightfold Path is a path of Heightened Wisdom, Heightened Virtue, and Heightened Concentration.  

The first two factors contribute to the development of Heightened Wisdom:

  1. Right View
  2. Right Intention

There are three factors that develop Heightened Virtue:

  1. Right Speech
  2. Right Action
  3. Right Livelihood

Three additional factors contribute to the development of Heightened Concentration:

  1. Right Effort
  2. Right Mindfulness
  3. Right Meditation

Right View is both an entry point into the Dhamma and, with practice, the state of mindful presence free of the distraction of stress.

As you begin to integrate the Eightfold Path into your life and diminish the views and actions arising from your ego-self, your moment-to-moment life becomes an expression of an awakening human being.

Keep in mind the stated purpose of the Dhamma is understanding the origination of stress and experiencing the cessation of stress. Being mindful of this singular purpose will be a great benefit in recognizing otherwise wholesome activities that are a distraction from developing understanding.

I will separate these eight factors into the three natural divisions of The Eightfold Path. While it is wisdom that develops and deepens as understanding develops and deepens, Right View also provides the initial perspective for Dhamma practice and Right Intention provides initial direction. 

Right View and Right Intention: The Wisdom Factors 

The purpose of practicing The Eightfold Path is to experience the cessation of the distraction of stress. Stress describes the ongoing mental/physical states experienced in the phenomenal world. Stress ranges in experience from general unsatisfactoriness and disappointment to extreme emotional and physical suffering.

A reminder about terminology: The word that the Buddha used to describe unhappiness and stress is Dukkha. Dukkha also can be translated to mean disappointment, disillusionment, disenchantment, suffering and confusion. I will use the words unhappiness and stress interchangeably to signify all manifestations of Dukkha.

Ignorance, lacking wisdom, as to the truth of human existence gives rise to the distraction of stress.

The Four Noble Truths provide an understanding of ignorance and the pervasiveness of the distraction of stress. Clinging and craving is shown to be the origination of the distraction of stress. The Third Noble Truth shows that cessation of stress can be developed. The Fourth Noble Truth is the truth of the path leading to the cessation of unhappiness and stress, The Eightfold Path.

Right View

The first factor or component of The Eightfold Path is Right View. Right View is initially the perspective that your views of life have been lacking understanding, lacking wisdom. This lack of wisdom has given rise to unhappiness and stress. Stress is a distracted mind state born of ignorance. Preoccupation with stress is the distraction that keeps one in ignorance.

Understanding that it is our own ignorance of the truth of existence that has caused the distracted mind state of stress is acknowledging The First Noble Truth: The Truth of stress. Remember that the task associated with The First Noble Truth is a complete understanding of stress. Ultimately, Right View then is understanding stress in the context of The Four Noble Truths.

Without the initial perspective that wisdom and understanding in the context of The Four Noble Truths is lacking, it will be impossible to develop the understanding leading to the cessation of stress. Understanding that it is your own lack of wisdom that has caused disillusionment and suffering is difficult at first. Until this initial step is taken your mind will reject developing understanding. Your mind will remain wandering around in ignorance looking for any distraction to avoid seeing the truth.

Without the perspective of Right View, developing the path of liberation would be like planning a trip to Los Angeles when you are departing from New York but believing and insisting that you are in Chicago.

It is impossible to arrive at your destination, lasting happiness and peace, without first accepting your present quality of mind. Achieving liberation and freedom from stress cannot be realized without first accepting the truth of stress and its causes.

Ultimately Right View is the perspective of a mind resting in the Dhamma free of the distraction of stress, an awakened mind. Right View develops gradually. Initially an understanding that life in the phenomenal world is stressful and the cause of stress is clinging begins the development of wisdom. Through integrating all eight factors of The Eightfold Path, Right View develops understanding that penetrates to the root of suffering.

Developing Right View is developing wisdom. The Buddha describes Right View:

“And what is right view? Knowledge with regard to stress, knowledge with regard to the origination of stress, knowledge with regard to the cessation of stress, knowledge with regard to the path or practice that develops the cessation of stress: This is called right view.” [1]

Right View is knowledge and understanding of The Four Noble Truths. Right View is turning away from ignorance and distraction. 

Right View is considered the forerunner of the path:

“And how is right view the forerunner? One discerns wrong view as wrong view, and right view as right view. This is one’s right view. And what is wrong view? There is nothing given, nothing offered, nothing sacrificed. There is no fruit or result of good or bad actions. There is no this world, no next world, no mother, no father, no spontaneously reborn beings; no Brahmans or contemplatives who, faring rightly & practicing rightly, proclaim this world & the next after having directly known & realized it for themselves.” [2]

The Buddha here is describing the ignorance and the consequences of wrong view: “There is nothing given, nothing offered, nothing sacrificed” means that clinging, craving, desire and aversion are maintained, not given (up).

“There is no fruit or result of good or bad actions” means that there is no understanding of the consequences of delusion.

“There is no this world, no next world, no mother, no father, no spontaneously reborn beings; no Brahmans or contemplatives who, faring rightly & practicing rightly, proclaim this world & the next after having directly known & realized it for themselves” refers to lacking understanding of the process of becoming or rebirth.

Wrong view is the view that leads to phenomenal (worldly) attainment, acquisition, and attachment.

Initially wrong view is simply recognized. As Right View is developed, actions originating in wrong view are abandoned. It is wrong view that continues to develop karma, and it is wrong view that, due to karma, causes rebirth. Wrong view is caused by ignorance, Right View is an expression of wisdom.

Kamma (Karma) and Rebirth are explained in detail in week nine.

The Buddha explains how Right Effort and Right Mindfulness directly contribute to developing wisdom:

“One tries to abandon wrong view & to enter into right view: This is one’s right effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong view & to enter & remain in right view: This is one’s right mindfulness. Thus these three qualities – right view, right effort, & right mindfulness – run & circle around right view.” [2]

Right View supports and informs all of the components of The Eightfold Path. Having engaged with The Four Noble Truths, Right View brings wisdom to a mind previously stuck in ignorance and confusion.

The consequences of wrong view(s):

“In a person of wrong view, wrong resolve (wrong intention) comes into being. In a person of wrong resolve, wrong speech. In a person of wrong speech, wrong action. In a person of wrong action, wrong livelihood. In a person of wrong livelihood, wrong effort. In a person of wrong effort, wrong mindfulness. In a person of wrong mindfulness, wrong concentration. In a person of wrong concentration, wrong knowledge. In a person of wrong knowledge, wrong release.

“This is how from wrongness comes failure, not success.” [3]

Holding wrong views can never lead to Right View and liberation. All views born of ignorance are wrong views and are to be recognized and abandoned. 

Right Intention

Right Intention is having the intention to abandon all views and abandon all that would continue ignorance and stress. Right Intention is the intention to abandon all clinging and craving.

Right Intention is also included as the second factor of The Eightfold Path as it leads directly to the development of the virtuous factors of Right Speech, Right Action and Right Livelihood. Along with the intention to abandon clinging and craving, Right Intention is also the intention to abandon ill-will and all harmful thoughts, words and deeds.

Right View initially brings a recognition of wrong views. Due to strong mental fabrications, or conditioned thinking, that have developed from wrong view, recognition alone is not enough to gain liberation and freedom from stress.

Right Intention, holding the firm intention to abandon craving and clinging and develop the experience of the cessation of suffering, strengthens Right View. Right Intention can be seen as an expression of Right View. The entire transformative nature of the Dhamma arises from Right Intention. Being mindful of Right Intention brings clarity to the destructiveness of reactive thoughts, words and deeds caused by ignorance.

Without Right Intention the virtuous and concentration factors of the Path cannot be developed. The ego-self has too much invested in wrong views to put all wrong views aside without the strong resolve of Right Intention. The impermanent ego-personality will not yield if wrong views are not abandoned, and Right Views developed. Holding the intention to abandon all wrong views naturally brings the mind to the virtuous and concentration factors of the path. (Reviewed in week five and six)

Holding the intention to abandon all clinging and craving and to abandon all ill-will and harmful thoughts, words and deeds begins to diminish the effects that occur as a result of a strong attachment to self. Right View is also called Right Thinking and Right Perspective. 

It is wrong thinking that binds impermanent views to a temporary ego-personality. It is wrong thinking that develops craving from a temporary ego-personality. Clinging and craving arise from a misunderstanding of what a self is and how a self has arisen. Misunderstanding the nature of self develops an ego-personality that suffers in ignorance from birth, sickness, aging, death and rebirth. 

It is this personality that the Buddha identified as “anatta.” Atta means self. Anatta means “not-self” or “non-self.” This is often misunderstood to imply that awakening is the extinguishing of being. Awakening is the extinguishing of an insubstantial, impermanent personality that has arisen from wrong views. It is this personality that is subject to the distraction, confusion and suffering of stress. 

Impermanence, Dukkha and Not-Self is explained in detail in week seven.

Right Intention is the intention to abandon all views of an impermanent self so that Right View may be developed.

Impermanence describes the environment in which ignorance and stress (dukkha) arise. Impermanence also describes the environment that a “self” develops ignorance and is subject to the distraction of stress. 

A wrong view of self develops behavior that manifests in non-virtuous ways. If it were not for a confused mind subject to stress and strongly committed to maintain its existence, there would be no need for a path of liberation.

As stated previously, once the wisdom of The Four Noble Truths has entered a mind suffering in ignorance, that same mind can now hold the Right Intention to awaken. The ego-personality’s strong resistance to letting go of wrong views can only be overcome by the foundation developed initially by Right View and Right Intention. Right View is the entry to Dhamma practice and Right Intention sets and holds your direction.

Initial Right View holds The Four Noble Truths to be true. 

Right Intention is the holding the intention to engage whole-heartedly with the Eightfold Path and recognize and abandon craving and clinging.

Next week’s class will show how Right Speech, Action and Livelihood logically follow Right View and Intention. With the support of the other factors of The Eightfold Path, Right Speech, Action and Livelihood lead directly to the experience of the cessation of unhappiness and stress.

 This Week’s Dhamma Study:

  • Continue with your meditation practice in the morning and early evening. If you feel comfortable with adding a few minutes to your practice do so. 5 to 10 minutes for each session should be comfortable now.
  • In meditation, remain mindful of your breathing as you dispassionately notice feelings and thoughts arise and dissipate. When you notice that you are caught up in your own thoughts and have lost awareness of your breath, put aside the focus on your thoughts and place your awareness on your breathing. Become aware of your mind from a dispassionate observational view, a mind-state of choiceless awareness always mindful of your breath.
  • Continue to develop wisdom by noticing your attachments to the people and events of your life, including your views of self. Begin to generate the Right Intention to let go of all attachments and all impermanent views.
  • Keep a journal of any persistent thoughts and your awareness of the impermanence of all thoughts. Avoid being analytical. Jhana meditation practice is a dispassionate observance of thoughts and feelings as they arise and pass away. Take note of your developing wisdom and your own resolve to develop lasting peace and happiness.
  • At the end of your fourth week write a paragraph or two regarding your Dhamma practice and your developing understanding of The Four Noble Truths. Explain your understanding of Right View and Right Intention as the initial factors of The Eightfold Path.  Explain how being mindful of Right View and Right Intention will support development of the experience of the cessation of the distraction of Dukkha. Note how long you are meditating.
  • To submit your writing, please use this form: Contact – Cross River Meditation
  • Responses are generally within 24 to 48 hours.
  • Continue your Dhamma study with week five.
  • Always be gentle with yourself and enjoy your practice!

    [1] DN 22  Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta | The Great Establishing of Mindfulness Discourse | dhammatalks.org
    [2] MN 117  Mahā Cattārīsaka Sutta | The Great Forty | dhammatalks.org
    [3] AN 10:103  Micchatta Sutta | Wrongness | dhammatalks.org