1. Right View The right view is not the top from ethics, but it actually means holding neither view nor idea. It is also putting down all our thinking and opinions, and seeing this world exactly as it is. “Why do I do something? Only for me or for all beings?” This question makes our direction. When our direction is clear, our whole life is clear, and then any kind of action can benefit other beings. When we want to do something, we should always be guided by this question: “Why do that?” Anther name for that is right view. 2. Right Thought All of us have opinions, and we are often very attached to them. We have strong likes and dislikes. We are also attached to our condition and situation. “I am a woman.” “I am a man.” “I am a Zen Buddhist.” “I believe in Jesus.” “I am American.” “I am Japanese.” When we hold on to these conditions, we cannot completely connect with this world and all beings. If you are thinking, then your mind and mine are different. If you cut off all attachment to thinking, your mind and mine are the same. Your before-thinking mind is your substance and my before-thinking mind is my substance. Then, your substance, my substance, and this whole universe’s substance are the same substance. If you attain that before-thinking mind, then your mind is clear like space. When red comes, then it reflects red. When white comes, then it reflects white. 3. Right Speech In Zen, we sometimes say, “The tongue has no bone.” This is because the tongue can say one thing in one sentence, and in the next breath say an entirely different thing. The tongue can make anything. This is the source of al lies and gossip. Right speech means from moment to moment being careful about what this tongue does. It means using your tongue to help people with clear, compassionate speech. If you put down your opinions and condition, and don’t make anything in your mind, then right speech appears by itself. 4. Right Action If we don’t do good things, then we naturally make bad karma. But, if we only try to do good things for other people, then we make bodhisattva karma. This is action that only tries to serve other people. Right action means always being aware of how our actions affect other beings because that also affects our mind. This is why right action is sometimes translated as “right karma.” 5. Right Livelihood We as human have two jobs. Our inside job is keeping clear mind and our outside job is cutting off selfish desires and helping others. We all have some job. Some person’s job is to go and work in an office to make money; another person’s job is to live in a temple and teach other people. Unimportant is what kind of jobs do they work. The most important thing is, “Why do I do that, for myself, my family, or all beings?” If you ask this question, then your right livelihood becomes very clear. 6. Right Effort Right effort means always trying hard in your meditation practice when you sick, healthy, busy, free, tired, or rested. Only try, try, try for ten thousand years, nonstop. Only do it. That’s all. (It means just to do the right view, right thought, right speech, right action, and right livelihood that we have talked about previously. This is very simple.) 7. Right Mindfulness Just as a ray continues out from one point to another to make a straight line, how you keep your mind in this very moment makes your whole life. 8. Right Meditation There are people who think that correct meditation just has to do with doing very hard sitting meditation practice. But, doing this alone is not complete meditation practice. This kind of thinking is attachment to body sitting. True meditation means correct mind sitting: regardless of condition or situation, how do you keep your mind, right now? That makes your life. If your mind is clear, the whole universe is clear. It is very important point. Having a good sitting practice is very important. But, the most important point of all this is cutting off all attachment to thinking and returning to your before-thinking mind. True meditation practice is certainly not dependent on being able to maintain some formal sitting posture for great lengths of time. It means just keeping a great question: only “What am I?” From The Compass of Zen by Zen Master Seung Sahn