Episode Three: Right Action; Sila, The Ethical Trainings of Buddhist Yoga

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The Noble Eightfold Path of the Buddha is an 8-limbed model of yoga practice. In this episode, Pobsa situates the Buddha's yoga path in the context of other models from 4 to 15 limbs (anga). An example of the Buddha's pedagogical creativity is that he offers these eight limbs in two different formulations: as the Noble Eightfold Path, but also as the Threefold Training and the difference in the ordering of the limbs itself is a teaching!

The Eightfold Path begins with the two limbs associated with wisdom (prajna) to signify that there is wisdom behind one's decision to enter upon the path. Then there limbs of ethical training (sila) follows, showing that the heart, so to speak, of the path is the ethical commitment to non-harming (ahimsa) which itself prepares the mind for the deeper practices of meditation (samadhi) which make up the final three limbs of the path.

Howegver, as the Threefold Training, we begin with sila as ethical training is the foundation of practice as well as permeating the other trainings. Sila sets us up for meditative training (samadhi) in order to access and cultivate greater, liberating wisdom (prajna).

The image below shows the Threefold Training read left to right and the Eightfold Path read from the bottom to the top of the image. Note: This image uses the Pali terminology so the Sanskrit for wisdom prajna here is ​panna.