Comprehension about Moral Action of Effort

The Buddha’s teaching in Boddhisattva - Sila sutra: “The laziness will lead to the disastrous effect. Namely, the materials including food, clothes will be never enough for the laziness one and they will contribute nothing to the development of country. At the same case to the clergy, no enlightenment or nibbana can be attained without and the liberation from bondage will be difficult to get over. Therefore, we should realize that all the good results must be issued from effort.

What is effort? The implication of effort is expert in\r\nsomething and never be back out. The one who practices effort always put the\r\nwhole mind and strive ceaselessly for the last purpose of peace and happiness.\r\nIn the simple meaning, effort is diligence but with the true aim, not for the\r\ninterest (benefit) of oneself or selfishness. It is not be considered the\r\nmillionaire has put the best effort to enrich himself as the right effort; the\r\nman who is madly in love with someone, always put the best effort in making\r\nhis/her sweetheart be pleasant, can not count as real effort; the one who\r\ninfatuated with gambling can take a long sitting during some days… and no one\r\ncounts these such cases above as right effort but “wrong effort”.

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The Buddhist teaching of effort can be found in some categories:\r\nthe good mental function in 51 mental functions; intensified effort in\r\nsupernatural powers; the four right efforts; effort in the “five roots”; force\r\nof energy (effort) in the “five mental forces”; the right effort in “Noble\r\neightfold path” of “37 wings of enlightenment” and effort in “seven\r\ncharacteristics of bodhi”.

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For  this reason, effort is not only important for\r\nBuddhist study but also the others fields of living as intellectuals, peasants,\r\nindustries, trades...A lazy student, doesn’t put the most effort for studying\r\nwill have no knowledge and get a low education; as a result, it is he that will\r\nface a full  difficult life in future and in the bad situation can\r\ncontribute in increasing of social evils; a lazy peasant who doesn’t take good\r\ncare his field as fertilizing, weeding, watering...will have nothing to reap;\r\nan un- industrious worker will easy to fall in jobless state and become a worry\r\nof society; a trader with no any sacrifice himself for investing and developing\r\nhis business as traveling everywhere learning, finding and collecting good\r\nexperiences then giving some appropriate policies for preserving and\r\nmaintaining his business, which will be easy to go bankrupt.

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In the same case of a Buddhist monk. The Buddha’s teaching\r\nor dharma will be lost by his laziness. Its reason concerning to monks’\r\npurpose: getting out of the samsara and ceasing forever suffering as well the\r\nbondage of the three worlds (karma, form and formless world or the three lokas)\r\nor escaping at least four evil ways of asuras, hell beings, hungry ghosts,\r\nanimals. To liberation we must put the most effort to eliminate greed, hatred,\r\nignorance. However effort shouldn’t be understood as mortification because\r\nit cannot lead to the end suffering and affliction but our lives, the same as\r\nprince Siddharta and the five brothers of Kaundinya when they had spent six\r\nyears in the forest and attained nothing but exhaustion.

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On the other hand, we have to practice hard to eradicate\r\naffliction by controlling our deeds, words, and thoughts during six periods in\r\na day, even in a moment (ksana). We at first practice intelligent contemplation\r\nto realize our good and bad actions then gradually to prevent the bad actions\r\naccording to Buddha’s teaching as meditating the four fold stages of mindfulness,\r\ncause and effect, and the suffering of bad actions in the three evil ways.

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The practice of controlling ourselves as well as other\r\nmethods to eliminate affliction must be put into daily activities including\r\nworking, cultivating, keeping dignity of walking, standing, sitting, laying...,\r\nwhich is called effort. The affliction in our mind is same to grass in the\r\npaddy field, where rice cannot grow up strongly without pulling up\r\nthe weed, and realization cannot be attained without extracting affliction.

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In short, the practitioner who has no effort is just like a\r\nperson who wants to cross sea without ships and the effort is a powerful\r\nmotivation to fulfill virtuous way. That lacking of effort is useless for\r\nourselves and sentient beings does not care how moral conduct we have. “Try to\r\nput utmost effort in practicing,” is following the last words in which Buddha\r\nhad said before entering Nibana: â€œEffort for liberation”.

Tam Tri