The next step in the Noble Eightfold Path regarding correct action is abandoning stealing. We usually think of stealing as an armed robbery and say, “Oh, I’d never do that!” This calls for a closer examination of how we use and relate to other people’s property. Instead of calling it stealing, considering it as taking things that have not been freely offered gives us a much broader perspective of what it means. For example, using things at our workplace for personal purposes. Or not paying for things that we are supposed to. It also brings up the broader issue of how we treat things that belong to other people. Do we respect their property? Do we borrow things without asking? Do we replace things that we use with permission? Do we return things that we have borrowed, or do we just forget them and keep them for ourselves in the long run?

All these broader issues are very useful to contemplate because they make us much more aware of how we relate to things that are in our environment that belong to other people. Especially when we are in a place of the Sangha, we need to use Sangha property wisely. It is extremely important not to take things for our use that have not been offered for our personal use. This applies whether one is ordained or not. It means respecting things that belong to the community and the group as a whole.

The last right action is avoiding unwise and unkind sexual behaviour. This is an interesting topic because this is one point where the Buddha spoke differently to lay people than to monastics. For lay people, he recommended certain practices of restraint, for example, not having sexual conduct with others besides one’s spouse. For monastics, he proposed celibacy. Why do you think the Buddha did this, in getting us to look at our sexual expressions? Where does it come from inside of ourselves? What are the motivating factors behind it? What are the results of how we express our sexuality? Look deeper into your own experience with eyes of wisdom. Learn from your own experience and learn from what you observe is happening to people around you.

“365 Gems of Wisdom” e-book is out now!