Right Meditation

What did the Buddha teach?

Right speech

Right action

Right livelihood

Right effort

Right mindfulness

Right focus

Right understanding

Right resolve

Many people are probably already familiar with this - his “Noble Eightfold Path”. Give or take some differences in translation, that part is easy.

There are also countless explanations, from throughout the ages, of what each of these aspects refers to: What is meant by understanding? What is meant by livelihood?

But for all the texts surrounding livelihood, why did the Buddha bother to call it “right livelihood”? Many people have noticed by now that all of this could have worked out fine, without the word “right” being added to every bullet point. The Buddha could have just said “Understanding”, and explained what he meant; and the same goes for all eight “folds” of his “Eightfold Path”.

So why take the trouble to mention that each of these has to be “right”?

Or, more importantly: How can we know if we are doing it right?

This has also been a topic of plenty of debates, in the Buddhist world and around it. To be fair, it is a matter of speculation: None of us were there to interview him in person. But, as many have done before me, I would like to take my own jab at it.

So why write “right”? And who decides if it’s really right?

I like this question because I think it applies very well to life, and not just to seeking or meditation.

When you set out to look for the love of your life, did you (or do you) have a plan?

And if you did, did life play out accordingly, just as you expected?

What is the “right” way to find love?

What is the “right” way to raise children?

And what is the “right” way to wake up?

Working out an explicit set of instructions is great if you are making chocolate chip cookies. But it doesn’t work the same way with life, or with seeking. And even with cookies, a master chef (which I am not, by any standard) would likely tell you that you have to be ready to improvise, and tweak things as you go. That’s why we taste things before we serve them, and make adjustments as needed (and coincidentally, that may be how chocolate chip cookie dough became so popular).

If you follow the instructions verbatim, you might get a prize for being a good boy or girl, but you will not get enlightened. If you want to really wake up, you have to figure it out as you go. And that is exactly the prime ingredient in getting it “right” on the Eightfold Path, and if you ask me, with life itself: You have to constantly redefine what “right” means. The only guiding light you really have is that you want to succeed - you yourself want it to be right, because you want to awaken, and you want to be happy. 

And this brings us to the second point, which may now be obvious: Who decides when it is right? You yourself are the judge, the decider, the proctor and the critic and the referee. Hearing from someone else whether you are doing it right is nice, but in order for it to be “right meditation”, you have to know that for yourself. 

And how do you know?

You know because you want to know - that, again, is the prime ingredient. If you are truly devoting yourself to finding out, to waking up as opposed to checking off the boxes, then it is right. It is right because if you keep at it and never give up, you will arrive at awakening, and at true joy - and that is when it truly does become “right meditation”.

So judge yourself. Can you?

Look at yourself. Can you? Do you?

There is a cardinal question embedded in here: Are you capable of that level of introspection? Because real joy doesn’t come easy; and neither does enlightenment.

So are you finding the joy and liberation that you hope for?

And does it really matter what anybody else says?

Photo by Chraecker, Pixabay.com