Dhamma Talks - What Is The Ethical Standard :: Buddhapadipa Thai Temple

The Buddha said, “Mankind should avoid doing bad things and should do good”. Some people said, “Yes, that is good teaching” and said, “What should we do? What are good and bad?” “Not to know good and bad is problematic” I think, and ‘good and bad’ has a wide range. People like to judge having the possessions as good, and poverty as bad. It does not work in that way; that is the material way, it is not the spiritual way.

Concerning the Buddhist point of view about this, the Buddha said, “Kamma, which is done, and does not give rise to bad result afterwards; is regarded as wholesome, and Kamma, which is done, and gives rise to bad result afterwards, is regarded as unwholesome”. This is the standard of virtue that the Buddha laid down for the many. Another standard the Buddha spoke of said, “Kamma, which is done, and increases wholesomeness. Is regarded as good kamma and kamma, which is done, and increases unwholesomeness. Is regarded as bad kamma”. Put simply, whatever kamma, mental, verbal and physical, which is done to, decrease greed, hatred and delusion. is regarded as good kamma.

The standard, sometimes, may be higher than human beings think, as its aim is to end all suffering. In fact, it is normal, as everything we do now is to try to escape from suffering. The heart of the Buddha’s teaching describes how to avoid bad kamma by means of the eight virtues namely;
1. Detachment, 2. Release from bondage, 3. Dispersion of defilement, 4. Wanting little, 5. Contentment, 6. Solitude, 7. Energy and 8. Being easy to support. These eight virtues are good guides to help us to gauge good and bad; what we should avoid doing, and what we should aim to do in life.