Ethics
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In early Buddhism, karma was defined as volitional intention (cetanā), where the moral weight of an action lay in the psychological impulse behind it. Intentional acts of body, speech, and mind functioned as seeds that ‘ripened’ into specific results within the cycle of suffering and rebirth (saṃsāra). Rather than being a system of divine judgment,…
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Vietnamese Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh paraphrased the Five Remembrances (found in the Upajjhatthana Sutta) like this: On a first reading, the Five Remembrances can seem very bleak statements that describe unavoidable human suffering. They certainly challenge our tendency to live in denial of ageing and death. We don’t feel very comfortable facing our own…
