A personal blog by a graying (mostly Anglo with light African-American roots) gay left leaning liberal progressive married college-educated Buddhist Baha'i BBC/NPR-listening Professor Emeritus now following the Dharma in Minas Gerais, Brasil.
False speech is unhealthy. Refraining from false speech is healthy. (MN 9) Abandoning false speech, one dwells refraining from false speech, a truth-speaker, one to be relied on, trustworthy, dependable, not a deceiver of the world. One does not in full awareness speak falsehood for one’s own ends or for another’s ends or for some trifling worldly end. (DN 1) One practices thus: “Others may speak falsely, but I shall abstain from false speech.” (MN 8)
When one knows overt sharp speech to be true, correct, and unbeneficial, one should try not to utter it. (MN 139)
Reflection
It is easy for us to admonish other people and point out their faults, especially when we are right about them. The meaning of right speech does not end with the admonition to speak the truth; it also guides us to say only what is beneficial. What is gained by calling someone a jerk if doing so does not help them become less of a jerk? Skillful speech not only speaks the truth but also works to improve any given situation.
Daily Practice
See if you can discern in any given situation what will be beneficial to say and what will not. Publicly calling out someone’s faults can feel gratifying, especially when it seems entirely justified, but it may do more harm than good. If what you want to say does not contribute in some way to an overall improvement of things, you should resist the temptation to speak out and should try not to utter hurtful speech, even if it is true.
Tomorrow: Reflecting upon Bodily Action One week from today: Refraining from Malicious Speech
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There is a lovely story of a boy who goes to a Zen master and asks, “Master, I know you have many students, but if I study harder than all the rest of them, how long will it take me to get enlightened?”
The master said, “Ten years.”
The boy said, “Well if I work day and night and double my efforts, how long will it take?”
The master said, “Twenty years.”
Now the boy spoke of further achievement, and the master said, “Thirty years.”
The boy replied, “Why do you keep adding years?”
And the master answered, “Since you will have one eye on the goal, there will only be one eye left to have on the work. And it will slow you down immeasurably."
