Buddhist Ethics

From the Encyclopedia of Business Ethics and Society by Karin Brown

Buddhist philosophy originates with the teachings of the Buddha (566486 BCE), which
are framed by the goal of eliminating suffering. Buddhist ethics aims at providing the
path to achieving this goal. The teachings of the Buddha were preserved as an oral
tradition for 400 years until they were compiled by monks in the Pali canon around the
first century BCE. (There are many schools of Buddhist thought, but they share the same
core teachings.) No separate discourse for Buddhist ethics exists in the ancient sources.
Rather, a sophisticated and profound ethical theory is found throughout the canon and is
inseparable from the rest of the philosophy. Works devoted explicitly to Buddhist ethics
are recent, blending material from various sources into a more well-defined moral theory.
The Foundation of the Theory
Buddhist ethics is grounded in a theory of the nature of reality. It is logically embedded
in Buddhist causality and the concomitant notion of nonsubstantiality. The presumption is
that everything has a cause, that something cannot arise out of nothing, and that all
phenomena thus fall under causal law. It follows that everything depends on something,
indeed everything, else. This is known as the principle of dependent origination, and it
lies at the heart of Buddhist philosophy.
On a physical level, every object obviously depends on a variety of causes and
conditions. For instance, a table is made of wood, which comes from trees, and trees
depend on water, earth, and sunlight. The table comes into existence because of the
carpenter, who also depends on food, air, water, and so on. No element in nature can be
conceived of as not connected to myriad others. We can also understand this principle
conceptually. That is, this is a table by virtue of our definition of it; at other times, the
wood may be firewood, a chair, or a bat. No element or object possesses an intrinsic,
independent identity.
The principle of interdependence naturally leads to the conclusion that there is no
separate self or soul either. In addition, if everything is subject to causation, then
everything is also constantly changing and is impermanent. According to Buddhist
philosophy, a person is a combination of five fluctuating aggregates (body, sensation,
perception, dispositions, and consciousness). We cannot claim that any of these
constitutes an intransigent self.
The concept of dependency entails significant moral implications. From our dependency
and interconnectedness with others follows a sense of obligation and concern about the
well-being of others. Since we are ultimately dependent on every aspect of the universe,
ethical consequences follow regarding social philosophy, attitudes toward animals, and
environmental ethics. Thus, understanding interdependence brings with it respect for
nature and all living things.
Further moral implications ensue from the view of no self. Without a permanent, fixed
self-identity, one is not invested in one's own ego. Selflessness and other-directed actions
follow. That is, without being preoccupied with oneself, a selfless concern for the well-
being of others becomes possible. Egoism is replaced by the idea that distinction between
self and others is an illusion.
The most important manifestation of the Buddhist view of causality is the law of karma,
which is a natural law. Karma literally means actions. The principle that every effect has
a cause means that actions have consequences for oneself and others. Karmic effects can
be twofold, external and internal. One's actions affect others and accordingly accumulate
merit or demerit. Immoral actions, such as killing, stealing, and lying, result in bad
karma; good deeds result in good karma. Accepting a belief in reincarnation, people are
reborn according to the moral ledger of their actions. The family one is born into, one's
professional life, one's character, and even one's physical appearance may manifest past
karma. The second aspect of karma is psychological, the way in which karma affects the
agent. Here, karma is a psychological law, the law of causation applied to mental events.
Immoral actions have negative effects because they are embedded in states such as anger,
resentment, and violence. Negative thoughts and emotions lead to anxiety, even
depression; they cause internal turmoil, and they are in themselves forms of suffering. By
harming others one harms oneself. Positive thoughts and emotions lead to calm and
satisfaction. Belief in reincarnation is not necessary for appreciating the psychological
aspect of karma.
Karma is also a moral law. Unlike the system of rewards and punishments in
monotheistic religions, in Buddhism, without a god, responsibility for one's destiny lies
within oneself. By understanding how character and events come about, we learn to
redirect the course of our lives, as the Buddha outlined in presenting his Four Noble
Truths.
The Four Noble Truths
The core of Buddhist teachings is expressed in the Buddha's Four Noble Truths, his first
sermon. The Four Noble Truths sketch a moral path. The assumption is that all beings
wish to avoid suffering and attain happiness. Buddhist ethics begins with the desire to
end suffering, and Buddhist concepts of right and wrong follow. The Four Noble Truths
provide an analysis of what causes suffering on the one hand and what brings peace and
happiness on the other.
The first Noble Truth is the truth of suffering. The point is to identify the nature of
suffering as a problem in order to eliminate it. The principle is that suffering pervades
human existence. Buddhism identifies a broad spectrum of phenomena as suffering, and
areas causing psychological and moral problems are broader than what we find in
Western moral theories. Birth, sickness, old age, death, as well as pain, grief, and sorrow
are all forms of suffering, but even pleasurable experiences can cause suffering because
of their transient nature. A new car, a new promotion, or a new relationship are only new
for a short while. If our wellbeing depends on these highlights, we are subject to constant
ups and downs. Not getting what one wants is suffering. Here, the Buddha is referring to
the idea that whenever there is a gap between what we have and what we want or who we
are and who we want to be, we will suffer. Expectations embedded in ignorance of the
principle of dependent origination lead to suffering. Assuming a fixed, permanent self
makes one a slave to the demands of the ego; one's social status and material possessions
become central, and we try to satisfy aspects of an existence that cannot be satisfied
because it does not exist per se.
The second Noble Truth identifies the origin of suffering. Desire and attachment cause
suffering. Craving and attachment refer not only to pleasure and to material goods but
also to ideals, theories, and beliefs. Desires are viewed as insatiable, and thus in principle
they cannot be satisfied. All forms of suffering, from personal problems to political
struggles such as poverty and war, can be viewed as rooted in selfish cravings and desires
and in attachment to material goods, ideologies, or religions.
The three roots of evil are greed, hatred, and delusion. Here, the principle of causality and
karma applies not only to action but also to intentions, thoughts, and feelings. Negative
thoughts give rise to offensive speech and violent actions, just as sympathetic and
compassionate thoughts give rise to kind words and actions. Thus, thoughts and feelings
have karmic effects as well. Wishing someone ill is not morally neutral. In this sense,
Buddhist philosophy offers a deeper analysis of morality by including human psychology
as a cause of our behavior. This link between psychology and ethics is a central feature of
Buddhism. The second Noble Truth shows that what causes psychological suffering also
causes immorality. As the goal is to eliminate suffering, one must consider one's state of
mind.
The third Noble Truth concerns the cessation of suffering and the possibility of attaining
nirvana. Nirvana is mostly described in negative terms as it is impossible to convey this
transcendent state rationally. Several Buddhist scholars refer to nirvana as a moral state
because it includes the cessation of the causes of immoralitythat is, greed, hatred,
delusion, desire, and attachment. Negative emotions or mental states are eradicated as
well. The goal is to eliminate the cycle of birth and death, although, as mentioned
previously, this point is not essential to the moral theory.
The Fourth Noble truth is the truth of the EightFold Path. The Eight-Fold Path lies at the
core of Buddhist practice. It embodies the main principles of Buddhism and represents
the middle way prescribed by the Buddha between asceticism and selfindulgence. The
path entails three aspects: wisdom, morality, and meditation. Wisdom pertains to
understanding the true nature of reality, that suffering is grounded in ignorance. Moral
conduct is a way to purify one's actions, which also purifies one's motives. Meditation
creates awareness and mental discipline. This path also embodies one of the main
principles in Buddhist philosophynonviolence.
The Eight-Fold Path entails the following: (1) right viewthat suffering originates in
ignorance, hence understanding the true nature of reality is necessary for liberation; (2)
right resolveafter understanding the causes of suffering, one needs to intend to change
them; (3) right speechone's words should be used only constructively, not
destructively; one's speech should be honest and nonviolent; (4) right actionone should
act in nondestructive, nonviolent ways; (5) right livelihoodone's livelihood should not
involve harm to others, sentient beings, or the environment; (6) right effortone should
recognize that this path is not easy and requires work; one needs to replace negative
emotions by positive ones, selfish motivations by selfless ones, unwholesome mental
states by wholesome ones; (7) right mindfulnessthis creates self-awareness, essential
for combating aggression and negative motivations; and (8) right concentration
meditation and stillness allow deeper insights. The Eight-Fold Path underscores how
ethics is essential to eliminate suffering.
Virtue Ethics
In philosophy, virtue ethics concerns one's character. Beyond analyzing the causes of
immorality, Buddhist ethics proffers positive reasons to behave ethically and to resist
unethical tendencies. There are four cardinal virtues: loving kindness, compassion,
sympathetic joy, and equanimity. These are incompatible with their opposites and serve
as antidotes to their negative counterparts. Loving kindness, the aspiration for another's
well-being, is incompatible with hatred for others. Compassion, the hope that others be
free from suffering, is incompatible with cruelty. Sympathetic joy, the ability to truly
rejoice in another's success, is incompatible with envy. Equanimity, being serene and of
an even mind, helps dissolve desire and aversion. Cultivating these virtues, then, is an
important part of Buddhist morality. Practicing virtues leads to thinking about others,
identifying with others, and experiencing selflessness. Considering the positive effects of
these virtues, we can see that by helping others one also helps oneself.
Ethical Precepts
Buddhist ethics also includes a normative component, and there are several sets of
precepts governing action. Five basic precepts pertain to the lay person: no killing, no
stealing, no lying, no sexual misconduct, and no intoxication. Additional sets of 8 and 10
precepts guide lay persons in deepening their practice. There are over 200 precepts for
monastic life.
Classification of Buddhist Ethics
Buddhist ethics is an ethics of enlightenment and compassion. As a nonauthoritarian
philosophy, clinging to scriptures or theory is viewed negatively. Truth can only be
attained by one's own authority. Tolerance follows this antifundamentalist approach, with
wisdom and compassion inseparably linked. In contrast, in Aristotle, for instance,
morality is a means to an end, to happiness. The Buddhist concept of nirvana as a moral
state indicates that morality is not merely a means to enlightenment but an end in itself as
a feature of enlightenment.
Buddhist Economics
Economic teachings are scattered throughout the Buddhist scriptures. Right livelihood
is one of the requirements of the Eight-Fold Path. In applying the principles of
nonviolence and not harming others, right livelihood means that one should refrain from
making one's living through any profession bringing harm to people, sentient beings, or
the environment. Therefore, the Buddha denounced professions that trade in weapons,
drugs, or poisons; violate human beings; or kill animals. It follows that Buddhist
economics cannot be a discipline separate from other aspects of life, notably from
Buddhist ethics. Economics becomes a subset of morality and a normative social science,
with moral considerations providing the framework for economic thought. From this
perspective, and given the principle of interdependence, economic decisions cannot be
made without taking into consideration individuals, society, and the environment. One
cannot consider costs alone. If economic decisions are made solely on the basis of profit
and loss, they become the source of social and environmental problems rather than
positive solutions.
Given the goal in Buddhist philosophy of liberation, well-being cannot be defined by
consumption or the accumulation of goods. Nevertheless, Buddhism is by no means
adverse to wealth. On the contrary, wealth prevents poverty, about which the Buddha
claims that hunger is the greatest illness. The concept of the middle way rejects the
extremes of poverty or seeking riches for their own sake. Moderation, simplicity,
nonviolence, and nonexploitation are the watchwords for economic activity, and the
accumulation of wealth must also be carried out without violating any of the five precepts
against killing, stealing, lying, sexual misconduct, and taking intoxicants. Being born into
wealth is considered the result of good karma, and wealth provides an opportunity to
practice generosity. Sharing wealth supports individual well-being and the community.
The goal of liberation implies that wealth is only a means to an end. If greed, craving, and
attachment cause suffering and if one's attitude toward wealth includes these dispositions,
wealth will bring suffering rather than enjoyment or solutions to the problem of suffering.
In addition, economic activity motivated by greed will yield different results than when
motivated by the desire for well-being. Greed leads to overconsumption and needless
accumulation of goods, whereas the desire for well-being leads to moderation, balance,
and sustainability. Distinctions between right and wrong consumption and use follow,
given these attitudes toward wealth and its pursuit.
Buddhist philosophy consistently addresses the motivation behind human activity, and in
the end the causes of suffering, unethical behavior, and immoral economic activity are
the same. Thus, ethics and economics are integrated through causal analysis and
consequently provide guidelines that aim at both individual and social transformation.


Business Ethics
Although Buddhist philosophy was forged during an agricultural era and before the rise
of modern capitalism, the main tenets of Buddhist theory are applicable to business ethics
today. From a Buddhist perspective, practical questions pose themselves for people
engaged in business and commercial activities. Given the principle of right livelihood and
that certain trades are denounced altogether, the first question one has to ask is what is
being produced? For example, from a Buddhist point of view, there is no way to morally
justify a multibillion-dollar weapons industry (enabling war, massacres, genocide, and
other atrocities). The second question that arises is how is the product being produced?
Does it involve harm to people, sentient beings, or the environment? Then, given the
principle of interdependence, because businesses are integral parts of the community,
decision making cannot be reduced to profits without considering the impact on people
and the environment. Moreover, given that materialism is not the ultimate goal in
Buddhism but only a means to an end, profits cannot be considered in isolation; they
ought to be subservient to the moral path rather than dominate and compromise it.
Finally, the goal in Buddhism is to eliminate suffering, so allowing businesses to profit
while exploiting people and polluting the environment increases the amount of suffering
and is counterproductive to the overall goal.