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The Third 
Group of Blessings 
"Setting Oneself up in Life" 
The third group of the blessings of life is often referred to as "mak-
ing yourself useful". This doesn't just refer to making oneself a citi-
zen who can contribute something positive to society, it means be-
ing able to be of independent means — to earn one's own living 
without having to rely on outsiders for help. The principle of "be-
ing a refuge to yourself" is one very important to Buddhism — not 
just a virtue to oneself in spiritual ways but in worldly ways as 
well. Not burdening oneself on society is seen not only as the basis 
of self-confidence, but also as a positive virtue to be encouraged. 
Earning one's living requires both knowledge and skills (found in 
Blessings Seven and Eight respectively) but as usual to earn one's 
living in an unscrupulous way to the detriment of others is not ac-
ceptable. Sociable application of our knowledge and skills is taught 
in action and word respectively in Blessings Nine and Ten respec-
tively to make sure that we don't make ourselves self-sufficient at 
society's expense. This foundation of lack of worry concerning one's 
daily bread will serve as a foundation for a harmonious family life 
and public works to be found in subsequent Groups of the Bless-
ings. All of the previous six Blessings we have studied, have con-
cerned the adjustment of our quality of mind. The first few Bless-
ings have concerned protecting our mind from damage and find-
ing the most basic virtue of discretion with which to instil the mind. 
In the sixth blessing we already set our sights on the aim in life we 
require — now in the third grouping we start to walk toward that 
goal. 
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TABLE 7.1 COMPARISON OF QUALITIES FOR THE LEARNED & THE WISE 
The Learned 
The Wise 
much knowledge 
maybe not much knowledge 
maybe not much virtue 
much virtue 
maybe do not apply knowledge to do good deeds 
use what knowledge they have to do good deeds 
must have good memory 
not necessary to have good memory 
must be educated 
irrespective of literacy or education 
no guarantee that they will not 
will not make a mess of his life 
make a mess out of their life 
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Blessing Seven: 
Artfulness 
in Knowledge 
A. INTRODUCTION 
In fact the subject matter of the seventh Blessing 
also concerns our mind but it deals with the way 
we can find knowledge to instil in the mind. 
Knowledge has many implications both for our 
own life and for the quality of life in society. With-
out worldly knowledge we could not set ourselves 
up in life by earning our own living. Without spir-
itual knowledge, we would leave the thirst of the 
unanswered spiritual questions in life unquen-
ched. 
For society, knowledgeable people contribute to 
the quality and standard of living in general. If 
students are demotivated or inefficient in their ef-
forts to study, the repurcussions can bring dam-
age to the whole educational sector and the youth 
in particular. Incidence of gang-fighting between 
schools, student drug-addiction and 'hanging out' 
on the street in search of trouble are all signs of 
social problems originating in an incapacity to 
study properly. Even the depreciation of the 
credability of the teaching profession has some-
thing to do with an inability to inspire children to 
enjoy learning. The problem is not entirely to be 
blamed on schools however— as we have seen in 
preceding blessings, a negative parental role 
model or a bad home environment can damage a 
child's character so severely, even before starting 
school — to an extent that the best of teachers can 
do nothing to rectify the situation. 
A.1 Problems & risks facing students in general 
The ideal student is someone who never tires of 
learning new things either about worldly or spir-
itual matters. It is not enough just to be curious —
to learn in depth, a student needs to have a real 
respect for the knowledge they are learning. 
The reality of student life is that there are many 
things to interfere with the students' enthusiasm 
to learn. The student's disillusionment can be sum-
marized into three different groups: loss of sense 
of responsibility towards their own sense of hu-
man dignity; loss of sense of responsibility towards 
the sense human dignity of others, and; loss of 
sense of responsibility towards a fair economy: 
1. Loss of responsibility towards own sense of hu-
man dignity may lead to: 
I. Early Signs of False View: Not bothering to 
keep the Five Precepts, ignorance of the Five 
Precepts or even going so far as to protest 
against the keeping of the Five Precepts —
as a result of the example or persuasion of 
teachers; 
2. Expression of the Defilements of Action: Taking 
the lives or being cruel to people or animals, 
stealing, committing adultery or sexual in-
tercourse outside marriage and telling lies. 
3. Loss of 'aim in life': leading to a general lack 
of motivation to study or develop oneself and 
consequent lack of preparation to learn new 
skills, fit into society or work for a living. 
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2. Loss of responsibility towards the sense of hu-
man dignity of others: if teachers or lecturers fail 
to inspire the students by their example of ethi-
cal living, students will have no feeling of respon-
sibility towards the human dignity of others or 
of society in general. Consequently they may: 
1. Profit from natural resources at the expense of the 
environment: if the students are only interested 
in the short-term gains of a particular item of 
knowledge, but fail to consider or be taught 
about the long-term consequences (e.g They 
may pull up trees to facilitate access by prof-
itable farm machinery, but in so doing cause 
erosion of the top soil) 
2. Always put the blame on others: This is a very 
basic form of bias often arising as a result of 
never having been praised by their teacher or 
lecturer. Never having seen their teacher 
praise the good points of others, they assume 
that picking on others' faults is normal and 
they are the only infallible person in the 
world. 
3. Persuades friends to be delinquent: For the con-
venience of keeping company with those of 
similar habits as themselves, disillusioned stu-
dents persuade their friends to participate in 
various forms of delinquent behaviour such 
as truancy or "doing drugs". 
3. Loss of responsibility towards the sense of eco-
nomicfairness: If teachers fail to instil self-disci-
pline in their students, the students will have no 
sense of responsibility towards a fair economy, 
specifically by: 
1. Unwholesome Livelihood: like selling drugs, 
petty theft, telephone prostitution or gam-
bling; 
2. Addiction to the Six 'Roads to Ruin'; 
3. Worshipping Money: When money becomes the 
most important thing, it is unlikely that a per-
son will have any concern for the state of their 
family, of the nation or the religion. It is like 
the aphorism often heard on the lips of mod-
em youth that "ideals don't keep the wolf 
from the door". 
A.2 Definition: Artfulness in Knowledge 
The word lbaliftsuta' in the Pali means literally 'one 
who has heard much'. It refers to being learned by 
having heard much both in spiritual and worldly 
ways. A lbahEsEtat is someone who is: 
"artful in knowledge" — choosing to study 
only the things appropriate for study —
being a person learned in those subjects and 
observant — personal qualities that lie at 
the trailhead of the path to wisdom. Such 
knowledge allows one to be independent 
in earning one's living and will be the key 
which unlocks the door to worldly success. 
13. Me Nature of Knowledge 
B.1 The Three Levels of Knowledge 
If we want to identify the features of learning that 
will give rise to wisdom we have to distinguish 
wisdom from other sorts of knowledge. All sorts of 
knowledge help to illuminate the mind. When we 
don't understand something it is as if we are left in 
the dark about that thing. When we understand 
something it is as if light has been thrown on that 
matter. Knowledge in its most basic form, like the 
ability to do arithmetic or knowing where to catch 
the bus sometimes will feel as if it creates some il-
lumination in the mind but it is just a feeling —
because such an ability is restricted to the higher 
sort of knowledge we call "wisdom". In all we can 
differentiate three levels of knowledge: 
1. Theoretical knowledge Isutamaya-pailfia] The 
most basic sort of knowledge arises via the five 
senses, that is through the things we see with 
our eyes, hear with our ears, smell with our nose, 
taste with our tongue or feel by our sense of 
touch. You could call this sort of knowledge raw 
data. Touching fire tells us that it is hot. A child 
might want to know what fire is like. Their 
mother tells them not to touch it because it is hot 
and will burn them. The child will not believe 
their mother so easily. The mother might tell 
them not to touch it twice, but on the third time 
she will have to give in to the child's curiosity 
and let him touch the flame so that the child will 
know for next time that heat goes together with 
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brightness. This sort of knowledge also includes 
the knowledge we receive by listening to infor-
mation and what you can remember from what 
you have heard in lectures and read from text-
books. If you have never had the chance to ap-
ply the knowledge that you have learned then it 
may still be of limited use; 
2. Hands-on Knowledge icintanzayapaihia]: The 
second sort of knowledge which is slightly more 
advanced is hands-on knowledge, the knowl-
edge that has been reflected on, tested and ap-
plied. However, even if you are the world's best 
professor, your knowledge will not exceed this 
level. With this sort of knowledge you are like 
someone stands on the water's edge and sees 
ripples on the surface of the water. From knowl-
edge or experience they would be able to assume 
that the ripples are caused by fish under the sur-
face of the water. Whether the fish are large or 
small or whether there are shrimps or crabs or 
shellfish moving under the water, you could 
probably notice from the size of the ripples. But 
because you cannot see the fish directly you are 
able only to make an educated guess; 
3. Insight lbhavanamayapafifia]: A third and 
higher sort of knowledge is insight into deeper 
truths or more challenging truths. However if 
we study meditation further we will discover 
that even finding the solutions to simple prob-
lems in this way is actually causing there to be 
illumination arising in the mind. The character-
istics of wisdom when it arises in the mind: 
1. It will give rise to brightness in the mind. Wis-
dom is the light which will chase away the 
darkness of ignorance. This is not just a meta-
phor for the knowledge but when we train 
ourselves further in meditation, we will see 
that brightness really is the operant feature of 
wisdom. The illumination of the more ad-
vanced sorts of knowledge is so bright that is 
is like compressing the brightness of a hun-
dred suns into a single spot. It is by virtue of 
such brightness that we can identify and up-
root the defilements usually hidden in the 
mind. For those who are new to meditation, 
the brightness is not yet continuous and is dim 
like a glowworm. Such brightness is not yet 
sufficient to identify defilements, but it is a 
good start; 
2. It allows us to transcend defilements: When 
wisdom arises, it allows us to transcend de-
filements previously active in the mind. Prob-
lems which used to exist will be overcome 
once and for all. Evil in the mind is uprooted. 
It allows us to probe deeper into problems and 
cut off problems at their roots. It allows us to 
overcome our own faults and weaknesses. It 
allows us to change our bad habits. Such 
knowledge is able to overcome suffering and 
to change our own habits. It allows us to get 
to the root of problems. Such knowledge can 
actually kill negativity in the mind once and 
for all. Such knowledge no longer comes via 
the five senses but will come instead directly 
via the mind that is still. It is not knowledge 
that comes from thinking. It is knowledge that 
arises in the still mind together with bright-
ness. It is a sort of knowledge we sometimes 
call wisdom or insight. If we go back to the 
scenario with the man standing on the edge 
of the water, where through conventional 
knowledge the man could do no better than 
make an educated guess, if we were to use 
insight to assess the same situation, it would 
be as if the water was clear and the man could 
see the fish, the crabs, the shrimps or the shell-
fish without having to think about it. 
The ability to harness the knowledge that arises 
from the still mind is an ability for which you have 
to train in meditation. 
B.2 Contrast between the Learned and the Wise 
There are several important differences between the 
learned who know only the theory of how to do 
good deeds (but may not practice it) and the wise 
who may not know much but use everything they 
know to boost their opportunity to do good deeds. 
Unfortunately, knowledge in the hands of a fool (or 
even a learned person) can be a dangerous thing. If 
your only knowledge is academic knowledge, no 
matter how clever you might be, there is always a 
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risk of making a mess of your life. For example, if 
you have a knowledge of nuclear physics, you can 
use it for peaceful applications as an energy source 
— on the other hand you can use your knowledge 
to produce atomic bombs and the resulting holo-
caust towards human life. Thus ethical considera-
tions need to go hand in hand with our academic 
knowledge, like a guiding light to give us clarity as 
to whether the application of our knowledge is good 
or bad, appropriate or inappropriate. 
Those who are intented only in academic learn-
ing, no matter how clever, rich or powerful they 
may be, can never manage to make themselves en-
dearing or worthy of the respect of others and in 
the end they cannot make a success out of their lives. 
C. THE NATURE OF THE SI UDENT 
C. I Sense of Responsibility for own Human Dignity 
In order for a student to protect their own sense of 
human dignity, they must refrain from the Four De-
filements of Action: 
1. taking the lives or being cruel to people or ani-
mals; 
2. stealing; 
3. committing adultery or have sexual inter-
course outside marriage; 
4. telling lies. 
Also concerning a person's responsibility to their 
own sense of human dignity, a person should: 
• avoid sentimentality about learning: those who 
are not strong-minded in their pursuit of learn-
ing will not manage to succeed in becoming 
learned; 
• avoid obsession with appearances: if you want 
to try to be a learned person in the future — you 
should model yourself on the stereotype of aca-
demics or monastics who emphasise only two 
things about their dress — modesty and cleanli-
ness. 
• avoid childishness: those who play around, 
never take responsibility for anything and never 
taking anything seriously, will never succeed in 
becoming learned. 
C.2 Sense of Responsibility for others' Human 
Dignity 
Bias gives us negative attitudes which may educe 
our chances of success in study. If we are able to 
overcome these items of unfairness in the mind 
from the outset then the mind will be a much more 
fertile receptacle for knowledge: 
1. Learning based on Desire [chandagati]: Desire 
doesn't need to be so strong that you are a Casa-
nova. Such a person would have no chance of 
being a good student anyway. However, to a 
lesser degree even someone who is excessively 
fussy about what they do and what they wear 
would be unlikely to succeed in their studies. 
Those who study simply because they would like 
to become famous will find it hard to succeed in 
study. If you see possessions as an end in them-
selves then we will have no incentive to study. 
2. Learning based on Hatred [closegati]: If you want 
to study successfully then you mustn't be some-
one who loses their temper easily. You must be 
able to accept criticism without being scared of 
appearing foolish. Some people are angry only 
for an instant and then they recover quickly. Oth-
ers are angry and it takes them a long time to get 
over it. They find it hard to forgive. Even later 
on, although they can't remember why they were 
angry with someone, they still feel angry with 
that person. They forget their respect for others. 
They think that they are superior to everyone 
else. Thus they can never learn anything from 
anyone else. By meditating, such people can train 
themselves to be less impatient. If they also keep 
a baseline of morality such as avoiding killing 
animals and insulting then they will find it much 
easier to acquire wisdom. 
3. Learning based on Ignorance Imohegatij: If you 
are still acting on your own ignorance instead of 
giving things careful consideration before you 
do them, then you will find it hard acquire new 
knowledge. If your old ways of looking at the 
world are faulty then you need to let go of them 
before you can expect to acquire new ones. 
4. Learning based on Fear [bhayagrati]: Some peo-
ple lack confidence in themselves and their own 
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knowledge. They are always afraid of the criti-
cism of others. If you are afraid of taking deci-
sions yourself, then you will be destined to al-
ways be led by other people instead of standing 
on your own feet. You will have no creative or 
original thinking of your own. If even you don't 
trust your own knowledge then how can you 
expect to make anyone else confident. 
C3 Sense ofResponsibility for Economic Fairness 
In order for a student to protect society's sense of 
human dignity, they must refrain from the Six Roads 
to Ruin: 
1. Drinking alcohol; 
2. Roaming the streets at unseemly hours; 
3. Frequenting shows; 
4. Gambling; 
5. Association with bad company; 
6. Laziness to work for a living. 
Furthermore a person who is obsessed with per-
sonal financial gain will find it hard to make 
progress in their studies. A person should not "wor-
ship money". Those who see that material rewards 
are more valuable than wisdom will never go very 
far in acquiring wisdom. We don't overlook the 
importance of wealth — but on the way that it is 
best to apply one's wealth — that will be the sub-
ject of Blessing Fifteen. 
. 1HE LEARNING PROCESS 
Di Coming into contact with someone knowledgeable 
One of the hardest things is to find a teacher who 
will give the necessary encouragement to bring 
one's studies to fruition. The Buddha taught in the 
Singalovada Sutta that successful studies are es-
tablished on the base of reciprocal duties that a 
student practices towards his teacher and that a 
teacher practises towards their student (duties col-
lectively referred to as duties to the Southern Quar-
ter). If a student finds a teacher that they think 
they can learn something from, they should start 
to learn from them. The teacher should practice 
the following five duties towards their pupil, by 
making sure: 
1. the student is well trained; 
2. that the student is taught in such a way that he 
understands and remembers well what he has 
learned; 
3. that the student is thoroughly instructed in the 
lore of every art without holding knowledge 
back; 
4. to give praise to the student which raises his es-
teem amongst his peers; 
5. that the student's security and safety in every 
quarter (i.e. towards parents, wife, children, 
employees, friends and spiritual mentors) is en-
sured, while pointing out the loopholes and 
weaknesses present in any body of knowledge. 
Meanwhile the student should minister to his 
teacher by: 
1. rising to receive them; 
2. by serving them (in things which facilitate the 
teacher's convenience) 
3. by obedience to the teachings or an eagerness to 
learn; 
4. by personal service 
5. by attentively and respectfully learning the arts 
and sciences 
If a student fails to fulfil their duties but the 
teacher does their part, the student is unwor-
thy of the teacher — and it will be no surprise 
if the student can never become "skilled in 
knowledge" — catastrophe will await the stu-
dent. 
If the teacher fails to fulfil their duties but the 
pupil does their part, then the teacher is un-
worthy of the student — and perhaps the stu-
dent should look elsewhere for a better teacher 
— and catastrophe awaits the teacher. 
If neither the student nor the teacher fulfil 
their duties, catastrophe will await both stu-
dent and teacher and their failing will have 
negative consequences for society at large. 
However, if both student and teacher fulfil 
their duties to one another, both parties will 
have a bright future and their behaviour will 
have positive consequences for society at large. 
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D.2 Finding the opportunity to hear what they teach 
If you are still the sort of person who skips lectures 
and copies the notes later, you are unlikely ever to 
make a success of your career as a student. This 
applies both to the contact with your teacher and 
reading from the textbooks. It means questioning 
in order to further your knowledge.Whatever 
knowledge you learn, try to divide it up into these 
four aspects and study all four. Only then can you 
say that you have mastered that knowledge. Such 
an assessment of your own knowledge will prevent 
you from slipping into the premature overestima-
tion of the amount you know and give you the en-
couragement to keep listening to people of knowl-
edge. 
1. Knowledge in Depth: You need to make sure 
that you understand deeply what you have 
learned. You need to know the roots and origins 
of everything you study (its past). If you are a 
doctor and you see a patient ill with certain 
symptoms by looking at their face you can tell 
immediately about the prognosis of their illness 
right from ten or twenty years ago. Don't go be-
lieving things simply because they are traditional 
or customary without understanding the reasons 
for such belief. 
2. Knowledge in Breadth: You need to have a 
broad knowledge (the present) not only of your 
own narrow specialism but also about all the 
things that concern your everyday life. Even if 
you study the arts, you still need to know the 
elements of electricity because you use electric-
ity in your everyday life from the time you get 
up in the morning to the time you go to bed. If 
you have studied science, you still need to know 
about the arts otherwise you will not understand 
how to communicate emotions, feelings and 
ideas from one person to another in different 
forms whether it may be written or visual. If you 
don't study then you can be the best engineer in 
the world but if you have no gift for communi-
cating with people you will just be digging holes 
for the rest of your life. 
3. Thorough Knowledge: Not only will you know 
your own narrow subject but you will know the 
connections which it has with other issues as if 
you know the influences of that knowledge all 
the way from the mainstream up to the edges. 
4. Long-sighted Knowledge: You need to have a 
long-sighted knowledge. You need to know how 
things will turn out in the future. You need to 
know how one thing leads to another. 
D.3 Listening attentively 
You need to listen to remember — not just sit in the 
lecture picking your fingernails and chatting to your 
friends, with no idea what the lecture was about at 
the end; 
D.4 Memorizing knowledge learned [tioisaparicittal 
If you make no effort to memorize what you have 
learned, you will never become a person 'who has 
heard much' (A.v.26). Memorization is an implicit 
part of the duty of a monk and it is expectedof 
monks by the lay congregation. If the knowledge 
stays in the books, it is like having money, but hav-
ing lent it all to someone else. If you want it back 
instantly, even though it is yours you cannot get it 
back instantly. Even though you know which text-
book you can find a certain piece of knowledge in, 
you will go reaching for the book one day and find 
that worms have eaten just the page you needed. 
D.5 Reflecting on knowledge memorized [mamas& 
napekkhital 
You have to digest new knowledge in your mind 
and look for causes and effects Meditating is the 
mostefficient way of 'digesting' new knowledge. 
D.6 Applying knowledge for one's own benefit 
(see Blessing Eight) 
D.7 Applying knowledge for the benefit of 
oneself and others 
(See Blessing Eight) 
t. PRAIA 1CAL TIPS }OR BECOMING LEARNED 
Here are some practical suggestions for budding 
scholars: 
1. Choose only appropriate subjects to study which 
will not have negative implications for the hu-
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man dignity of yourself, others or society at 
large; 
2. Dedicate yourself — studying your chosen sub-
ject to the utmost of your ability; 
3. Always be enthusiastic to learn new things; 
4. Study spiritual knowledge hand-in-hand with 
worldly knowledge; 
5. Remember what you have learned so that it is 
always at your immediate disposal 
ILLUS1 RAI !VI; EXAMPLES 
El Metaphor: Lamp lighting the path fora long 
journey ahead 
Just as illumination is necessary to light the path 
ahead on a long journey, artfulness in knowledge 
is the pioneering virtue leading to prosperity in life. 
F.2 Ex. Buddha advises a brahmin to pay 
respect to Ananda (J.296) 
There was once a brahmin who sought the advice 
of the Buddha. He said that it was obvious how 
one could pay respect to the Buddha and the 
Sangha, because they were already a sort of per-
sonality. However, the Brahmin didn't know how 
to pay respect to the Dhamma which seemed more 
abstract.The Buddha replied that if you want to pay 
respect to the Dhamma, you should pay respect to 
those who are teamed in the Dhamma. The Brah-
min asked around to find which of the monks was 
the most teamed and everyone agreed that Ananda 
was the most learned because more than any other 
monk, he had heard the teachings of the Lord Bud-
dha. Thus the Brahmin went to pay respect to 
Ananda above the other monks, many of whom 
had more advanced spiritual attainments. 
F.3 Ex. Mahasutasoma jataka (J.537) 
There was a certain Buddha who while pursuing 
Perfections as the bodhisattva, was born as a king 
called Mahasutasoma. The king was so keen to 
learn new teachings of the Dhamma that he would 
invite anyone who had knowledge of the Dhamma 
to come and teach him in the palace. On one occa-
sion, MahAsutasoma was captured by an ogre. The 
ogre was going to put him to death. On just the day 
the ogre was going to collect him, it was also the 
day when he had made an appointment with a 
knowledgable Brahmin Nanda to teach some teach-
ings left over from the Kassapa Buddha. In that day 
and age, there were no living teachings to be fol-
lowed any more. There were no monks left any 
more. Later even if the king offered the prize of a 
heap of gold as tall as the person to give the teach-
ing, there would still be no-one who had any teach-
ing to give the king. Even if the king offered the 
prize of a heap of diamonds as tall as an elephant, 
still nobody could be found to give a teaching to 
the teacher. However, in the time of king 
MahAsutasoma, the decay of Buddhism was not 
so much that there were no teachings left any more. 
The day when the king was to be captured, some-
one had accepted an invitation to come and give a 
teaching in the palace. On that day, out of respect 
for the Dhamma, the king had first gone to freshen 
up and change into a new set of clothes in prepara-
tion for hearing the Dhamma. It was as he was 
washing that he was captured. The king made a 
deal with the ogre that it could do with him as it 
liked, but it should first let him listen to the teach-
ing of the Dhamma, because he had already made 
an appointment with the teacher who was coming. 
The king promised the ogre that after hearing the 
teaching he would allow it to take him away for 
sacrifice. Even though the people of that time didn't 
know about the Precepts, they still knew about the 
importance of truthfulness. The king was allowed 
to return to the palace where the Brahmin was wait-
ing. The Brahmin didn't even know how to explain 
the Dhamma, all he could do was to read out a piece 
of the scriptures. The Brahmin also had to wash 
himself before giving the teaching. He rinsed his 
hands with perfume before picking up the scrip-
tures. He bowed three times to the scriptures and 
only then did he open up the scriptures in the most 
careful possible way. The subject matter of the scrip-
tures were the words of a previous Buddha. The 
Brahmin could read the words and translate them, 
but he didn't know the meaning: 
Associating with the noble ones just once, 
One can be protected by that contact for 
the rest of one's life. 
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However, associating with fools even 
many times, 
Will fail to protect you for the rest of your 
life. 
If you associate with the noble ones, 
You should associate with them closely, 
Because anyone who can learn the virtues 
of a noble one, 
Will know only prosperity and never 
know decay. 
Even a royal chariot that is beautifully 
decorated, 
Must eventually deteriorate and decay, 
In the same way the body that we possess 
Must eventually decay and die. 
However, the Virtue of the Noble Ones 
Never goes out of date and never decays. 
It is only the Noble Ones together 
Who can know each others' minds. 
The earth and sky are far apart. 
The two sides of the ocean are far apart. 
But they are not so far apart, 
As the behaviour of the nobles and that 
of fools. 
Before putting the scriptures away, the brahmin 
bowed to them again. Hearing just these teachings, 
the king was so moved that he cried tears of joy. 
The king asked the brahmin, "Usually when you 
read this scripture to other kings, how much do they 
give you?" 
The brahmin replied, "They give me a hundred 
for each verse." 
"These verses are not a 'hundred a verse' but are 
a 'thousand a verse' said the king, and presented 
the brahmin with five thousand. 
The king remembered the appointment he had 
made with the ogre and thought to himself, "If I 
were to break my promise, it would only make my 
mind dull and guilty and I would certainly have 
an unfortunate afterlife destination — better that I 
go to my death with that ogre while my mind is 
still radiant from having heard the Dhamma." The 
king gave himself up to the ogre. The ogre was sur-
prised that the king didn't show any sign of fear-
ing death. It asked the king why he had no fear of 
death. When the king told them the Dhamma he 
had learned, the ogre was so impressed that it asked 
to take refuge in the king as its teacher and had no 
more thought about sacrificing him. 
P.4 Ex. Tuccha•Pofhila (The Blank Scripture 
Monk)(DhA.iii.41741) 
In the time of the Buddha there was an elder monk 
who was so learned in the Dhamma teachings that 
he had many disciples of his own. Many of his dis-
ciples had become arahants as the result of what he 
had taught —but he, himself, had not achieved any-
thing. He had heard a lot of teachings but he had 
never showed any interest in practising for himself 
all the theory thathe had taught. All he had was 
knowledge — he had no attainments. 
Out of compassion,the Buddha wanted the elder 
monk to realize that he must practice for himself, 
so he always called the elder by the name 'Blank 
Scripture'. If the elder came to see the Buddha, the 
only thing the Buddha would say to him was 
"'Blank Scripture'— so you're here again?" For 
other disciples the Buddha would ask questions or 
give encouragement, but instead of giving encour-
agement to this elder for having so many students 
he just said 'Blank scripture'. Apart from this he 
would ignore the elder completely until everyone 
else was taking their leave. Again, the only thing 
the Buddha would say to him was "'Blank Scrip-
ture' — so it's time for you to go?" 
One day, the elder saw through his feeling of be-
ing slighted bythe Buddha and thought to himself, 
"What the Buddha says is really true — I really am 
a blank scripture' — because I know all the scrip-
tures by heart, but I have never used any of it in 
practice for my own benefit." He thought to 
himself,"I have spent all my life teaching others, 
but I have never taught anything to the stubbomest 
person in the world — myself." 
(Sometimes, even though you know what is good 
and what is bad, you still don't make any effort to 
change your behaviour. When the alarm dock rings 
in the morning, instead of getting up, you switch it 
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off and go back to sleep. This is the reason why it is 
necessary to teach yourself regularly). 
Thus the blank scripture elder went to the most 
senior arahant he knew and asked for his help in 
teaching the practice of Buddhism. The arahant, 
knew what was in the mind the elder and knew if 
he made life too easy for him, he would never give 
up the arrogance he needed to shed in order to learn 
anything. Thus the arahant did not agree to teach 
him, but sent him to a more junior arahant saying, 
"That monk is still young and healthy — he will 
have the strength to teach you what you want to 
know." 
The 'blank scripture' elder went to the younger 
arahant, but the younger arahant knew the charac-
ter of the elder again. He knew with his seniority, 
the elder would not pay much attention to anything 
taught to him by someone half his age. Thus the 
young arahant sent the elder to study with a nov-
ice who was an arahant. The elder was tempted to 
give up his search for knowledge because of the 
humiliation of having to be taught by a young nov-
ice! However, the warning of the Buddha still rang 
in his ear and he gritted his teeth and went to see 
the novice. 
The novice knew the arrogant character of the 
elder so he told him that to get a good result from 
the teaching, the elder must be up to his neck in 
river water to get any benefit. The elder thought, "1 
am really at my last resort — if I don't do as this 
novice tells me, I will maybe never have the chance 
to learn any more."When the elder was up to his 
waist in water, he had completely given up his dig-
nity and hence his arrogance. The novice said, "Up 
to your waist is enough!" 
The novice taught, "There is a termite mound 
with six entrances. A water monitor is inside the 
termite mound. The way to catch the water moni-
tor is to block five entrances and to put your hand 
through the sixth and you will be able to catch the 
water monitor as you with." The novice didn't need 
to say any more. Because the elder was an experi-
enced teacher he immediately knew that the water 
monitor in the teaching is the mind itself which is 
constantly thinking of things that are of no benefit, 
losing its energy via the six sense doors. If we want 
to train the mind we have to control the five outer 
senses (eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body) and pu-
rify the sixth sense which is the object of the mind. 
As soon as the elder understood, he immediately 
trained himself in sensual restraint and purification 
of the mind. 
By the end of the novice's teaching, the elder was 
an arahant, even standing there up to his waist in 
water. Because the elder had been artful in knowl-
edge for so long, to become artful in practice was 
no difficulty. All he needed was to have a little re-
minder to make him think a little. Thus we can see 
that to be artful in knowledge is essential for one's 
personal development. 
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Blessing Eight: 
Artfulness 
in Application 
A. INTRODUCTION 
Since Blessing Seven, we have already discovered 
the value of being artful in knowledge — but it is 
not good enough — it is also necessary to be artful 
in the application of what we know — the subject 
of this Blessing. 
A.1 People confuse knowledge with ability 
Many people confuse knowledge with ability. Art-
fulness in the application of knowledge means that 
if you have learned an occupational subject, if you 
have learned all the necessary theory, you have to 
transform that theory into practice allowing you to 
earn your living. If you have learned Dhamma 
theory, you have to transform that knowledge into 
Dhamma practice. 
It is like someone who reads a manual of swim-
ming who can memorize every page of the manual. 
He knows how many types of swimming styles ex-
ist and what all the differences are. When he has 
read the book, he puts it at the side of the swim-
ming pool and jumps in —sinking without a trace! 
A.2 Why no-one wants fresh graduates 
This is one reason why many graduates are unem-
ployed — they have only knowledge from exami-
nations or from copying their friends. They have 
no practical knowledge. They expect to get a pres-
tigious job in keeping with their prestigious degree 
and look down on almost every type of work. When 
they have only academic knowledge, no practical 
knowledge and they expect to choose where they 
want to work, who can they expect to want to take 
them on? If you don't want to be an unemployed 
graduate, you should take on any work you can 
find, to get the practical experience ever since you 
have not yet graduated. If you can transform your 
academic knowledge into practical skills even be-
fore you graduate, you will make an very attrac-
tive prospect for employers. There will be employ-
ers asking after you even before you graduate. 
Some people get themselves a prestigious degree 
in accounting. They take a job as a lecturer in uni-
versity and because they can teach accounting in a 
way that allows their students to become success-
ful accountants, they think that they are also a ca-
pable accountant. The lecturer sees that his students 
are richer than he is, so he gives up his job to start a 
business himself. Before long, his business is bank-
rupt and he has to go back to teaching! Only then 
would such a person find out the reality that knowl-
edge and application of knowledge are completely 
different attributes. 
li. 
INI I IONS 
B.1 Definition: Artfulness in Application 
The Pali word isippaspc meaning 'one endowed 
with artistry' means someone who is skilled in ap-
plication of their knowledge. The tbahasatat of 
Blessing Seven is one who is skilled in knowledge, 
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but the person who has mastered this Eighth Bless-
ing is one who can apply that knowledge fruitfully 
too. 
£2 Sir Components of Artfill Application 
Not all performances or displays of application of 
knowledge qualify as 'artfulness in application'. 
You can learn skills, but it doesn't guarantee that 
using the skill will bring you merit — therefore, 
before committing yourself to a skill you want to 
learn, you have to consider the merits of it first, for 
the harmony of society: If you are a sculptor, then 
why not use your skill to sculpt Buddha images that 
can bring inspiration to others? If you can draw then 
why not draw the sort of pictures that will inspire 
others to do good deeds? Even little skills like be-
ing able to make toys for one's children can help to 
stop wastage of family income on imported dolls 
and cartoon characters — as a guideline, bear in 
mind the following six qualities of applied work 
that demonstrates artistry: 
1. Must be refined 
2. Adds to the value of the raw materials 
3. Product of the work leads to creative thinking, 
not aggressive or destructive thinking: A motor 
engineer should use his skill to build engines to 
help people in their everyday lives rather than 
to build weapons to wage war. 
4. Product of the work doesn't lead to sensual ob-
session: Don't go studying the sort of arts that 
will stir up the passion of others — like cabaret 
dancing or strip-tease. 
5. Product of the work doesn't lead to illwill or 
vengefulness 
6. Product of the work doesn't lead to aggression: 
Don't engage in arts that will cause people to 
seek vengeance such as inventing war slogans. 
B.3 Three Categories of Artful Application 
Don't think that only artistic applications you can 
'see and touch' qualify for fulfilment of the Eighth 
Blessing. Such skilfulness can be applied to body, 
speech and mind: 
1. Artistic Application in Body: This applies to 
various sorts of specialism or applied expertise, 
whether it be plumbing, mechanics, painting, 
design, sculpture, photography, printing or other 
vocational skills such as gardener, fanner, author 
or nurse — and further than that, having the 
manners to walk, stand, sit and lie down politely, 
dressing appropriately, being hospitable, ex-
pressing respect and behaving in a 'cultivated' 
way; 
2. Artistic Application in Speech: This applies to 
communication skills, knowing what to say and 
how to say it in a way to inspire the hearer to-
wards virtue (more in Blessing Ten) 
3. Artistic Application in Mind: This applies to 
skillfulness in thinking, having one's wits about 
one and creative thinking. 
In a nutshell, Artfulness in Application is artfulness 
in body, speech and mind. 
C. CULIIVAIING ARTF11L APPLICATION 
C.1 Transforming Knowledge into Skills 
If you want to transform your academic knowledge 
into applied ability, you have to possess the follow-
ing qualities (Patthana Sutta A.iii.154): 
1. Believe in what you do Isaddha]: You have to 
believe that you what you are doing is really ben-
eficial and virtuous. You should be enthusiastic 
about doing it and have the confidence that you 
can make a success out of it. Some doctors gradu-
ate in medical science, but have no confidence 
in their ability to heal people. Some are more con-
fident in their own ability to construct buildings. 
In the end, they become building contractors! 
They can achieve more success that way than 
they ever could by being a doctor! You need to 
have to believe in what you are doing if you are 
to be able to dedicate yourself to it. 
2. Safeguard your health: Don't be the sort of per-
son who bursts into coughs and sneezes when 
exposed to the merest cold draught. If you let 
your efforts destroy your health, it will be hard 
for you to succeed in learning a trade. A practi-
cal way to safeguard your health from all the pos-
sible risks is very simple — keep the Five Pre-
cepts strictly. If you neglect your health and go 
looking for things to destroy yourself by doing 
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unhealthy things, you will find it hard ever to 
achieve success in learning a trade. 
3. You must avoid arrogance and boastfulness: 
Those who spend all day speaking about what 
they will do, but never getting round to doing it, 
will never manage to master a trade. No-one 
wants to accept someone who is boastful as an 
apprentice. The only skill which boastful people 
manage to develop is the ability to find fault with 
other people in order to let other people know 
how wonderful they are themselves. By push-
ing others down they are able to hoist themselves 
up in the estimation of others. The habit of a 
boastful person is to take a very minor virtue or 
ability and magnify it beyond all proportion. 
4. You must avoid laziness: If you have only knowl-
edge but you are too lazy to do anything with it, 
then you will be no more than knowledgeable 
for the rest of your life. 
5. Cultivate wisdom: Wisdom is cultivated by be-
ing observant and reflecting on new skills and 
techniques. 
C.2lnstilling yourself with "Artfulness in Application" 
You cannot acquire wisdom just by eating and 
sleeping. You have to be active in your search for 
wisdom according to the following steps: 
1. Be observant of yourself and the things around 
you: It is all very well to say 'be observant' but 
in fact, it is important to know what to observe! 
In a nutshell, our powers of observation should 
always attempt to seek out the good and useful 
characteristics of the things we observe.You have 
to start by observing yourself first — because to 
observe yourself is theoretically the simplest. You 
should start by noticing aspects of your lifestyle, 
(for example our habits of eating or sleeping) to 
try to define what is appropriate or inappropri-
ate and where the point of equilibrium lies for 
various factors. If you eat too much it will make 
you sleepy. If you eat too little, your stomach will 
rumble at night. You have to notice what hap-
pens to us if we go to bed late. You have to no-
tice what happens to you if you get up late. What 
is better for you — to go to bed at ten at night 
and wake up at dawn, or to go to bed at mid-
night and to wake up at seven in the morning? 
Once you know how to be observant of your-
self, you can gradually extend your observation 
to the things around you. We notice our clothes. 
How our clothes get dirty at the collar or around 
the cuffs. Notice what sort of clothes are suitable 
for what sort of situation. We gradually extend 
our mindfulness to the things more distant from 
us — noticing how to speak to people in an ap-
propriate way, how to speak to people to inspire 
them instead of making them lazy. Notice the 
characteristics of the things around you. If you 
train yourself to be observant even of yourself, 
the skill will soon be developed and wisdom will 
follow. 
2. Train yourself to do everything better than best: 
Never look down on any work that comes your 
way. Never think any task you do is unimpor-
tant. Even simple things like your handwriting 
should be done with care. From the time when a 
child is young, they should be trained to write 
neatly whatever they do so that 'being careful' 
about whatever work they are to do in the fu-
ture will be ingrained from the earliest age. Some 
people write with such messy handwriting that 
others can only barely decipher what has been 
written. Someone who writes like that since their 
youth until adulthood will soon get themselves 
in the habit of doing everything in a shoddy way 
— never achieving anything better than 'pass-
able' quality. If you do everything to the best of 
your ability, skills and abilities will soon come 
your way without you even having to spend time 
looking for them. Even if you don't study the 
specific qualities of a particular art, if you are 
always observant of quality, and do things 
cleanly and in a detailed way, even though you 
cannot produce artwork for yourself, you will 
be able to tell quality in the work of others. Once 
you have trained your mind to be refined and to 
notice details, even the way you speak will start 
to be of higher quality — more based on reason 
and more confident (because your train of 
thought will be more systematic). 
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3. Be refined in all you do: Some might accuse you 
of 'nit-picking' but if you insist on high quality 
in your work, even in the details, before long, 
you will start to pick up artfulness in applica-
tion. 
4. Always look for better ways to do the same 
thing: Sometimes you can already do a task, but 
if you always look for quickec, more efficient, 
more cost-effective ways of doing the same thing, 
it will force you always to improve on your skills, 
never sitting on your laurels. 
5. Apprentice yourself to a craftsman: Seek out 
craftsmen in the field which you want to master 
and become apprentice to them. Be respectful 
and helpful to him so that he will have the com-
passion to push you further in the direction of 
craftsmanship. 
6. Meditate regularly: The art of training our capa-
bilities of action and speech is rooted in our ca-
pability to train the mind. Systematic thinking 
and observation can only be developed when the 
mind is well-trained. Training the mind through 
meditation will make the acquisition of other ca-
pabilities easy, because to be able to meditate is 
the ultimate skill — because it deals with refine-
ment at its root. 
C.3 Applying knowledge for your own benefit 
and the benefit of others 
In continuation of the "Learning Process already 
described in Blessing Seven", Blessing Eight con-
cerns the last two steps of the knowledge acquisi-
tion process which involve the application of that 
knowledge for the good of ourselves and others. 
Some people use their knowledge and skills only 
for their own selfish benefits. Sometimes they are 
afraid that if they teach all they know to anyone 
else then they will be giving away their trade se-
crets or that that other person may overtake them 
and make more progress than they have done. 
The attitude which is the most healthy for round-
ing off a body of knowledge that you have learned 
is to use your knowledge both for your own benefit 
and the benefit of others too. Like the example of 
the College of Surgery with the policy "See One - 
Do One - Teach One" where capable students were 
not only those who could witness and perform sur-
gery — they were also able to teach surgery to oth-
ers too! In that way, all your mastery of the knowl-
edge will not be limited to overcoming your own 
shortcomings — the application of knowledge can 
also be used to overcome the shortcomings of oth-
ers. 
C.4 How aid to instil yourself with "Artfulness 
in Application" 
If you want to learn artfulness in application 
quickly, you have to make sure that you are not the 
sort of person who can do nothing better than find 
fault with the work of others — unless you are train-
ing yourself to be a professional critic! If you have 
done nothing but criticise others, when it comes to 
your turn to show off your craftsmanship, you will 
not have the confidence to let others see what you 
have made or done — for fear they will criticize 
you in the same way as you have done them. In 
such a case, you will end up as someone who never 
achieves anything. 
b. HLUSIRA AVE EXAMPLES 
D.1 Proverb: He who knows but a single skill.. . 
He who knows but a single skill can eke out his 
livelihood with ease. 
D.2 Metaphor: Just as twigs... 
If you plant a mango tree, the benefit you get from 
it depends entirely on the amount of fruit. Even 
though the tree might grow a trunk, branches and 
leaves — these are no more than precursors for any 
benefit which may come later. In the same way, even 
though a person may be learned, this knowledge is 
no more than a precursor for the benefit that can 
accrue if the knowledge is applied. 
D.3 .Ex. Swimology (traditional) 
Once a young professor was making a sea voyage. 
He was a highly educated man with a long tail of 
letters after his name, but he had little experience 
of life. In the crew of the ship on which he was 
traveling was an illiterate old sailor. Every evening 
the sailor would visit the cabin of the young pro-
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lessor to listen to him hold forth on many different 
subjects. He was very impressed with the learning 
of the young man. 
One evening as the sailor was about to leave the 
cabin after several hours of conversation, the pro-
fessor asked,"Old man, have you studied geology?" 
"What is that,sir?" 
"The science of the earth." 
"No sir, I have never been to any school or col-
lege. I have never studied anything." 
"Old man, you have wasted a quarter of your 
life." 
With a long face the old sailor went away. "If such 
a learned person says so, certainly it must be true," 
he thought. "I have wasted a quarter of my life." 
Next evening again, as the sailor was about to 
leave the cabin, the professor asked him, "Old man, 
have you studied oceanography?" 
"What is that, sir?" 
"The science of the sea." 
"No, sir, I have never studied anything." 
"Old man, you have wasted half your life." 
With a still longer face the sailor went away: "I 
have wasted half my life; this learned man says so." 
Next evening again as the sailor was about to 
leave the cabin, "Old man, have you studied mete-
orology?" 
"What is that, sir? I have never heard of it." 
"The science of the wind, the rain, the weather." 
"No sir. As I told you, I have never been to any 
school. I have never studied anything." 
"You have not studied the science of the earth on 
which you live; you have not studied the science of 
the sea on which you earn your livelihood; you have 
not studied the science of the weather which you 
encounter every day? Old man, you have wasted 
three-quarters of your life." 
The old sailor was very unhappy: "This learned 
man says that I have wasted three-quarters of my 
life! Certainly I must have wasted three-quarters 
of my life. 
The next day it was the turn of the old sailor. He 
came running to the cabin of the young man and 
cried, "Professor! Have you studied swimology?" 
"Swimology? What do you mean?" 
"Can you swim, sir?" 
"No, I don't know how to swim." 
"Professor! You have wasted the whole of your life! 
The ship has struck a rock and is sinking. Those 
who can swim may reach the nearby shore, but 
those who cannot swim will drown. I am sorry, pro-
fessor sic, you have surely lost your life." 
You may study all the "-ologies" of the world, 
but if you don't learn swimology, all your studies 
are useless. You may read and write books on swim-
ming, you may debate on its subtle theoretical as-
pects, but how will that help if you refuse to enter 
the water yourself? You must learn how to swim. 
114 EX. Selittakci Jataka(J.107) 
In ancient times, there was a child with polio. His 
legs were so weak that he couldn't walk anywhere 
unaided. He had to stay wherever his friends put 
him. He couldn't even get up. Although his body 
was deformed, his intelligence was bright. He 
didn't look down on any subject. The child would 
practice flicking sand until he could flick sand a 
long distance very precisely. The boy used his skills 
to earn favours from others. The boy could flick 
sand so accurately that he could shoot holes in the 
leaves of trees above. Not only holes—but he could 
shoot holes in the shapes of anything he wanted —
whether they be the shape of rabbits or tigers or 
deer. The boy would shoot holes in leaves to the 
order of the other children in return for sweets. The 
boy with polio had never studied in school, but 
through his skill, he had more sweets to eat than 
the other children every day. 
One day the boy was flicking sand on the sand 
heap for the other children when the king passed 
by. All the other children ran away, and the boy with 
polio was left alone. The king came to rest in the 
shade of the tree by the sandheap and when he 
looked up, he was surprised to see that almost every 
leaf of the tree had been perforated in the shape of 
different animals. The king asked how the tree had 
come to be that way, and found out that it was due 
to the skills of the boy with polio. The king thought, 
"the skills of such a boy should not be wasted at 
the sandpit." The king happened to have a some-
thing on his mind — every time he had a meeting 
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of his counsellors, there was a particular counsel-
lor who would interrupt and dominate the discus-
sion regularly wasting the time of everyone in the 
meeting. The king asked the boy, "if someone were 
to open their mouth, would you be able to shoot 
goat dung into their mouth in the same way you 
shoot sand through leaves?" 
The boy said, "It would be a piece of cake." The 
king had the boy taken into the palace. Those with 
all health and strength never got the chance to go 
to the palace, but this poor crippled boy did. Every 
time there was a meeting, the boy was put behind 
a curtain in the room. Every time the counsellor in 
question opened his mouth to speak, the boy flicked 
goat dung into his mouth. The boy was so fast, that 
the counsellor didn't even know where the taste in 
his mouth had come from. The counsellor would 
want to speak but change his mind as a result every 
time, because he would have to swallow what was 
in his mouth. One day, the counsellor had opened 
his mouth so many times that the boy had used up 
a whole litre of goat dung. The king felt sorry for 
the counsellor and was afraid he would get dysen-
tery. He ordered the counsellor to go and wash his 
mouth out immediately and told him to reduce the 
amount he said or else in future he would get two 
litres of goat dung in his mouth! On future occa-
sions, the counsellor had to consider carefully be-
fore saying anything in case he fell prey to flying 
goat dung. As the result of having more effective 
meetings, the economics of the kingdom improved 
considerably. The king rewarded the crippled boy 
by allocated all the money earned in taxes from a 
certain province to him as pin-money. The cripple 
became a rich man as the result of a single skill —
because he put his mind to perfecting his skill. 
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Blessing Nine: 
Artfulness 
in Usage 
A. INTRODUCTION 
A.1 Place of Blessing Nine in the order of things 
The Seventh Blessing concerned artfulness in 
knowledge. We should be enthusiastic about find-
ing any new knowledge either in spiritual or 
worldly ways as long as it doesn't have any nega-
tive implications for the human dignity of our-
selves, others or society in general. Once you can 
avail yourself of such knowledge, then it is a 
blessing in itself. 
The Eighth Blessing concerned artfulness in the 
application of knowledge or "artfulness in learn-
ing skills". We should be enthusiastic about learn-
ing any new skills either in spiritual or worldly 
ways as long as they don't have any negative im-
plications for the human dignity of ourselves, 
others or society in general. Once you can avail 
yourself of such skills, then it is also a blessing in 
itself. 
Already mooted in the previous two Blessings 
has been the difficulty of knowing whether the 
knowledge or skill we are learning has any nega-
tive implications for the human dignity of our-
selves, others or society in general. The purpose 
of the Ninth Blessing is to give us the guidelines 
we need — to allow us to judge our own behav-
iour in action and word, so that the way we use 
our intellectual resources and craftsmanship 
bring no detriment to society around us or to our 
spiritual furtherment. 
A.2 Objectives of studying 'Artfulness in Usage' 
In our consideration of the value of artfulness in 
usage towards human dignity, we must always con-
sider three levels of description: our own personal 
human dignity, the human dignity of others and 
the dignity of the whole economic system in soci-
ety. Being disciplined or being "artful in usage" has 
benefits on three levels: 
1. Personal Level: Being disciplined protects and 
furthers one's own human dignity by protect-
ing our health from self-induced illness, reduc-
ing possible obstacles in our spiritual vocation 
(especially those arising from unintentional blun-
ders with the "defilements of action" [kamma-
kilesa] and allowing us to develop our level of 
virtue from mere "discipline" [vinaya] to "self-
discipline" [silo] which is the foundation for the 
subsequent development of meditation 
[samadhi] and wisdom 
It is said that 
being disciplined is the one major difference be-
tween humans and savages — thus by preserv-
ing our level of discipline we protect ourselves 
from decline into savagery; 
2. Interpersonal Level: Being disciplined protects 
and furthers others' human dignity by stopping 
people taking advantage of each other. 
3. Social Level: Being disciplined protects and fur-
thers the humanity of the fair economics in our 
society by promoting compliance with the law 
and general harmony for society. 
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Of course it is an advantage for the reader to know 
about artfulness in usage (or more briefly "disci-
pline") and how to acquire it — but it is not until 
you become a disciplined person that you will re-
ally start to gain benefit from this Blessing. 
A.3 Knowing where to draw the line 
From person to person the intellectual resources and 
the level of craftsmanship may not be the same —
however, the more the knowledge and skills a per-
son has, the more potential damage they can do to 
themselves, others and society if they have no ethi-
cal discretion about how to use that knowledge and 
skill. Thus it is vitally important that everyone has 
"virtue" to go hand-in-hand with their knowledge 
— specifically the virtue to know the negative im-
plications of any deeds they may do or words they 
may say. In society in general, we tend tothink that 
if what we do or say is not illegal then it is accept-
able to our human dignity — however, the Law is 
really only a very loose guideline for what should 
or should not be done in society. To give a firm ex-
ample, if a person can perpetrate a murder, but has 
no witnesses, he cannot be prosecuted in a court of 
law. Furthermore, the Law from country to coun-
try is different — does this mean that the ethics can 
also be localized? In some countries, the Law might 
even be undemocratic —so the Law alone doesn't 
give us sufficient guidelines for the preservation of 
human dignity at any of the levels of description. 
More detailed guidelines were provided by the 
Buddha in the form of a checklist of four items to 
be considered in order from the first to the last: 
1. The Five Precepts: Does the action or speech con-
tradict break the Five Precepts 1. killing; 2. steal-
ing; 3. adultery; 4. telling lies, and; 5. drinking 
alcohol (see below)— i.e. the baseline of humane 
behaviour? This form of discipline is spiritual 
discipline, concerning our quality of mind and 
the quality of mind of those who share society 
with us. We find that these Five Precepts are at 
the heart of codes of discipline of many differ-
ent religions, whether it be the Christian Ten 
Commandments, Islamic law, the 16 rules of 
Hindu conduct. 
2. The Five Virtues: Does the action or speech con-
tradict the Five Virtues [palicadliamma] of 1. com-
passion; 2. right-livelihood; 3. sexual-restraint; 
4. truthfulness, and; 5. awareness? — see Bless-
ing Sixteen. This form of discipline is spiritual 
discipline, concerning our quality of mind and 
the quality of mind of those who share society 
with us. 
3. Local Law: Does the action or speech contradict 
the local law? This form of discipline is worldly 
or material discipline, concerning our quality of 
life and the quality of life of those who share so-
ciety with us. 
4. Local Custom: Does the action or speech contra-
dict the local custom? This form of discipline is 
worldly or material discipline and concerns so-
cial harmony and solidarity. 
Thus if an action goes against the Five Precepts, 
even if it doesn't break the Law, it should not be 
done. Also, even if it doesn't break the law notto 
do something, but omitting to do something goes 
against the local custom, perhaps this is a good rea-
son to comply, at least for harmony on the local level 
(but of course, it should not break the Five Precepts). 
Dh,hINIIIONS 
B.1 Definition: Artfulness in Usage 
The root of the Pali word for 'artfulness in usage' 
or 'discipline' is ' vinaya' comes from two stems 'vi 
and 'trey'. 'Ney' means something that leads you. 
'Vi can mean any of three things: 'good', 'revealed' 
or 'different'. Thus in compound the definition of 
the word ' vinaya' means 'leads you to good' or 
'leads you to brightness' or 'leads you to something 
different'. Leading one to goodness, means that it 
takes you away from evil. Leading one to revela-
tion means that it allows us to see a person as they 
really are. Leading one to be different means that it 
raises one above people in general. 
The actual meaning of the word is 'rulesor regu-
lations to restrain ourselves in body and word to 
avoid causing suffering to ourselves or others'. No-
tice that ' vinaya' doesn't restrain the mind directly, 
but in effect, it has a positive effect on the mind too 
because bodily action and speech originate in the 
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