A Pure Life
The Practice of Taking and Keeping
the Eight Mahayana Precepts
Day & time: 15th day of each month, 6am | What to bring: (optional) Nothing to bring, but it is traditional to (1) shower/bathe before arriving, and (2) dress in white clothes (both of these represent purity) |
When we take the eight Mahayana precepts, we explicitly promise to abstain for twenty-four hours from eight actions:
- Killing
- Stealing
- Sexual activity
- Lying
- Taking intoxicants
- Eating after lunch
- Sitting on high or luxurious thrones or seats
- Wearing ornaments, perfume, etc., and singing and dancing, etc.
These eight, however, are merely symbolic, for in reality we promise to abstain from all non-virtuous actions for twenty-four hours.
Taking and keeping these precepts is a special purification practice. Buddha realized that all living beings’ suffering comes from their previous negative karma, and so he taught special practices to purify it.
To purify our negative karma, we must practice the four opponent powers: the power of regret, the power of reliance, the power of the opponent force and the power of promise. These are explained fully in Joyful Path of Good Fortune. Within these four, we are here emphasizing the power of promise – promising not to repeat non-virtuous actions.
There are many levels on which we can make this promise. We can promise not to commit non-virtuous actions for the rest of our life, for a year, for a month, for a week or, in this case, for a day.
If we manage to keep our actions of body, speech and mind pure for one day, we can then extend it to two days, then to three days and so on until eventually we can keep pure moral discipline all the time.