Is refrain from consuming alcohol included in Noble Eightfold Path?
The monk in the following video said that fifth precept is not part of the Noble Eightfold Path.
He also mentioned the fifth precept is a later addition.
If the rule is taken in regards to pamadatthana, then once someone becomes careless they do not practice sammā vācā initially,. If they continue drinking then they might not practice sammā sankappa. They may also become heedless enough to not practice sammā kammanto.
Pamadatthana is almost synonymous with miccha-vayamamo too.
The chances of practicing sammā Santi and sammā samadhi successfully once you are careless are also pretty slim!
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I did not watch the video. Where exactly in it does the bhikkhu say it?
If the bhikhhu really says that, what about then the case recorded in SN55.24 (see English translation here), in which Buddha’s recognition of a lay disciple Sarakāni / Saraṇāni as one who entered the stream was not received well (at least by the Sakyans) as the guys was not at all perceived a role model in terms of discipline and practice as he was known for enjoying alcohol?
In that sutta the Buddha points that at least towards the end of his life, the disciple in question fullfilled the triple superior training and therefore attained to stream entry. In interpret this clarification that Sarakāni / Saraṇāni eventually gave up alcohol and hence stream entry took place. Am I interpreting it the wrong way?
I brought this up in another topic but think it is worth exploring here as well. Is it the case that the Buddhist precept of abstaining from intoxicants was in the early days a differentiation factor between spiritual communities?
Is it the case that the non-violence centered Jain approach to sila would see drunkenness as a lesser evil to all the unintentional and, in their view, sinful harm necessarily involved in all activities one has to go about as a living being?
The thing is that for those who follow Jainism, in a nutshell, it is only by suspending the building up of karma that the soul is freed up to float and stick to the ceiling of the universe (yep, that’s their awakening on a nutshell). If one take this approach to things then getting drunk and falling unconscious is a lesser evil to all the bad karma involved, from their perspective, in all the not necessarily intentional harm involved in the conscious world!
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The video starts at that point.
That is how I understand it too.
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Please read the discussion in Dhamma Wheel on this very subject.
Hi,
Sorry I didn’t realise this thread was here when I posted this! Thanks @Pasanna for letting me know!
Perhaps this might be helpful?
It seems Jains aren’t supposed to use alcohol as well:
’ Jains refrain from alcohol for two main reasons.
- Due to the influence of alcohol on one’s mind and actions, Jains feel that drinking alcohol is a form of self-harm.
- Alcohol processing can often involve non-vegetarian additives, such fish glue, gelatin, or egg whites. These ingredients are not required to be declared on labels.
https://www.quora.com/Why-do-Jains-oppose-drinking
I’m not clear whether drinking alcohol is considered less harmful than killing, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
With metta
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