Five Advantages to One of Wholesome Morality and of Success in Morality

And, Householders, there are these five advantages to one of wholesome morality and of success in morality.

What are they?

In the first place, through careful attention to his affairs, he gains much wealth.

In the second place, he gets a wholesome reputation for morality and wholesome conduct.

In the third place, whatever assembly he approaches, whether of Khattiyas, Brāhmins, Householders or Ascetics, he does so with confidence and assurance.

In the fourth place, he dies unconfused.

In the fifth place, after death, at the breaking‑up of the body, he arises in a good place, a heavenly world.

These are the five advantages to one of wholesome morality, and of success in morality.

(Reference: UD 8.6)

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares the five advantages for one who practices wholesome moral conduct.

It is The Eight Fold Path of these Teachings that shares the wholesome conduct through Right Speech, Right Action, and Right Livelihood. There are other Teachings that provide details to ensure a Practitioner deeply understands wholesome moral conduct and can be guided to practice in a way that is wholesome.

The Buddha’s Teachings are shared in layers with The Eight Fold Path providing a core and central Teaching that many of his other Teachings plug into helping guide a Practitioner to Enlightenment. The Eight Fold Path provides a certain level of detail with other Teachings helping to provide increased degrees of depth as a Practitioner more fully explores all the various Teachings.

This Teaching helps a Practitioner understand the advantage, or benefits, that can be predicted for one who practices wholesome moral conduct as described as part of The Path to Enlightenment.

1.) In the first place, through careful attention to his affairs, he gains much wealth.

By practicing wholesome moral conduct a Practitioner’s mind can be at ease allowing them to pay close attention to their daily activities performing each task thoroughly which leads to increased wealth.

Through performing one’s duties with wholesome intentions and completing tasks thoroughly, business partners are more than pleased to work with you. People do not do business with businesses, they do business with people. Therefore, when you practice wholesome moral conduct through your career and profession, people enjoy working with you, they know they will receive quality work, they enjoy supporting your efforts and goals, and they are more than willing to send their friends, family, and others to you for products and services. This leads to increased growth in your career or business providing opportunities for you and your family to thrive.

2.) In the second place, he gets a wholesome reputation for morality and wholesome conduct.

By practicing wholesome moral conduct a Practitioner gains a reputation in their community for being wholesome which will lead to wholesome friendships and fulfilling relationships among all beings so that one can live in harmony and peace with others. This provides a daily life where you are able to peacefully interact with all beings in a way that does not cause harm, therefore, your wholesome reputation will circulate opening up continued opportunities for personal and professional relationships that are fully rewarding allowing the mind to be at ease.

3.) In the third place, whatever assembly he approaches, whether of Khattiyas, Brāhmins, Householders or Ascetics, he does so with confidence and assurance.

By practicing wholesome moral conduct, a Practitioner knows they are not causing harm to anyone, therefore, no harm will come to them. The mind can be peaceful, steadied, stable, and at ease.

When they join various groups of individuals, no matter who they are, one can function in harmony with all beings having humbled and respectful confidence assured they will be well received and successful in their interactions.

4.) In the fourth place, he dies unconfused.

Death is one of the most challenging times for an unEnlightened mind. Death of those who are close to you, and your own death, will oftentimes present significant challenges to the unEnlightened mind.

When one is nearing death with a lack of wisdom related to wholesome moral conduct, there can be confusion and difficulties as the mind is holding on to the world and countless objects in the world. The mind can be fearful of what’s next because one is unsure if how they conducted their life was wholesome or unwholesome.

But, when you deeply understand and practice these Teachings, you know exactly what is wholesome and unwholesome. Through your own wise decisions, a Practitioner chooses to practice the wholesome Teachings leading to wholesome outcomes. One can observe they have harmony in every single one of their interactions and relationships. There is no fear or confusion at death for a Practitioner who deeply understands and is practicing wholesome moral conduct.

They know they treated all beings well and did not cause harm through their conduct. When it’s time for death, a Practitioner who practices wholesome moral conduct can be at ease knowing that they were treating beings politely, kindly, friendly, and respectfully. There is no confusion.

A being who practices these Teachings closely knows that if they have attained Enlightenment, then there is no further rebirth. And if one is not Enlightened, they know because of their wholesome moral conduct, that their next rebirth will be in an improved designation. Therefore, one can exit this life without confusion knowing with 100% certainty that there is either no further rebirth or an improved rebirth in their next life.

If an individual has not practiced wholesome moral conduct up to this point in their life, that is ok. One can learn, reflect, and practice these Teachings now to clean up their life practice producing improved results going forward in life. At death, one is not judged on the totality of their life to determine whether they are reborn in a good or bad designation.

Instead, based on the condition of one’s own mind at the time of death, either Enlightened or unEnlightened, that is when one will experience what happens after death which will be determined by the condition of the mind at death. So even if you have done horrible things in the past, one can improve their life practice now to still experience beneficial results in this life and potentially attain Enlightenment to escape The Cycle of Rebirth. And, if one does not attain Enlightenment in this life, all the work and effort that is invested now will contribute to an improved rebirth and benefit you in that new existence.

During the lifetime of The Buddha, he ordained an individual who murdered 999 people. The murderer completely turned his life around by learning and practicing these Teachings to attain Enlightenment prior to death. I am sure you have not murdered 999 people, therefore, you can make the decision to walk towards the light and away from the darkness now, leading to improved results in this life, and if needed, an improved designation in a future rebirth.

5.) In the fifth place, after death, at the breaking‑up of the body, he arises in a good place, a heavenly world.

An individual who is unEnlightened and is practicing wholesome moral conduct will, at death, be reborn in an improved designation. If one is reborn back into the human realm, they will have an improved rebirth. There is also the potential for rebirth to occur in the heavenly realm.

However, as mentioned previously in this book, rebirth into the heavenly realm is not permanent and is not necessarily ideal. Beings in the heavenly realm are still in The Cycle of Rebirth and need to attain Enlightenment to escape further existences. Beings in the heavenly realm oftentimes lack motivation to learn and practice these Teachings due to only experiencing exclusively pleasant feelings. They do not experience painful feelings or feelings that are neither painful-nor-pleasant, therefore, they are oftentimes complacent and require rebirth back into other realms continuing The Cycle of Rebirth.

A wise Practitioner will be determined, dedicated, and diligent to learn, reflect, and practice these Teachings while in this human birth with motivation to attain Enlightenment to eliminate and escape The Cycle of Rebirth in this life.

There is no need to be reborn into the heavenly realm and doing so, does not mean one will experience Enlightenment in that rebirth even though it is possible. If one enters the heavenly realm as a Non-Returner (i.e. the third Stage of Enlightenment) they will attain Enlightenment in that birth. But, that is not the only way to enter the heavenly realm.

There are beings who enter the heavenly realm who are not in the third Stage of Enlightenment and those beings have a highly likely potential to be reborn into additional existences in other realms besides the heavenly realm if they do not attain Enlightenment in the heavenly realm. It would be unwise to anticipate rebirth in the heavenly realm and expect that one will attain Enlightenment from that realm.

There is no guarantee that one will be reborn in the heavenly realm and if reborn in the heavenly realm, there is no guarantee that one will attain Enlightenment from the heavenly realm.