Doing good aside, what else?

 

When the Buddha taught about doing good, he put much stress on

the cultivation and learning of the three nonleaking studies—vinaya or

discipline, samadhi or meditation, and prajna or wisdom, discussed

as follows:

In the cultivation and learning of vinaya or discipline, it is about what

to do. Rigorous adherence to order needs to be paired with care for mind.

Unagitated and with mind tended to, undertake to cultivate and learn

the samadhi. For all things being mind-generated, the three poisons of

greed, anger, and ignorance continue messing with emotions to cause

erroneous behavior. Take care of body, therefore, in how it acts and

responses, take care of mind in how it stays in health and balance,

and subsequently rein in karma as generated via body and mouth. Such

is a common form of practice in how discipline becomes the choice of

attachment, how virtue is cultivated in accordance with the worldly truths.

In the cultivation and learning of samadhi or meditation, it is about how

to refrain mind from dispersing and chaos. Contemplation of the Buddha

and bodhisattva images is one acceptable method.

In the cultivation and learning of prajna or wisdom, it is about that which

is beyond worldly. Life is transmigrating, forever adrift between rebirths

and redeaths. In prajna we see the prospect for freedom from transmigration

and shedding of rebirths and redeaths.

Buddhism also teaches giving and building affinity. We do good and

accumulate blessedness to sow virtuous cause; we cultivate pajna to

seek realization of the suchness of existents and thorough liberation from

transmigration between rebirths and redeaths.