The Five Precepts

The Five Precepts of Buddhism are the very basic laws that every follower of the Lord Buddha should practice and I would like to further elaborate each one for everyone to have a better understanding.


1. I undertake the training rule to abstain from killing.

This first precept is easily understood by knowing that one should not take away the life of another living being. With this, we learn to be merciful and compassionate. This does not only apply to not killing our fellow human beings but also not killing other living animals that exist in this world.

2. I undertake the training rule to abstain from taking what is not given.

This second precept translates to not stealing, not taking from others what that does not belong to us. We do not take what that was not given to us and this can even go down to very simple examples in everyday life such as returning extra change given by mistake when buying something. It helps us to practice uprightness and honesty. It does not apply to only money, but can be many other material items or property of others that we should not take.

3. I undertake the training rule to avoid sexual misconduct.

Avoiding sexual misconduct does not apply to only having misconducts of a physical nature but also of a mental nature. We should not have sexual misconduct with a man/woman who already has a relationship with another man/woman. Even when we do not execute actions of sexual misconduct, having the thoughts of stealing someone else's partner is already considered a sin. It is not expected of us to completely abstain from sexual activity but we are to only have it with our own wife/husband.

4. I undertake the training rule to abstain from false speech.

Putting it simply would mean that we should always speak the truth and only the truth. Lying should always be avoided as lies whether big or small can cause confusion and trouble for others. If we don't know, we say we don't know. If we know, we say we know. If we've seen something, we say what we see. We do not tell a lie for the sake of others or for the sake of ourselves.

5. I undertake the training rule to abstain from intoxicating substances.

Alcohol and drugs are what intoxicating substances mean. Even though this is the last precept, it is probably one of the most important precepts. As we take in such intoxicating substances, we lose our senses and judgement, we are not control of ourselves anymore. This is when one would be subconsciously led to break the other four precepts. When we get intoxicated, our temper flare easily and may lead to killing. In an intoxicated state, we tell lies, we get involved in sexual misconduct and we may even steal from others. Therefore, it is important to stay away from such intoxicating substances.

The Buddha himself describes these precepts as great gifts. These are ancient gifts from thousands of years ago that have survived the test of time and will forever be long-standing and unchanged. From a personal opinion, these precepts are foolproof and put Buddhism aside, other religions also have similar set of rules for their devotees to adhere to. All these precepts complement each other and believe if there comes a day whereby the whole human population follows these rules strictly, a point of world peace will truly be achieved.