hood deals with the five kinds of trades which shouldbe avoided by a lay disciple. They are trade in deadly weapons, trade inanimals for slaughter, trade in slavery, trade in intoxicants, and trade inpoisons. Right Livelihood means earning ones living in a way that is notharmful to others. 6. Right Effort is fourfold. This means the endeavors todiscard evil that has already arisen, prevent the arising of unrisen evil, developthat good which has already arisen, and promote that good which has notalready arisen. Effort is needed to cultivate Good Conduct or develop onesmind, because one is often distracted or tempted to take the easy way out ofthings. The Buddha teaches that attaining happiness and Enlightenmentdepends upon ones own efforts. Effort is the root of all achievement. If onewants to get to the top of a mountain, just sitting at the foot thinking about itwill not bring one there. It is by making the effort of climbing up the mountain,step by step, that one eventually reaches the summit. Thus, no matter howgreat the Buddhas achievement may be, or how excellent His Teaching is,one must put the Teaching into practice before one can expect to obtain thedesired result. 7. Right Mindfulness is also fourfold. It involves mindfulnesswith regard to body, feeling, mind, and mental objects. Right Mindfulness isthe awareness of ones deeds, words, and thoughts. 8. Right Meditationmeans the gradual process of training the mind to focus on a single object andremain fixed upon the object without wavering. The constant practice ofmeditation helps one to develop a calm and concentrated mind and help toprepare one for the attainment of Wisdom and Enlightenment ultimately.Despite all using the Noble Eightfold Path and the Four Noble Truths there ismore than one form of Buddhism. Amidst the spread of Buddhism to placeslike Eastern Asia, Buddhism was varied and altered to fit different cultures.These variations "can largely be divided into three maj...
