Right livelihood

Right livelihood (sammā ājīva) is the fifth factor of the Noble Eightfold Path. It belongs to the ethical conduct part of the path. It asks how you earn your living, since work takes up so much of a life.

Giving up wrong livelihood

In the discourses, right livelihood is described as giving up a wrong way of making a living and earning one’s living in a right way. In practice, this means work that does not depend on deception, exploitation or harm.

The Buddha named five trades that a lay follower should not engage in:

• trade in weapons
• trade in living beings, including people
• trade in meat
• trade in intoxicants
• trade in poisons

Each of these directly feeds killing, cruelty or carelessness. The list is short, but the principle behind it reaches further.

Honest means

Right livelihood also concerns how work is done. The texts mention dishonest practices such as cheating with scales, bribery, fraud and trickery. A job that is acceptable in itself can still be done in a way that breaks the precepts. So right livelihood includes fair dealing, keeping agreements and treating customers and colleagues decently.

Wealth used well

The Buddha did not teach lay people to avoid wealth. In his advice to householders, such as the young man Sigālaka, he speaks approvingly of earning wealth by honest effort, saving some, supporting family and workers, and giving generously. The problem is not money itself but greed, and wealth gained by harming others.

For monks and nuns, right livelihood has a different shape. They live on what is offered, and their rules forbid things like flattery or hinting to obtain gifts.

Reflecting on your own work

Few jobs today fit neatly into the old categories. Many practitioners find it useful to ask a few questions. Does my work require me to lie? Does it cause harm to people, animals or the world? Does it encourage greed or cruelty? Can I do it in a more honest or caring way? The answers are rarely all or nothing. Small changes, made over time, are part of the path.