Going Off Course

Close your eyes. Watch your breath—all the way in, all the way out. Keep the breath balanced: not too heavy, not too light. Not too long, not too short. Try to find the point of just right. And then try to maintain that.

It’s a balancing act.

And if you slip off? Well, just get back on the breath again. Continue. Because that’s how you learn to correct yourself before you slip off. You’re trying to provide the mind with a place where it can settle in and be on a solid foundation so that you’re not leaning in any direction. Then you can look objectively at your own behavior.

The Buddha says there are four ways in which our behavior goes off course, in which we treat people in a way that’s not really fair. Either we give them more than they deserve or less than they deserve. For example, there’s somebody you like or something you want something out of, and you give them more than they deserve. That means somebody else gets cheated out of something that they should have.

Then, of course, there are the cases of there are people you don’t like. You’re angry at somebody, and so you mistreat them. Then there are the people you’re deluded about and the people you’re afraid of. When you’re afraid of people, sometimes you go out of your way to please them, simply out of fear.

The Buddha sets up positions of responsibility within the Sangha, and one of the set of prerequisites for every position is that you not be swayed by any of these four things: by your likes, by your dislikes, by your fears, or by your delusion. This is a good set of principles to hold as you go throughout life. Make sure you treat people in a fair and even-handed way. Otherwise you go off course.

The word, agati,* *in Pali means you’re going off course and to a bad destination. So make sure you take care of your duties. Make sure you treat everybody in a way that’s fair, in a way that’s evenhanded, in a way that shows you’re not leaning in their direction or away from their direction. You’re coming from a solid place, a level place, an even-minded place. That way, you get a better and better sense of what really is appropriate, and then you can follow through with that. The meditation gives you the position where you can see what’s appropriate. It also gives you a sense of inner refreshment, so you have the strength to follow through with what you know is right. It’s an important part of the training.