Episode 47 – Four Supports for Right Action

Post-meditation practice focuses on how we mix the dharma with the challenges of everyday life • the four supports for right action provide guidelines for acting in a way that is skillful, that does not lead to further harm, and that leads to some benefit for ourselves and others • the first support, mindfulness, gives us the ability to insert a small pause between the trigger and the reaction, which gives us a chance to come from a more sane or positive place • the second support, awareness, flows naturally from mindfulness • while mindfulness is focused more on our inner experiences, awareness is focused on others, on the space around us • we can avoid a lot of harm simply by paying attention, by being more aware of others and our surroundings • the final two supports work as a pair: knowing when to refrain from harmful actions, and when to cultivate beneficial actions.