Understanding the Six Directions in Education and Moral Development : หน้า 131/164

Meeting #19 9AM - 20 March 2010 "Yesterday, I said to you that we would talk about the six directions. These, we cannot separate. They are, in fact, the same thing, only each direction has a different issue – but we cannot separate the entirety. Just like lighting a candle, we have the candle, the match, the act of lighting, the heat, the combustion, and the light. Separate things, but integrated into one unit and the acts of one affect the acts of the other, and the outcome. "Education is the same. Although the person is at the center, the six directions show us the smallest and most complete social unit. This is the network for the individual’s moral development. If we manage to have people in each direction working harmoniously, it will be beneficial to the self, as well as the entire nation. Buddha taught us these sixteen years after his enlightenment. If everyone works in harmony, then it is beneficial. If they do not, then it is not beneficial. "When we add in everyone else’s six directions, and extend the six directions out, we can see that the six directions incorporate everyone in the world. But let us now look at how we can see this dynamic: (1) Parents – we connect to our parent’s six directions to become acquainted with those people in each of their six directions. (2) Teachers – how many teachers do we have in our lives? Many. And sometimes we even connect to teachers in their six directions. (3) Friends and Colleagues – we have friends from every walk of our life, from school and the neighborhood, from social networking (just look at the friends we have on Facebook or MySpace!), to friends of friends of friends. (4) Our own spouse or partner – and we then connect to those people who are connected to them. (5) Employees – these connections can be huge! Look at how we interact at our job and the people we meet through our connections to our work! (6) Religious leaders/Monks/Priests/Mentors – these are the people whom we respect and confide in. These are the people to whom we go to for advice. Perhaps these are the people who lead us in our moral development when we are older and can speak for ourselves. "Each of the people in our six directions should behave correctly – have high moral standards. Any society can develop morally if the duties of each person are performed properly. That is, of course, if each of us knows our duty and performs it properly. "If we allow ourselves to live solely within the external world, we will develop bad habits. We can see the pattern of behavior that is created if we do not stop, and see ourselves"