The sixth of 108 gates of Dharma Illumination

[Shokai]

The Sixth Gate: Pure Conduct/Practice (of the actions) of the Body

Pure conduct of the actions of the mouth is a gate of Dharma illumination; for it eliminates the four evils*. (Nishijima/Cross)
Pure practice of speech is a gate of realizing dharma; it keeps us from the four types of unwholesomeness*. (Tanahashi)

*lying, suppression of speech, abusive speech, and duplicitous speech

Gate Gatha:
May we, together with all buddhas
Perfect our skill of Right Speech;
That the four evils may be removed.

Reflection Prompts:

Consider the four types of unwholesome speech: what do each of these mean to you?
What, if any, is the difference between Right and Pure conduct or would you say only right speech eliminates the four evils?
How might other aspects of practice (e.g., zazen, bowing, chanting) play a role in practicing “Right Speech”?

Capping Verse:
Spoken words sever
This from that—
In silence we heal

gashho, Shokai
stlah

[Hosai]

The Sixth Gate: Pure Conduct/Practice (of the actions) of the 口

Pure conduct of the actions of the mouth is a gate of Dharma illumination; for it eliminates the four evils*. (Nishijima/Cross)
Pure practice of speech is a gate of realizing dharma; it keeps us from the four types of unwholesomeness*. (Tanahashi)

口業 (kugō), meaning "mouth karma" or "verbal actions," often used to describe the ethical or karmic implications of speech in Buddhist teachings.

Biggest grey area for me is (especially for someone on the spectrum) The difference between true speech and gentle speech...

_/\_
sat/ah
matt

[Dainei]

All four evils are examples of disrespecting yourself and others through verbal means. Colloquially, ya start flappin your gums and you'll violate the precepts.

I get stuck however in trying to articulate the relationship between "conduct of the actions" and "practice" in these gates and how the translators came to those conclusions, if they did so, from a source text. But to my simple understanding, one is remedial (eliminates the four evils) while the other is preventative (keeps us from the four evils). I shall however follow the capping verse and be silent at this point lest I flap my gums too much.

Gassho,
Bill
Sat

[Shokai]

Good points, something to sit with.

gassho, Shokai

[Tairin]

Tairin
sat today and lah

[Choujou]

Not much to contribute but:

Lying- speaking untruth of any kind.
suppression of speech - keeping silent when one should speak up, or refraining from sharing the Dharma with others
abusive speech- harsh, angry, hurtful speech towards others
duplicitous speech- speech intended to mislead and/or cause harm

To me, right conduct is a guide for those who already abuse the four evils, a guide map of you will towards a better way to be, the way of a Buddha. Pure conduct is the conduct of a Buddha realized.

Other aspects of practice such as Zazen and chanting support right speech and help us practice it. When chanting we are sharing the Dharma, essentially practicing right speech. When in Zazen, we are practicing the 8 fold path. Right speech flows naturally while we practice.

Gassho,
Jay

sat/lah today