Maintain good and sound social relations in all SIX directions

by Bhikkhu Samahita

What are these SIX directions:

First Direction - Children/Parents
Second Direction - Students/Teachers
Third Direction - Wife/Husband
Fourth Direction - Friends/Friends
Fifth Direction - Employees/Employer
Sixth Direction - Lay Buddhist/Sangha

First direction: How should Children behave towards Parents and Parents behave towards children?

Children should honour their parents by:
1. Having been raised by them, one looks after them in return.
2. One helps them in their business and work.
3. One continues & maintains the family line.
4. One conducts oneself as is proper for an heir.
5. After their death, one makes offerings, dedicating the merit to them.

Parents should help their children by:
1. Cautioning and protecting them from evil.
2. Nurturing and training them in goodness.
3. Providing a suitable & proper education.
4. Seeing to it that they obtain suitable spouses.
5. Bequeathing the inheritance to them at the right time.

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Second direction: How should Students behave towards Teachers and Teachers behave towards students?

Students should respect their teachers by:
1. One rises to greet the teacher when he arrives and shows respect towards the teacher.
2. One approaches the teacher to attend to & serve him, to consult, to query & to receive advice from him.
3. One listens well & pay full undivided attention so as to gain complete understanding.
4. One performs any practical task and runs errands for the teacher.
5. One learns the subject earnestly, giving this task of learning right priority.

Teachers should support his students by:
1. Teaching and training them to be good and skilful.
2. Guiding them to thorough & penetrating understanding.
3. Teaching the subject in full, holding nothing back.
4. Encouraging and praising the student's qualities and abilities.
5. Providing learning that both can make a living & induce behaviour producing happy prosperity.

Third direction: How should Husband behave towards Wife and Wife behave towards Husband?

A husband, one should honour and support the wife by:

1. One honours her in accordance with her status as a wife.
2. One does not disparage, criticize, undervalue or belittle her.
3. One does not commit adultery with any other women.
4. One gives her control of & responsibility for all the household affairs.
5. One gives her occasional gifts of ornaments and clothing.



A wife supports her husband by:
1. Keeping the household clean, proper and tidy.
2. Helping the relations and friends of both family sides.
3. Not committing adultery with any other men.
4. Safeguarding any wealth that has been acquired.
5. Being energetic and enduring in all her works.

Fourth direction: How should Friend behave towards Friend?

A real friend maintains his friendships by:
1. He shares with them.
2. He speaks kindly to and about them.
3. He helps them whenever needed.
4. He is constant & faithful despite their ups and downs.
5. He is understanding and sincere.

Friends then reciprocate by:
1. Protecting their friend when he is off guard.
2. Protecting their friend's property when one is off guard.
3. Being a safe refuge and shelter in times of danger.
4. Not desert or leave their good friend in times of need.
5. Respecting all their friend's family and relations.

Fifth direction: How should Employer behave towards employees, & Employees towards employer?

1. The Employer assigns the work in accordance with the workers strength, sex, age, and abilities.
2. He pays them wages compatible with their work and adequate for their livelihood.
3. He grants them fringe benefits and provides medical care in times of sickness.
4. He shares with them a portion of any special profits that may arise.
5. He gives them appropriate holidays and suitable time to rest.

The Employee helps the employer by:
1. Starting work before the employer.
2. Stopping work after the employer.
3. Taking only what is given by his employer.
4. Doing the job well and always seeking ways to improve on it.
5. Spreading a good reputation about the employer and his business.

Sixth direction: How should the lay Buddhist behave towards monks and nuns, & they towards him?

The Lay Buddhist honours and respects the ordained Sangha by:
1. He acts towards them in goodwill.
2. He speaks to them with goodwill.
3. He thinks of them with goodwill.
4. He receives them willingly.
5. He supports them with the four requisites of almsfood, robes, shelter and medicine.

All Monks and nuns help the lay people by:
1. Protecting them from evil actions which inevitably produces painful consequences.
2. Encouraging them in goodness, which inevitably produces pleasurable consequences. .
3. Assisting them in all activities with kind intentions.
4. Making known to them the things they have not heard before.
5. Enhancing and clarifying those things they have already heard.
6. Pointing out the way to heaven, & teaching them the way to happy prosperity here & now.


Source:
A constitution for Living. Buddhist Principles for a Fruitful and Harmonious Life.
Ven. P.A. Payutto. Thailand. Buddhist Publication Society 2007: BP 620S
http://www.bps.lk