Tuesday, May 29, 2007

The 56 Principle Paths

I am a member of the Unitarian Universalist religion, which has no official creed but does suggest 7 principles. They are:

1. The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
2. Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations.
3. Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
4. A free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
5. The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
6. The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
7. Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

A little long-winded, but I feel these are worthy principles to live by. If you want something briefer, try the Buddhist eightfold paths:

1. The Right View
2. The Right Intention
3. The Right Speech
4. The Right Action
5. The right Livelihood
6. The Right Effort
7. The Right Mindfulness
8. The Right Concentration

I think I follow these paths to a certain extent. I talk about what I believe in (3), intend to act on it (2 and 4), live according to my beliefs (5) and so forth. I think I would feel at home in a Buddhist environment, to a certain extent. But what I find interesting is what happens if you combine the 7 Principles with the 8 Paths. You get 7*8 or 56 Principle Paths (and yes, principle is spelled correctly for I am referring to one of UU's 7 statements). For example, Principle Path 4-7 is "The right action for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part." This means urging people to respect the environment in their actions - buy fluorescent bulbs, put caps on carbon dioxide emissions and so forth. Principle Path 3-4 is "The right speech for a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.", which means speaking the truth, walking the walk after talking the talk and so forth. You may try seeing what maxims of life you can get out of these Principle Paths. For your interest, here are all 56 of them:

1,The Right View of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
2,The Right Intention of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
3,The Right Speech of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
4,The Right Action of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
5,The Right Livelihood of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
6,The Right Effort of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
7,The Right Mindfulness of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
8,The Right Concentration of The inherent worth and dignity of every person.
9,The Right View of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
10,The Right Intention of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
11,The Right Speech of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
12,The Right Action of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
13,The Right Livelihood of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
14,The Right Effort of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
15,The Right Mindfulness of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
16,The Right Concentration of Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.
17,The Right View of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
18,The Right Intention of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
19,The Right Speech of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
20,The Right Action of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
21,The Right Livelihood of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
22,The Right Effort of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
23,The Right Mindfulness of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
24,The Right Concentration of Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations.
25,The Right View of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
26,The Right Intention of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
27,The Right Speech of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
28,The Right Action of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
29,The Right Livelihood of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
30,The Right Effort of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
31,The Right Mindfulness of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
32,The Right Concentration of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.
33,The Right View of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
34,The Right Intention of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
35,The Right Speech of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
36,The Right Action of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
37,The Right Livelihood of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
38,The Right Effort of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
39,The Right Mindfulness of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
40,The Right Concentration of The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.
41,The Right View of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
42,The Right Intention of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
43,The Right Speech of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
44,The Right Action of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
45,The Right Livelihood of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
46,The Right Effort of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
47,The Right Mindfulness of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
48,The Right Concentration of The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all.
49,The Right View of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
50,The Right Intention of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
51,The Right Speech of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
52,The Right Action of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
53,The Right Livelihood of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
54,The Right Effort of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
55,The Right Mindfulness of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.
56,The Right Concentration of Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.