Advice on keeping eight precepts

Hello everyone,
On what days are the eight precepts followed according to the suttas and commentaries?
What are we allowed to eat after noon? How to deal with not listening to music or eating dinner?

Although I’ve observed the eight precepts in the past, I never did it based on the calendar and I’ve never observed it for two or more days continuously because I thought I would not be able to handle it.

Can someone who has experience in following the eight precepts give me some advice?

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Hi,

the term: “Uposatha” will be beneficial for you. Uposatha are the days when instead of taking 5 precepts, you take all 9 (or all 8) precepts. Uposatha days fall on the new moon, half full moon, full moon and half empty moon. You must check the moon’s cycle to find when these moon phases occur. these will be the day when more precepts are taken.

of what I learned from my own personal experience, which the entirety of this post stems, the first 5 precepts are taken and maintained for life as they contribute directly to sīla (morality and how one conducts themselves in daily life).

Precepts 6-9 (or 6-8) are then related to commencing further into cultivation of the mind. For example, precept 6 (Abstention from eating at incorrect times) exists as so in the afternoon/evening, the body steps towards emptiness and a state dispassion, physically and mentally. This allows for practising mediation and further dispassion from the self. Precepts 7, 8, 9 (or precepts 7 and 8) add tot he same value: abstention from wearing jewellery, perfumes, bright, branded, designer clothing, indulgencing in entertainments of films, theatre, gaming, music, dancing which can inspire intense joy, sorrow, comfort, anger, distain and support alight the senses into a blaze of fire and prevent the body from dispassion and the realisation of not-self.

So you see, any precepts higher than 5 are used to cultivate and maintain a dispassionate sense of just ‘being’ and gives a chance to understand and possibly surrender to the notion of “not-self”. if this is not something you are ready for in your current state of cultivation, then do not force it to be so until the time is ready. You are no less of a devout buddhist just by taking the 5 precepts.

I used to practise all 9 (or all 8) precepts continuously in my twenties but at a cost of sacrificing my social life. Because my mind believed that a social life needed to be termed as ‘sacrificed’ I was not ready to go further or to maintain beyond 5 precepts. But I found myself a little lost: can I still be a student of buddhism if I do not live up to my potential? And only recently and years later did I realise that in my twenties, I was applying the mindset of a bhikkhu and not that of a Lay Buddhist. It’s helpful to know I can cultivate my mind on a bhikkhu’s level, but as I do not reside in a monastery or practise as a novice bhikkhu, this mindset is not worth cultivating at the moment. Now I have journeyed into my thirties, I find that practising beyond 5 precepts feels more attainable for me now as the term ‘sacrifice’ no longer applies to any part of my life when cultivating my mind. Maybe later in my life, I will return to the bhikkhu mindset I have by becoming a novice, but this thought right now makes me think about my family and how I may want to see them and enjoy spending time with them when living in a monastery. This thought alone reveals that I am not ready to go forth yet.

It is also worth mentioning that Uposatha days are used similarly as an ‘invitation’ for Lay Buddhists to understand the livelihood of the Sangha. Uposatha days help to prepare for the day your cultivation practice must extend into monastic life. When Uposatha days occur and you find a great understanding of them, and all its precepts beneficial and non-burdensome, this is a small indication of transitioning into monastic livelihood.

However, if you are asking how to deal with not listening to music or eating dinner, this suggests that you are not at this state yet. But I may offer some advice base don my own past experiences of maintaining 5+ precepts. Imagine that it is an Uposatha day. you walk down a street to visit the local Sangha. Outside any kind of shop (café, restaurant, club, grocery store) and you wear music that is so loud it bleeds uncontrollably from the store onto the public street. Have you broken a precept because you hear this music? The answer may be no. Why no? Because the physicality of the music exists. It’s sound, its words, its beats, its rhythm. As a hearing person, you hear the music because it exists. Will you indulge the music deeper than this? Would you allow it to give a gift of emotion into you? A gift of sensual desire? A gift of morality outside of Sīla? Your mind can make these choices. If your mind chooses to detach these qualities from music, then music only exists and adds no value to your mind. You have not broken the precept. But allow the music to ignite your senses which ignites your emotions which ignites sensuality, then the precept is broken. Obviously it is no easy task, but this why Uposatha days exist. They give the opportunity for understanding and for practise.

I hope this information of my own experience is helpful to you.

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Thank you for the answer. I do observe the 8 precepts sometimes and I feel that is already enough. As long as I observe the 5 precepts, do dana, meditate, and restrain my mind from anger, I’m already a good Buddhist.

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You will really know what is right when you feel happy about things as they are… “like a no smoking sign for a non-smoker”

I often tell people, when you feel you cannot ethically hold a job because of morality, then you know it is time to ordain. It still seems like you have some more evolving to do, but you seem to know correctly when it is time for you to take the leap. I often think of “going forth” to jumping off a cliff.

Best wishes and welcome to the group! (BTW: The OP already knows about Buddhist Sun, but maybe you don’t know about this app.). I guess I should make smaller uposatha indicators for lay people.

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