“Right livelihood is a very important component of our practice, and it is often a highly problematic area of our lives,” Larry Rosenberg observed at a CIMC community discussion on right livelihood during February. In a dhamma talk opening the discussion, Larry described his own difficult struggle to find fulfilling work and encouraged listeners to discover what “right livelihood” means in their own lives. “Ideally, we can try to find work that we love. But if that isn’t possible, we can try instead to find a way to love the work we’re actually doing.”
Although ethical principles such as the five precepts can help guide us toward meaningful work, they are “a bit like the North Start, providing direction but impossible to reach,” Larry said. By applying the precepts, we can steer clear of jobs that involve killing, lying, stealing, and sexual misconduct, or that cause obvious harm to ourselves and others.
But Larry cautioned against cloning rigidly to a “black-and-white” version of the precepts or adopting an over idealistic view of work. “In this modern world, where everything is so interrelated, it’s difficult to be involved in work that is totally pure.
“Some professions, like farming, that meet important human needs may also cause problems such as environmental damage. Work in the advertising business may make people aware of valuable goods and services, but it can also promote greed and misrepresent the products being sold. Even in the so-called helping professions, such as medicine and social work, some people may be motivated mainly by a desire for wealth, status, or power, rather than love and compassion.”
In addition, as our practice depends, “we may find that the work we thought was right for us isn’t,” Larry said. This can lead to deep confusion – a sometimes terrifying state of not knowing what we want or how to proceed. Although many people try to ignore or “leapfrog” past this confusion, we should recognize that “it takes maturity and strength to acknowledge that we’re confused. If we are willing to bear with the confusion – and to look into it lovingly, honestly, and objectively – we can usually discover clarity and truth inside of it.” Path factors, such as right effort, mindfulness, concentration, and discernment, can be an immense help, not only in dealing with work-related doubts, but throughout our work life, Larry said.
Even if life’s circumstances keep us from pursuing the “perfect job,” it is nevertheless often possible “to reconstruct our job from the inside” – a process that Larry calls finding “inner right livelihood.” In such situation, “the practice is to begin paying attention to our work, concretely, from moment to moment.” Although we may discover resistance, isolation, or other difficult feelings in the process, the practice remains the same.
With mindful attention, “you’re in a good position, because even if you’re sweeping floors, cleaning toilets, or emptying garbage, there can be important learning,” Larry said. Such work “can push our buttons, arousing pride, shame, and all the problems of ego that are at the core of spiritual practice.”
For example, one yogi thought of himself as a novelist but made his living driving a taxi cab. When he paid careful attention to his states of mind, “he found that harsh judgments about the status of cab drivers were leading to self-deprecation and a feeling of separation while he worked,” Larry said. By bringing practice to his job, he was able to see the “human aspect” of his work. He realized that, when he was fully present during work, he was providing his passengers with valuable services – not only taking them where they needed to go, but engaging in satisfying conversation along the way.
“If you remember to practice while you’re at work, you’ll find that there doesn’t have to be a gap between your retreat life, job life, and family life,” Larry said. “The requirements are different, but flowing through it all is life…. Whatever we encounter is our life, from moment to moment. One of the beauties of this practice is that it encourages you to take up your life – wherever you are – as the perfect place to practice, the best place you could possibly be, because that’s where you are,” Larry said. “Anything else is just imaginary.
“When you are at work, see if you can wholeheartedly attend to the functioning without making a status out of it. The concern with status separates us from ourselves and our co-workers. When there is separation, note that it occurs and you will be intimate with your life situation once again. To see the concern for status is to see ‘selfing’ – the root of our sorrow. Stay with the doing, starve out the becoming.”
Participants in the discussion following Larry’s dhamma talk spoke about their search for right livelihood, as well as the challenges and joys of applying dhamma practice in the workplace. CIMC’s community discussion on right livelihood was one in an ongoing series of talks, classes, and other activities designed to help people bring their dhamma practice into their everyday lives.
A report by Eric Brus on a talk given by Larry Rosenberg as part of an on-going group exploration in Right Livelihood.
