The Five Precepts form the basis of the Buddhist moral code of behaviour. The Pali word for morality is sila and looking at the Eightfold Path shows that it is the foundation of the main Buddhist path of practice. The importance of a moral lifestyle cannot be emphasised enough. It is suggested that keeping the precepts is the minimum standard for human behaviour - observing any less than these five is regarded as animal behaviour.

Buddhist morality is not presented as a sets of edicts, the breaking of which might result in any form of religious or social exclusion. They are instead proposed as something one might willingly undertake as a basis for restraint. Sila is a form of action [kamma c.f.] and involves an act of will, intention or volition which occurs in three ways: body, speech and mind - often referred to as the three doors of action.

As well as the suggestion in the precepts of what one shouldn't do there is a positive counterpart to be considered. Sila is not merely a matter of avoiding doing 'evil' things but, as an act of restraint, it is a conscious choice which implicitly involves the arising of a noble state, however subtle it might seem. Cosciously restraining from or even just 'passively' not killing or harming is in essence an act of kindness. This will be discussed in more detail in THE PRECEPTS.

Scripturally there are two types of sila:
• Genuine or natural morality which has a neutral result. This is sila as outlined in the 8-fold path [Right speech, action and livelihood]
• Prescribed morality which are the external rules of normal monastic or social behaviour.