Six Tenets of a Whole Life Path (from A Whole-Life Path: A Lay Buddhist’s Guide to Crafting a Dhamma-Infused Life, by Gregory Kramer):
Kramer identifies “six tenets” of what he calls a "whole life path". Writing from the perspective of a Theravada practitioner, he describes a practice of "the tenet sweep", where one asks, in sum, "What is my relationship to the Dhamma right now?" Kramer notes: "As you become more familiar with the content and attitude of the tenets, each bare tenet will reveal its full wisdom tone. Soon you might well be able to mentally touch each tenet using hardly any words. The tenet sweep is best undertaken with an attitude of kindness and patience. We are all ripening gradually in wisdom."
The “tenet sweep”:
1. Ground in the Dhamma. What teachings can I apply to my life right now? Do I sense the working of natural laws: in my mind, in relationship, in the world? Can I name them, learn from them? As I study or reflect or engage in conversation, am I considering what I am saying from the standpoint of the early Buddhist teachings? Other wisdom traditions?
2. Engage all the teachings as practices. Am I merely thinking about the Dhamma or actually practicing it right now? When I read or hear about a teaching, do I put it to work in my life? Which approaches to enacting the Dhamma fit best right now: close observation of thoughts and behaviors, deep reflection on the teaching, concrete physical actions and social engagement?
3. Exclude no moment, experience or teaching. Is this one moment, now, guided by wisdom? Am in excluding anything from the path: my intimate personal life, my art or craft, my playtime? Am I avoiding teachings that are difficult to understand? Am I excluding teachings that challenge my belief systems?
4. Find each teaching in the here and now. Whatever teaching or practice I’m reflecting on or enacting, do I feel it is available for me to experience right now? How is this teaching manifesting in my thought processes, in my bodily experience? What is deeply true in this teaching, and how does it feel to touch that truth here and now?
5. Let all the teachings in fully. Which teachings are closest to my heart right now? Which am I guarded against or pushing away? Can I feel the possibility of an unintoxicated mind, balanced and clear? Can I sense in my body the energy, challenge and possibility of the teachings? Am I moved and inspired by this Dhamma-rich path?
6. Engage the teachings individually, in relationship and socially. Can I feel that the person I am with right now is a spiritual friend? How am I treating them—with compassion, with generosity? How might we engage the path together, right now, in our conversation or what we’re doing? Could our togetherness be a doorway out of a heroic and lonely stance? How am I supported and morally challenged by society and humankind as a whole? How can I, alone and collaboratively, bring the wisdom of the Dhamma into these relational and social encounters?