A well-balanced Buddhist, therefore, must make up his own mind, form his own opinions, and arrive at his own conclusions in facing life’s difficulties according to Buddhist principles. He must not be a moral and intellectual coward. He must be prepared to stand alone, to go his own way irrespective of what others think or say. Of course he will take advice — it is no interference with one’s freedom to seek advice from a more experienced and knowledgeable person — but the decision should be his own.

Seeing the relationship between craving and suffering, we must maintain a certain degree of detachment from worldly things and, in addition, regulate our lives by strictly observing the Five Precepts. Thereby we preserve the well-being of our whole personality, both here and in the hereafter, by living in harmony with the universal laws governing our mental and moral life. The development of moral and ethical character (sila) is a prerequisite for mind-control and for obtaining the wisdom needed to attain Nibbana. ~Robert Bogoda