Grammatical Analysis
Sammāājīva: [m.] Right Livelihood; Correct Way of Living. Formed by sammā (correctly) + ājīva (livelihood, means of support, subsistence).
Orthodox Definition
Sammāājīva is the fifth limb of the Noble Eightfold Path, completing the moral discipline division (sīla-sikkhā). It ensures that a practitioner’s economic support, trades, and basic lifestyle choices do not inflict harm upon other living beings or compromise ethical boundaries.
For lay disciples, the Buddha isolated five specific toxic trades that must be completely avoided:
- Trading in weapons (sattha-vaṇijjā).
- Trading in living beings/slaves (satta-vaṇijjā).
- Trading in meat/slaughtering (maṃsa-vaṇijjā).
- Trading in intoxicants (majja-vaṇijjā).
- Trading in poisons (visa-vaṇijjā).
For monastics (bhikkhus), Right Livelihood is defined through the strict parameters of the Vinaya code, prohibiting wrong ways of acquiring requisites—such as hypocrisy, flattery, hinting, hinting for gifts, or practicing low arts like astrology or fortune-telling for gain. It is driven by the abstinence factor sammā-ājīva-virati.
Textual References
- Sutta: Vanijja Sutta (AN 5.177) – The concise canonical source listing the five illegal trades for lay practitioners.
- Sutta: Mahācattārīsaka Sutta (MN 117) – Showing how right view, right effort, and right mindfulness run circles around right livelihood to maintain its purity.
- Commentary: Sammohavinodanī – Detailed evaluation charting the borders of blameless vocational tracking.