“Virtue, or virtuous living – as I understand it – comes very close to the Hippocratic oath that doctors take: First, do no harm,” writes Tsoknyi Rinpoche for The Huffington Post.

“The earliest and most persistent descriptions of virtue in the Buddhist teachings involve avoiding activities that cause harm to others, including killing, theft, sexual abuse, lying, slander, and gossip.

Interestingly enough, they also include activities that may harm oneself, such as overindulging in intoxicants, food, and certain types of habitual activity – understandings that evolved long before terms like ‘addiction’ or ‘obesity’ were defined by modern medicine.”

To read Rinpoche’s full essay, visit The Huffington Post.

Tsoknyi Rinpoche’s new book OPEN HEART, OPEN MIND: Awakening the Power of Essence Love is now available wherever books are sold. Check to see if Tsoknyi Rinpoche will be in your area on his Open Heart, Open Mind book tour.