Aṣṭāṅga Mārga

Aṣṭāṅga Mārga (अष्टांग मार्ग; Sanskrit āryāṣṭāṅgamārga) — the Noble Eightfold Path — is the Buddha’s practical prescription for the cessation of suffering. It is the fourth of the Four Noble Truths and represents the middle way between extreme self-indulgence and extreme asceticism. The eight factors are: right view (sammā-diṭṭhi), right intention (sammā-saṅkappa), right speech (sammā-vācā), right action (sammā-kammanta), right livelihood (sammā-ājīva), right effort (sammā-vāyāma), right mindfulness (sammā-sati), and right concentration (sammā-samādhi).

The path is traditionally grouped into three trainings: sīla (ethical conduct — right speech, right action, right livelihood), samādhi (mental discipline — right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration), and paññā (wisdom — right view, right intention). The sequence is not strictly linear; the factors are mutually reinforcing and develop simultaneously. Right view begins as understanding the Four Noble Truths and deepens into direct insight into the nature of reality — impermanence, suffering, and non-self.

Buddhaghosa’s Visuddhimagga provides the most exhaustive commentary, mapping each factor onto specific meditative practices and stages of insight. He explains how the eight factors function as a complete system: without ethical conduct, concentration cannot stabilize; without concentration, wisdom cannot arise; and without wisdom, the cycle of conditioned existence cannot be broken. In the Mahāyāna tradition, the Eightfold Path is contrasted with the bodhisattva path, which aims beyond arhatship at full Buddhahood, with the perfections (pāramitās) taking center stage.

Verification notes

• The Eightfold Path is enumerated in numerous Pāli suttas, with the Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Dīgha Nikāya 22) providing the fullest treatment.
• Buddhaghosa’s Visuddhimagga (translated by Ñāṇamoli, 1991) remains the authoritative commentary.
• The three-fold division into sīla, samādhi, and paññā is standard across Theravāda and Sarvāstivāda traditions.
• Audited against Wikipedia (September 2026).