"Undisturbed shall our mind remain, no evil words shall escape our lips; friendly and full of sympathy shall we remain, with heart full of love, free from any hidden malice."
It isn't that I observe this perfectly, but it is guidance from the Buddha to inspire me daily to correct my behavior, to live the right way despite any temptations to do otherwise. There is no guarantee that living rightly will take away all trials and troubles. There is no afterlife salvation to be gained, either. The only reward for behaving rightly is the behavior itself.
Some may say that this isn't enough. They don't want to lose opportunities by having to respect others, by having to be fair and honest in their dealings. They want. They desire. They crave.
We know this stems from ignorance, but ignorance can't be dispelled by force. Ignorance is uprooted not by the force of violence but by steady erosion which little by little undermines it, and grain by grain washes ignorance away. Once we let go of ignorance, we see the truth of reality. We see things as they really are. And we marvel at how long we resisted it! That is what we call salvation, seeing truth as it is, face to face, and letting that truth govern our every word and every deed.
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