Because "right intention" is important in Buddhism

The second aspect of the Eightfold Path of Buddhism is the Right Intention or the Right Thought, or samma sankappa in Pali. Right View and Right Intention together are the "Path of Wisdom", the parts of the path that cultivate wisdom (prajna). Why are our thoughts or intentions so important?

We tend to think that thoughts don't matter; only what we do really matters. But the Buddha said in Dhammapada that our thoughts are the precursors of our actions (translation by Max Muller):

“All that we are is the result of what we thought: it is based on our thoughts, it is made up of our thoughts. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him, while the wheel follows the foot of the ox that draws the carriage.
“All that we are is the result of what we thought: it is based on our thoughts, it is made up of our thoughts. If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him. "
The Buddha also taught that what we think, together with what we say and how we act, create karma. So what we think is as important as what we do.

Three types of right intention
The Buddha taught that there are three types of right intentions, which counteract three types of wrong intentions. These are:

The intention of renunciation, which counteracts the intention of desire.
The intention of goodwill, which counteracts the intention of bad will.
The intention of harmlessness, which counteracts the intention of harmfulness.
waiver
By renunciation is to give up or let go of something, or to deny it. Practicing renunciation doesn't necessarily mean that you have to give away all your belongings and live in a cave, however. The real problem is not the objects or the properties themselves, but our attachment to them. If you give away things but you're still attached to them, you haven't really given up on them.

Sometimes in Buddhism, you feel that monks and nuns are "given up". Making monastic vows is a powerful act of renunciation, but this does not necessarily mean that lay people cannot follow the Eightfold Path. The most important thing is not to attach to things, but to remember that attachment comes from seeing ourselves and other things in a delusional way. I fully appreciate that all phenomena are transient and limited, as the Diamond Sutra (chapter 32) states,

"Here's how to contemplate our conditioned existence in this fleeting world:
”Like a small drop of dew or a bubble floating in a stream;
Like a flash of light in a summer cloud,
Or a flickering lamp, an illusion, a ghost or a dream.
"So you see all conditioned existence."
As lay people, we live in a world of property. To function in society, we need a house, clothes, food, probably a car. To do my job I really need a computer. We get into trouble, however, when we forget that we and our "things" are bubbles in a flow. And of course it is important not to take or accumulate more than necessary.

Good will
Another word for "goodwill" is metta, or "loving-kindness". We cultivate loving kindness for all beings, without discrimination or selfish attachment, to overcome anger, bad will, hatred and aversion.

According to Metta Sutta, a Buddhist should cultivate for all beings the same love that a mother would feel for her son. This love does not discriminate between benevolent and malignant people. It is a love in which "I" and "you" disappear, and where there is no owner and nothing to possess.

harmlessness
The Sanskrit word for "do not harm" is ahimsa, or avihiṃsā in pali, and describes a practice of not harming or harming anything.

In order not to harm it also requires karuna, or compassion. Karuna goes further simply by not hurting. It is an active sympathy and a willingness to endure the pain of others.

The Eightfold Path is not a list of eight discrete passages. Every aspect of the path supports every other aspect. The Buddha taught that wisdom and compassion arise together and support each other. It is not difficult to understand how the Path of wisdom of the right vision and of the right intention also supports the path of the ethical conduct of the right speech, of the right action and of the right sustenance. And, of course, all aspects are supported by the right effort, the right awareness and the right concentration, the path of mental discipline.

Four practices of right intention
Vietnamese Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh suggested these four practices for Right Intention or Right Thought:

Ask yourself "Are you sure?" Write the question on a piece of paper and hang it where you will see it frequently. Wong's perceptions lead to wrong thoughts.

Ask yourself "What am I doing?" to help you get back to the present moment.

Recognize your energies of habit. The energies of habit as the workaholic make us lose track of ourselves and our daily lives. When you are surprised on autopilot, say "Hi, energy habit!"

Grow bodhicitta. Bodhicitta is the compassionate desire to bring about enlightenment for the sake of others. Become the purest of the right intentions; the motivating force that keeps us on the Path.