Commands and prohibitions
Commandments claim authority over conduct. Their ethical assessment therefore includes both the content of the rule and the justification for treating its source as binding.
Training rules and vows
Precepts and vows may be voluntarily adopted. Their meaning depends on who undertakes them, whether they are absolute or limited, and what kind of life they are designed to support.
Virtues and paths
Virtue systems ask what kind of person should be cultivated. Paths may include virtue, conduct, knowledge, meditation and ritual. They cannot be evaluated merely by counting prohibitions.