Refuge in Buddhism
Initiation ceremony in Buddhism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Initiation ceremony in Buddhism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In Buddhism, refuge or taking refuge refers to a religious practice which often includes a prayer or recitation performed at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. Its object is typically the Three Jewels (also known as the Triple Gem or Three Refuges, Pali: ti-ratana or ratana-ttaya; Sanskrit: tri-ratna or ratna-traya), which are the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.[1][2] Taking refuge is a form of aspiration to lead a life with the Triple Gem at its core. In early Buddhist scriptures, taking refuge is an expression of determination to follow the Buddha's path, but not a relinquishing of responsibility.[3] Refuge is common to all major schools of Buddhism.
| Translations of refuge | |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit | शरण (IAST: śaraṇa) |
| Pali | saraṇa |
| Bengali | শরন (shôrôn) |
| Burmese | သရဏ (tharana) |
| Chinese | 皈依 (Pinyin: guīyī) |
| Indonesian | perlindungan, pelindung |
| Japanese | 帰依 (Rōmaji: kie) |
| Khmer | សរណៈ (saranak) |
| Korean | 귀의 (RR: gwiui) |
| Sinhala | සරණ (saraṇa) |
| Tamil | சரணம் (saranam / saran) |
| Tagalog | salanam (Baybayin: ᜐᜀᜎᜀᜈᜀ) |
| Thai | สรณะ, ที่พึ่ง ที่ระลึก (RTGS: sarana, thi phueng thi raluek) |
| Vietnamese | quy y |
| Glossary of Buddhism | |
| Translations of three jewels | |
|---|---|
| English | three jewels, three treasures, triple gem |
| Sanskrit | त्रिरत्न, रत्नत्रय (IAST: triratna, ratna-traya) |
| Pali | tiratana, ratanattaya |
| Burmese | ရတနာသုံးပါး (jadanà θóuɴ bá) |
| Chinese | 三宝, 三寶 (Pinyin: sānbǎo) |
| Indonesian | triratna, tiga permata, tiga mestika |
| Japanese | 三宝 (Rōmaji: sambō, sampō) |
| Korean | 삼보 (RR: sambo) |
| Tibetan | དཀོན་མཆོག་གསུམ, (dkon mchog gsum) |
| Thai | ไตรรัตน์, รัตนตรัย (RTGS: trairat, rattanatrai) |
| Vietnamese | tam bảo |
| Glossary of Buddhism | |
Since the period of Early Buddhism, all Theravada and mainstream Mahayana schools only take refuge in the Triple Gem. However, the Vajrayana school includes an expanded refuge formula known as the Three Jewels and Three Roots.[4]
In 1880, Henry Steel Olcott and Helena Blavatsky went through a ceremony called "the Three Refuges and Five Precepts" to become Buddhist.[5]
Since the period of Early Buddhism, devotees expressed their faith through the act of taking refuge, which is threefold. These are the three supports or jewels in which a Sutrayana Buddhist takes refuge:
In this, it centres on the authority of a Buddha as a supremely awakened being, by assenting to a role for a Buddha as a teacher of both humans and devās (heavenly beings). This often includes other Buddhas from the past, and Buddhas who have not yet arisen. Secondly, the taking of refuge honours the truth and efficacy of the Buddha's spiritual doctrine, which includes the characteristics of phenomenon (Pali: saṅkhāra) such as their impermanence (Pali: anicca), and the Noble Eightfold Path to liberation.[8][3] The taking of refuge ends with the acceptance of worthiness of the community of spiritually developed followers (the saṅgha), which is mostly defined as the monastic community, but may also include lay people and even devās provided they are nearly or completely enlightened.[9][2] Early Buddhism did not include bodhisattvas in the Three Refuges, because they were considered to still be on the path to enlightenment.[10]
Early texts describe the saṅgha as a "field of merit", because early Buddhists regard offerings to them as particularly karmically fruitful.[9] Lay devotees support and revere the saṅgha, of which they believe it will render them merit and bring them closer to enlightenment.[11] At the same time, the Buddhist monk is given a significant role in promoting and upholding faith among laypeople. Although many examples in the canon are mentioned of well-behaved monks, there are also cases of monks misbehaving. In such cases, the texts describe that the Buddha responds with great sensitivity to the perceptions of the lay community. When the Buddha sets out new rules in the monastic code to deal with the wrongdoings of his monastics, he usually states that such behavior should be curbed, because it would not "persuade non-believers" and "believers will turn away". He expects monks, nuns and novices not only to lead the spiritual life for their own benefit, but also to uphold the faith of the people. On the other hand, they are not to take the task of inspiring faith to the extent of hypocrisy or inappropriateness, for example, by taking on other professions apart from being a monastic, or by courting favours by giving items to the laypeople.[6][7]
Faith in the three jewels is an important teaching element in both Theravada and Mahayana traditions. In contrast to perceived Western notions of faith, faith in Buddhism arises from accumulated experience and reasoning. In the Kalama Sutra, the Buddha explicitly argues against simply following authority or tradition, particularly those of religions contemporary to the Buddha's time.[12] There remains value for a degree of trusting confidence and belief in Buddhism, primarily in the spiritual attainment and salvation or enlightenment. Faith in Buddhism centres on belief in the Three Jewels.
In Mahayana Buddhism, the three jewels are understood in a different sense than in Sravakayana or non-Mahayana forms of Buddhism. For example, the Buddha is usually explained through the Mahayana doctrine of the three bodies (trikaya).
According to the Mahayana treatise titled Ratnagotravibhāga (Analysis of the Jeweled Lineage), the true meaning of the triple gem is as follows:[13]
According to the Tibetan Buddhist master Longchenpa:
According to the Mahayana approach, the buddha is the totality of the three kayas; the dharma encompasses scriptural transmission (contained in the sutras and tantras) and the realization of one’s self-knowing timeless awareness (including the views, states of meditative absorption, and so forth associated with stages such as those of development and completion); and the sangha is made up of bodhisattvas, masters of awareness, and other spiritually advanced beings (other than buddhas) whose nature is such that they are on the paths of learning and no more learning.[14]
Thus, for Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha jewel includes innumerable Buddhas (like Amitabha, Vajradhara and Vairocana), not just Sakyamuni Buddha. Likewise, the Dharma jewel includes the Mahayana sutras and (for certain sects of Mahayana) may also include the Buddhist tantras, not just the Tipitaka. Finally, the Sangha jewel includes numerous beings that are not part of the monastic sangha proper, including high level bodhisattvas like Avalokiteshvara, Vajrapani, Manjushri and so on.
The most used recitation in Pali:[15]
Buddhaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
I take refuge in the Buddha.
Dhammaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
I take refuge in the Dharma.
Saṅghaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
I take refuge in the Saṅgha.
Dutiyampi Buddhaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
For the second time, I take refuge in the Buddha.
Dutiyampi Dhammaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
For the second time, I take refuge in the Dharma.
Dutiyampi Saṅghaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
For the second time, I take refuge in the Saṅgha.
Tatiyampi Buddhaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
For the third time, I take refuge in the Buddha.
Tatiyampi Dhammaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
For the third time, I take refuge in the Dharma.
Tatiyampi Saṅghaṁ saraṇaṁ gacchāmi.
For the third time, I take refuge in the Saṅgha.
Except this there are various recitations mentioned in Pali literature for taking refuge in the Three Jewels. Brett Shults proposes that Pali texts may employ the Brahmanical motif of a group of three refuges, as found in Rig Veda 9.97.47, Rig Veda 6.46.9 and Chandogya Upanishad 2.22.3-4.[16]
Lay followers often undertake five precepts in the same ceremony as they take the refuges.[17][18] Monks administer the precepts to the laypeople, which creates an additional psychological effect.[19] The five precepts are:[20]
A layperson who upholds the precepts is described in the texts as a "jewel among laymen".[21]
In Tibetan Buddhism there are three refuge formulations, the Outer, Inner, and Secret forms of the Three Jewels. The 'Outer' form is the 'Triple Gem', (Sanskrit:triratna), the 'Inner' is the Three Roots and the 'Secret' form is the 'Three Bodies' or trikaya of a Buddha.[4]
These alternative refuge formulations are employed by those undertaking deity yoga and other tantric practices within the Tibetan Buddhist Vajrayana tradition.[4]
The Triratna (Pali: ti-ratana or ratana-ttaya; Sanskrit: tri-ratna or ratna-traya) is a Buddhist symbol, thought to visually represent the Three Jewels of Buddhism (the Buddha, the Dhamma, the Sangha).
The Triratna symbol is composed of:
On representations of the footprint of the Buddha, the Triratna is usually also surmounted by the Dhamma wheel.
The Triratna can be found on frieze sculptures at Sanchi as the symbol crowning a flag standard (2nd century BCE), as a symbol of the Buddha installed on the Buddha's throne (2nd century BCE), as the crowning decorative symbol on the later gates at the stupa in Sanchi (2nd century CE), or, very often on the Buddha footprint (starting from the 1st century CE).
The triratna can be further reinforced by being surmounted with three dharma wheels (one for each of the three jewels of Buddhism: the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha).
The triratna symbol is also called nandipada, or "bull's hoof", by Hindus.
A number of examples of the triratna symbol appear on historical coins of Buddhist kingdoms in the Indian subcontinent. For example, the triratna appears on the first century BCE coins of the Kuninda Kingdom. It also surmounts the depictions of stupas, on some the coins of Abdagases I of the Indo-Kingdom of the first century CE and on the coins of the Kushan Empire, such as those coined by Vima Kadphises, also of the first century.
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