09/10/2026
Dharma nugget for the week. 🌟 When does refuge become more than a prayer?
“Going for refuge is a major foundation of the Buddhist path. It signifies our determination to turn away from the endless cycle of confusion and dissatisfaction that has marked our life, and towards a saner, more wholesome way of living.
As stated before, our past collection of negative actions of body, speech and mind has been responsible both for our day-to-day confusion and unhappiness and for our difficulty in gaining realizations along the spiritual path. If this uncontrolled pattern of behaviour continues unchecked, it will lead us to even more acute states of suffering and torment in the future.
Thus there are two inter-related causes for our taking refuge in Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. First of all we must have a heart-felt dread of the miserable states of samsaric existence towards which our uncontrolled behaviour of body, speech and mind are propelling us. In terms of Buddhist cosmology this dread is interpreted as an intense aversion to the sufferings of the three lower realms of existence or, further, as a feeling of being disgusted with the unsatisfactory nature of all states conditioned by ignorance.
In addition to this real dread we must have an unshakeable conviction and faith in the Three Jewels, understanding well how they have the power to protect us from all forms of suffering.
Basing our conviction upon reason, proper authority and, most importantly, our own experience, we turn to the Three Jewels of refuge with the thought that only they can show us the path away from fear and dissatisfaction and towards peace of mind.”
Excerpt From
Meaningful to Behold
Ven. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche
