'I Take Refuge in
the Buddha"
When we say "the
Buddha" often we are speaking of the historical Buddha, the man who
lived centuries ago and whose teachings form the basis of Buddhism.
But the Buddha taught his disciples that he was not a god, but a
man. How can we take refuge in him?
Bikkhu Bodhi wrote
that taking refuge in the Buddha is not merely taking refuge in his
'concrete' particularity. ... When we go for refuge to the Buddha
we resort to him as the supreme embodiment of purity, wisdom and
compassion, the peerless teacher who can guide us to safety out of
the perilous ocean of samsara."
In Mahavana
Buddhism, while "Buddha" may refer to the historical Buddha, called
Shakyamuni Buddha, "Buddha" also refers to "Buddha-nature," the
absolute, unconditioned nature of all things. While "Buddha" may be
a person who has awakened to enlightnment, "Buddha" might also
refer to enlightenment itself (bodhi).
Robert Thurman said
we take refuge in the Buddha as the embodiment of teacher. "We turn
to the teaching of the reality of bliss, the teaching of the method
of achieving happiness in whatever form it comes to us, whether it
comes as Christianity, whether it comes as humanism, whether it
comes as Hinduism, Sufism, or Buddhism. The form doesn't matter.
The teacher is Buddha to us, one who can point the way to our own
reality for us. He could be a scientist; she could be a Zen teacher
Robert Aitken said of the First Jewel:
"This refers, of
course, to Shakyamuni, the Enlightened One, but it also has a far
broader meaning. It includes mythological personages who preceded
Shakyamuni and dozens of archetypal figures in the Buddhist
pantheon. It includes all the great teachers of our lineage ... but
also everyone who has realized his or her nature - all the monks,
nuns, and lay people in Buddhist history who have shaken the tree
of life and death.
"In a deeper and yet
more ordinary dimension, all of us are Buddha. We haven't realized
it yet, but that does not deny the fact."
"I Take Refuge in
the Dharma"
Like "Buddha," the
word Dharma can point to several meanings. For example, it refers
to the Buddha's teachings, and also to the law of karma and
rebirth. It is also sometimes used to refer to ethical rules and to
mental objects or thoughts.
In Theravada
Buddhism, dharma (or dhamma in Pali) is a term for the factors of
existence, or the transitory conditions that cause phenomena to
come into being. In Mahayana, the word is sometimes used to mean
"manifestation of reality" or "phenomenon." This sense can be found
in the Heart Sutra, which refers to the voidness or emptiness
fshunvata) of all dharmas.
Bikkhu Bodhi said
that there are two levels of dharma. One is the teaching of the
Buddha, as expressed in the sutras and other articulated
discourses. The other is the Buddhist path, and the goal, which is
Nirvana.
Robert Thurman
said.
"Dharma is our own
reality that we seek to understand fully, to open to fully. Dharma,
therefore, also consists of those methods and the teaching of those
methods that are the arts and sciences which enable us to open
ourselves. The practices that we do, which will open us, which
follow those teachings, which implement them in our lives, in our
practice, and in our performance, which deploy those arts-they are
also Dharma."
Studying the
Buddha's teachings -- one definition of dharma - is important, but
to take refuge in the Dharma is much more than just trust and
acceptance of teachings. It's also trusting your practice of
Buddhism, whether regular meditation and regular chantino. It's
about trusting mindfulness, the present moment, right here, not
putting faith in something far away.
"I Take Refuge in
the Sangha"
Sangha is another
word with multiple meanings. It most often refers to the monastic
orders and the institutional bodies of Buddhism. However, it is
also often used in a way similar to how some western Christians use
"church." A sangha can be a particular group of Buddhists, lay or
monastic, who practice together. Or, it can mean all Buddhists
everywhere.
The importance of
sangha cannot be overestimated. Trying to achieve enlightenment by
yourself and only for yourself is like trying to walk uphill during
a mudslide. Opening yourself to others, supporting and being
supported, is critical to loosening the fetters of ego and
selfishness.
Especially in the
West, people who come to Buddhism very often do so because they are
hurt and confused. So they go to a dharma center and find other
people who are hurt and confused. Oddly, this seems to anger some
people. They want to be the only ones who hurt; everyone else is
supposed to be cool and pain-free and supportive.
The late Choovam
Trunooa said of taking refuge in the Sangha,
"The sangha is the
community of people who have the perfect right to cut through your
trips and feed you with their wisdom, as well as the perfect right
to demonstrate their own neurosis and be seen through by you. The
companionship within the sangha is a kind of clean
friendship-without expectation, without demand, but at the same
time, fulfilling."
By taking refuge in
the Sangha, we become the refuge. This is the path of the
Buddhas.
Barbara
O'Brian
http://newlotus.buddhistdoor.com/en/news/d/24148