Refuge

Taking Refuge

In pre-Buddhism, if an individual takes refuge in a patron, then the individual submits him- or herself to the patron in exchange for protection from danger.¹

In Buddhism, if an individual takes refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, then the individual submits him- or herself to the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha in exchange for protection from the Three Poisons (i.e., greed, anger and delusion).²

Taking Refuge in the Buddha

The Buddha is Siddhartha Gautama.³ If an individual takes refuge in the Buddha, then the individual believes the following:

1. the Buddha practised the Noble Eightfold Path;
2. the Buddha attained Nirvana; and
3. the Buddha’s practice of the Noble Eightfold Path caused him to attain Nirvana.⁴

Taking Refuge in the Dhamma

The Dhamma is the set of all the teachings of the Buddha.⁵ If an individual takes refuge in the Dhamma, then

1. the individual practises the Noble Eightfold Path;
2. the individual attains Nirvana; and
3. the individual’s practice of the Noble Eightfold Path causes him or her to attain Nirvana.⁶

Taking Refuge in the Sangha

The Sangha is the set of all individuals who are in either the ideal Sangha or the conventional Sangha: the ideal Sangha is the set of all individuals who have practised the Dhamma and glimpsed Nirvana; and the conventional Sangha is the set of all individuals who have been ordained as monks or nuns.⁷ If an individual takes refuge in the Sangha, then the individual models the behaviours of individuals in the Ideal Sangha.⁸ If so, then the individual believes the following:

1. the ideal Sangha practised the Noble Eightfold Path;
2. the ideal Sangha attained Nirvana; and
3. the ideal Sangha’s practice of the Noble Eightfold Path caused them to attain Nirvana.⁹

In addition, if an individual takes refuge in the Sangha, then the individual believes that it is possible that individuals attain enlightenment even if the individuals are not the Buddha (i.e., that it is not necessary that individual attains enlightenment only if the individuals are the Buddha),¹⁰ and the individual knows the behaviours of individuals who attained enlightenment.¹¹

Taking Refuge in the Doctrine of Karma

The Doctrine of Karma states that (a) actions based on skilful intentions cause happiness to the actor, and (b) actions based on unskilful intentions cause suffering to the actor.¹² If an individual takes refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, then the individual takes refuge in the Doctrine of Karma.¹³

References

Thanissaro, B. (2012). Refuge: An introduction to the Buddha, Dhamma, & Sangha. (5th ed.).

Footnotes

1. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that “[i]n pre-Buddhist India, going for refuge meant proclaiming one’s allegiance to a patron – a powerful person or god – submitting to the patron’s directives in hopes of receiving protection from danger in return” (p. 6).

2. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that taking refuge “is an act of claiming protection in that, by following the teaching, one hopes to avoid the misfortunes that bad karma engenders” (i.e., “from greed, anger, and delusion”; p. 6).

3. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that the Buddha “refers to Siddhartha Gautama, the Indian prince who renounced his royal titles and went into the forest, meditating until he ultimately gained awakening” (p. 7).

4. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that taking refuge in the Buddha means “placing trust in the belief that he did awaken to the truth,” and “that he did so by developing qualities” including, but not limited to, “persistence, mindfulness, concentration, and discernment” (p. 7-8).

5. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that the Dhamma “refers to the path of practice the Buddha taught to his followers” (p. 7).

6. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that taking refuge in the Dhamma means “learning about the teachings, using them to develop the qualities that the Buddha himself used to attain Awakening, and then realising the same release from danger that he found in the quality of Deathlessness that we can touch within” (p. 7).

7. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that “[t]he word Sangha, on the external level, has two senses: conventional and ideal. In its ideal sense, the Sangha consists of all people, lay or ordained, who have practiced the Dhamma to the point of gaining at least a glimpse of the Deathless. In a conventional sense, Sangha denotes the communities of ordained monks and nuns” (p. 7).

8. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that taking refuge in the Sangha means “looking for guidance in the conduct of our lives […] to the living and recorded examples provided by the ideal Sangha” (p. 7).

9. If an individual models the behaviours of individuals in the ideal Sangha, then the former must first believe that the latter are indeed in the ideal Sangha (i.e., the latter “have practised the Dhamma to the point of gaining at least a glimpse of the Deathless” [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, 2012, p. 7]).

10. If an individual takes refuge in the Sangha, then the individual believes that the ideal Sangha attained Nirvana. If so, then the individual also believes that it is possible that an individual attains Nirvana even if the individual is not the Buddha.

11. If an individual takes refuge in the Sangha, then the individual models the behaviours of the ideal Sangha. If so, then the individual knows the behaviours of the ideal Sangha. Therefore, the individual knows the behaviours of individuals who attained Nirvana.

12. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that the Doctrine of Karma is “the principle that actions based on skilful intentions lead to happiness, while actions based on unskilful intentions lead to suffering” (p. 6).

13. Thanissaro Bhikkhu (2012) argues that “[w]hen a Buddhist takes refuge, it is essentially an act of taking refuge in the doctrine of karma” (p. 6).