Chapter 2.

The Foundations of the Bodhisattva Ideal:

(Readings from Mātṛceta or Aśvaghoṣa: Hymns dedicated to the Buddha in his praise.
Verses 27- 41)
These hymns remind us of all the qualities of the Buddha which are very inspiring. In
this course we are mainly interested in achieving a balance between an academic
approach and the spiritual approach or practical approach. Certainly, in the context
of the Bodhisattva ideal, Bodhisattva path and the Mahāyāna as a whole, even in the
Theravāda tradition, devotion in the Buddha, faith in the Buddha, admiration of the
Buddha, the Dharma and the Saṅgha have a very important place in our practice. If
we ignore such sentiments like faith, devotion and so forth in our practice, it is our
own loss. We progress our experience of Dharma by reflecting our relationship to
the Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha. This also is reflected in the Śāntideva's
Bodhicaryāvatāra. Śāntideva was not only a practitioner in the art of debate; he was
also a poet and above all a great devotee of the Buddha. His devotion and faith
shines forth through his words. These aspects bring great benefit to us in our
practice.
In our age we are reluctant to admit our faith and devotion, particularly those who
are somewhat more intellectual than others in outlook. Sometimes we are
embarrassed by faith and devotion, yet faith and devotion both can be motivated.
They can be great aids throughout our practice. Particularly, here most of us are or
ought to be concerned with practice. We are not trying to be strictly and merely
Buddhist academics here. Certainly there are a number of departments of Buddhist
studies in famous universities in the west and east. They aspire to a higher level of
academic excellence. In those places they have staffs who besides their proficiencies
in European languages like French, German, Italian and so forth, are also proficient in
the oriental languages like Pāli and Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese. Although they
have confident scholars working on their thesis, in most cases what is missing in
these departments is the practical dimension. But Buddhist Studies for most of us is
just not another subject. Buddhist Studies is not a subject like Architecture,
Anthropology or Archeology. This is not to say that those professionals and scholars
who are involved with these subjects don't love their subject; of course, they do.
Discovering ancient cities, beautiful buildings and bridges is one thing, yet
discovering the truth of the path, knowing about the working our own minds,
learning the reality about our own situations in the world is another thing. Buddhism
has its direct existential component, that is to say, it has something to teach us
personally; how to live our lives, how to experience our world. In that way, it
distinguishes itself from the study of political systems, social organization, ancient
history and so forth. It is something to do with our own experience of life. It has an
existential component. It is not to say that Buddhism is strictly religious, devotional
or extra-rational. The beauty of Buddhism is that it combines the intellectual rigor
with real practice, with personal experience.

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[This is the objective of IBC and some such other institutions where they attempt to
combine intellectual and academic standards through the practical and personal
application of what is taught in the classroom. For that reason I do not mind
introducing the poetry of Aśvaghoṣa which describes the devotional-religious aspect
of Buddhism.]
Particularly, in this course I would like to take a practical approach. It will be practice
oriented and it will be based primarily on texts. I will be using Buddhist Tradition of
Mental Development, and two other great books such as the Bodhicaryāvatāra of
Śāntideva and the Madhyamakāvatāra of Candrakīrti. All these three books, although
they are different in quality and importance, the first being insignificant while the
other two are real master pieces, bthey are common in one aspect; all of them are
about the practice of the Bodhisattva path and indirectly about the theory of
Bodhisattva idea. I am going to rely on these three text books.
[I could have used the old and well known book called the Bodhisattva Doctrines in
the Sanskrit Literature by Prof. Har Dayal. It is probably the academic Bible for the
Bodhisattva doctrines in Sanskrit literature. It has its qualities, but it was written by
an academic for the academics. It tends to admire and criticize the Bodhisattva
ideals. It is not practice oriented. It is also arrogant in some places. It pretends as
scholars often do not understand what the Buddha taught better than Buddhists.
Notwithstanding with intensive exposure and knowledge of Buddhism he pretends to
interpret the teaching of the Buddha better than the individuals like Śāntideva and
Candrakīrti who spent a life time of study and meditation, and who lived and
breathed in Buddhist tradition. One could have chosen a book of this nature but I
chose the books written by the practitioner of the Bodhisattva path for the
practitioner of this tradition. So the course will be more practice oriented.]
As a matter of fact, my own attempt to address the modern audience is based upon a
traditional source. That source is part of what we often call the literature such as the
graduated path or Lam Rim literature, which is particularly thought exclusively in
Tibetan. But it is not exclusively and primarily Tibetan in its origin. It originated in
India with the works like Suhṛllekha of Nāgārjuna. We have another text
Śikṣāsamuccaya by Śāntideva, which is a compendium of excerpts from Sūtras, also
belongs to this class of literature. So the Tibetan texts belonging to Lam Rim
literature are based on the Indian proto-type. The text that I will be using i.e.,“The
Buddhist Tradition of Mental Development” is based on a text which is the gradual
path of the Sakya sect of the Tibetan Buddhism with which I am have been
associated for many years. In Tibetan, the text is called the “Nang Sum” or the
“Three Appearances” or “Three Visions”. This text came to Tibet through an oral
tradition from India and later it was written down in Tibetan in various versions. This
is all explained in the introduction of the book, so I am not going to repeat them. But
I thought, it would be appropriate to explain a little bit from where I am coming in
presenting the material particularly in the first part. In the second part also when we
look into the Madhyamakāvatāra and the second half of the Bodhicaryāvatāra, we
will primarily be interested in practice.

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Particularly, here in the book, the materials are presented in a framework in the
context of meditative practice. The book is intended to combine the study of the
topic presented with meditation guidelines. One thing one has to understand that
the Buddhist meditation is not just about concentration meditation. It is not just
about sitting cross-legged and counting the breath or focusing on an object of
concentration. It is also about internalizing the teaching. So, while we can study the
topics like faith, refuge, the precious nature of human birth, opportune conditions,
death and impermanence, the enlightenment thought and so forth, we ought to and
should meditate upon them. We should also make them the objects of our
meditation practice. This is all part and parcel of the traditional Buddhist framework
of study, consideration and meditation. What you read or listen is study. When you
think about what you have studied is consideration and contemplating on what you
have read or studied is meditation. All three are necessary to internalize its material.
Now in this book all the topics are meant to be meditated upon for relatively long
period of time. Often people ask me about the practice of meditation and
particularly, about Vajrayāna meditation and I always tell them that before you
embark on the Vajrayāna practice look into the instructions in text like The Buddhist
Tradition of Mental Development. This text has twofold purposes: it covers the
Mahāyāna Bodhisattva path, the practices of the Bodhisattva; what one needs to do
to achieve Buddhahood and serves as an introduction to Vajrayāna practice. One has
to spend months and years of meditational practices on the topics of the graduated
path literature if one wants to practice Vajrayāna. So in this book you will find the
meditative structure for each topic. I have suggested how the topics in this book can
be the topic for meditation. I like to stress that the topics which we are going to cover
are the topics for meditation. In the book, I gave the general outline of how these
topics can be integrated into a meditation routine.
This is all about the tradition of mental development. Again you may notice the term
‘mental’ here. It makes sense, if we remember that “The mind is the forerunner of all
things and everything follows the mind.” So, when we talk about mental
development, we talk about the evolution, the purification of our whole field of
experience. So we literally change our lives.
1. The motivation
Let me begin with a reminder that why we are all here. I hope the reason for which
we all are here is very simple and genuine one. I hope we are not here to collect our
certificate so that we get a job. I hope I am not here to collect my honorarium. I hope
no-one is here just to become an expert speaker on Buddhism so that one can
become respected and well known in his temple or center. I hope we are not here for
any of these superficial reasons. The whole point of the study and the practice is the
alleviation of suffering and the enhancement of happiness. That is the whole point.
All of us experience suffering, no matter how fortunate we are (think about your own
situation, we all enjoy certain degree of material prosperity) in spite of all material
benefits, we still suffer. That is why we refer to the teachings of the Buddha and the
way to end of suffering. So the practice is to eradicate suffering and to enhance real
happiness; not by having two mobiles than one or three cars than two but by

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developing inner happiness. So the twofold purposes of the teaching: alleviation of
suffering and enhancement of happiness.
In addition to this the teaching is to alleviate suffering both for ourselves and for
other living beings and enhance happiness both for ourselves and others. When we
put these teachings into practice, it is not only for alleviation of our own suffering
and enhancing our own happiness but for others to alleviate the suffering of others
and enhancing the happiness of others. So we begin the orientation which includes
other living beings as well as ourselves. We begin with a vision of fundamental
solidarity of all living beings, because we all suffer. One of the Pāli Theravāda texts
includes an explanation of the Buddha's utterance. There the Buddha in one late
night observed many insects plunging into death in the oil lamp and he reflected on
that as how similar is the situation of human beings and insects. The human beings
are dying because of their greed, anger and ignorance and are drawn towards death.
This is an expression of solidarity, no matter what we are - humans, gods, animals,
insects - all suffer alike. So alleviation of suffering of all living beings and
enhancement of happiness of all living beings is important. We cannot benefit only
ourselves. If we understand this a lot of world problems will be alleviated. One
person or a country cannot prosper while others are submerged in poverty and
suffering. So this is the first point.
2. A way of life
The second point is to integrate meditation and our every day life to make our daily
experience part of our meditation and to make our meditation part of our daily
experience so that is mental development it should not be a separate compartment
than the rest of our lives. It should become part of our daily lives, daily activities; in
our interaction with our children, partners, friends and strangers. We get upset, get
angry when we are being criticized, but we need to integrate teachings into practice.
We talk about Buddhism as a way of life but really how many of us make Buddhism a
way of life? We need to be mindful of how we act, how we behave and how we deal.
How often we allow ourselves to indulge in feelings of resentment, destructiveness
and so forth. The point of all these is to try to make it real, not a noble ideal or a set
of ideas.
3. Approach to the teaching
We are going to begin with couple of analogies which explain the correct approach
while we receive the teachings. These are traditional analogies, not anything new.
The first one is the analogy of vessel or a vase. When we approach the teaching of
the Buddha we ought to think ourselves as vessels. In the Bodhicaryāvatāra,
Śāntideva refers the mind as a vessel. The idea is we are like vessel and the teaching
is something that has to be poured into the vessel. There are a number of obstacles
we need to avoid when we seek to become worthy to receive the teaching.
The first obstacle is with the vessel itself. If the vessel is turned upside down then you
cannot pour anything inside it. This example explains the attitude of the recipient. In
the same way, if one is close minded, he is not prepared to receive any teaching. In
this case, teachings are not going to do any good. In this case, the close minded

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attitude of a person is illustrated by the upside down vessel. It shows that the
teaching won't be beneficial to him. If anyone here has this attitude, I strongly
encourage you to open up your mind. Otherwise, you are waisting your time. So the
first condition is to have an open mind.
The second fault is that if the receptacle or the vessel has got a hole in the bottom
and as a result does not hold whatever is put inside it. This is the case with people
who cannot remember what they have heard. As the saying goes, 'go into one ear
and out through the other'. This is what Śāntideva refers to when he talks about the
lack of mindfulness. He says, “If the mind of a person is like a leaking vessel, he is
unable to retain the teaching.” This is another fault that one has to work hard to
avoid, the fault of the leaking vessel. No matter how much liquid, how much teaching
you pour into the vessel, if it has a hole in the bottom, all teachings, all liquid will run
out. It won't be retained. Retaining is an important quality of the disciple. Nāgārjuna
also refers to this in the Pratītyasamutpādahṛdayakārikā as one of the qualities of the
disciple. The student should be attentive, and remember what he hears. We should
be more careful about this, because increasingly we rely more on the artificial
memories. We rely upon notes and books. More we rely upon these, weaker our
memories become. Traditionally students are supposed to memorize voluminous
texts. We cannot even think about this. We loose the power of memory if we do not
use it. So it is important to retain the teaching, not to let the mind be a leaking
vessel.
The third fault is the impurity in the vessel. In this case the best example is if we put
good milk in a vessel which has some spoiled milk in it, then the receptacle also will
get spoiled. But even in other cases, like if we were to keep milk or tea in a vessel
that has salt, for example, we won't be able to drink that milk or tea. So the purity of
the vessel is important. The receptacle, the mind should not contain elements of
impurities like selfish motivation and so on, that could contaminate the teaching. The
Buddha spoke in many occasions while teaching karma; he said that first one should
rinse the cloth of impurities. Here the cloth is the mind; then you apply the dye of
Dharma. One should not apply the dye of Dharma on a dirty piece of cloth. So our
mind should be free from impurities so that the teaching, we receive, does not
become contaminated.
The second analogy is a therapeutic one. It is a very apt analogy considering the
Buddha is always regarded as the king of physicians, Vaidyarāja. We see him in the
Lotus Sūtra as the Wise Physician who prepared the medicine for his sons who have
taken the poison of afflictions. The therapeutic analogy is very appropriate one. In
this context, we are encouraged to consider ourselves as patients. We are all ill; we
are all ill of suffering. If we want to get cured from suffering then we have to find a
doctor. That doctor is the Buddha to whom we go in order to get rid of our suffering.
And the medicine is the Dharma. The medicine can be anything such as medicine,
diet or exercise. The therapy is the practice of the Dharma. Practicing the Dharma is
the application of the medicine. So regarding the teaching, the Buddha is the doctor,
the teaching is the Dharma and the practice is the application of the medicine. All
these elements have to be in place if we want the medicine to work for the end of

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our suffering. If we go to a wrong doctor who is incompetent, we cannot get cured of
our disease. If we acquire the medicine but do nt take the medicine or do not apply
the teaching in practice then also we won't get cured. So, all these elements have to
be present. Again in the Bodhicaryāvatāra, Śāntideva says, “A person who is ill
entirely rely on the physician, follow the instructions.” So, we are trying to reduce our
suffering. We have a physician, we have the medicine. All we have to do is to listen to
the advice of the physician, take the medicine, practice then we will be cured of our
illness, suffering. This is another way of approaching Dharma, the teaching.
Approaching the teaching is for our benefit, to take the Dharma which is fruitful. The
teaching won't be beneficial if we take it with another way. Receiving teachings with
these attitudes will be beneficial.
4. Faith
One of the major topics of course is “faith.” I like to talk about the importance and
role of faith in Buddhism, because the question of faith comes up often. By the word
faith I mean “confidence” (Sanskrit: śraddhā), because confidence distinguishes faith
from the blind faith of some of other religions. We have begun to understand better
the role of faith in Buddhism.
First of all, we have to accept that Buddhism does recognize the role of “faith.” It
occurs in many places in the teachings of the Buddha, like in the Abhidharmakośa of
Vasubandhu. The Buddha gave his own son Rāhula the seven imperishable holy
treasures, the first being the faith when the latter asked for his inheritance. Faith is
imperishable, because it is not liable to be stolen by a thief, taken by the king or
swept away by the flood and time. Faith is also the first one in the list of Five
Faculties that lead to progress along the way to enlightenment. Again in the list of
Powers, faith is the third. So faith is one of the prerequisite for the practice of
Buddhism. Even Nāgārjuna, the great champion of wisdom says, “In order to practice
Dharma we require two things – faith and wisdom; wisdom is the primary one, but
faith is preliminary.”
We also find many similes used to illustrate the importance and the role of faith.
Faith is like a seed that precedes the sprout of mental development. The absence of
faith is like a burnt seed. Faith is like a mother; faith is like hands and feet, and faith is
like a treasure.
I would like to spend some time on the definition of the word faith here. As I have
thought about the role of the faith over the years and compared its role in the
Semitic Religion and Buddhism, I have found its role in Buddhism to be quite
different. Faith in Buddhism is something that supplies energy, joy and enthusiasm in
practice. It amplifies our energy and enthusiasm. When you read a book like
Mātṛceta and read the attributes, the qualities of the Buddha you cannot ignore
certain degree of faith and devotion growing in you. We should not discard or ignore
faith and devotion because of our 21st or 19th century rationalism. It is not
something that lingered from the 19th century. It is not something that we have
inherited from Rationalism. It faded because of the development of global culture.
We might call it now global culture rather than Western culture because the

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geographical barrier is overrun. The modern culture has intended to look down upon
faith. It is regarded as something that is not necessary. But we are now in a post-
modernist period. And going beyond the Modernism, we go beyond our
embarrassment regarding faith. We do not have to protect a few of those who deny
and ignore the role and value of faith. This is something like the attitude for desire.
We are told that in Buddhism desire is a bad thing. But that is not necessarily so in
every aspect. Desire for liberation, desire for nirvāṇa is not a bad thing. An Irish poet
said, “I wouldn't make the presence of desire in devil.” So desire is not a bad thing
and faith is not at all a bad thing. Faith is something that required and deserved for
liberation.
So what kind of faith are we talking about? Of course, we are not talking here about
blind faith. We are talking about enthusiasm; we are talking about confidence, we
are talking about a positive attitude of mind that perceives in the possibility of
success that believes in the possibility of reinventing ourselves to becoming better
people, evolving as a better society with more trust peace and harmony. If we do not
have faith then (it would be like what is told by Margaret Thatcher) there is no
alternative. Everything is what the way it is; things will remain the way they are.
There will be less and less social structure; less and less equal distribution of wealth.
The powerful are going to rule the world, we all will remain in saṃsāra; we all will
remain slave to our ignorance, attachment and aversion. If we do not have faith,
there won't be any possibility to be freed from all these evils. So we need to hold on
to our faith, and we need to cultivate our faith, so that we have the possibility to
free ourselves from the inevitability of saṃsāra, inevitability of suffering or how are
we going to find a way out of the circle of saṃsāra? And that all depend on whether
or not we can hold on to our faith. Because, the moment we loose our faith, we
loose the possibility of going over the other side of the ocean of saṃsāra. Other
wise, we just forget about reaching the other shore. We might as well do our normal
things and stay in saṃsāra for ever. So, initial faith is extremely important. Now the
question is faith in what?
5. Objects of faith
Of course, in Buddhism the initial faith is in the triple gem; the Buddha, the Dharma
and the Saṅgha. Then, having faith in karma and the the Four Noble Truths. All of
these are objects of faith in Buddhism. First of all, faith in the triple gem, because we
recognize the qualities of the Buddha, the benefit of the Dharma, and the excellence
of the Saṅgha. [We will talk about the qualities of the triple gem at length later].
As far as the faith in the law of karma is concerned, many people, even non-Buddhist
today accept the law of karma in a general way. They simply accept the idea of 'as we
act so the consequence follows.' The law of karma, law of retribution, law of cause
and effect is parallel to the law of action and reaction in the physical sphere. It is not
peculiar to Buddhism. It is generally accepted in most of the major world religions as
well. Jesus said, “As you sow, so shall you reap.” There is something similar in
Confucianism and Hinduism. Then it is also in the Humanism. Humanists are not
adherents to any particular religion but they do believe in the law of karma in a
general way. This is another element in which we need to keep faith enhanced,

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allowing our faith to grow because of the law of karma. Have confidence in the fact
that if you practice generosity, you will not suffer from poverty. Have confidence in
the fact if you act in order to avoid harming others, others will refrain from harming
you. Have confidence in the fact that if you do not react to abuse and deal it with
patience, your attacker will resist. These are all practical and particular areas where
you need to have faith in the law of karma in order to be able to act according to the
law of karma, if you want to avoid generating unwholesome karma.
Then finally, when we turn our attention to the Four Noble Truths as an object of
faith, here you may ask that these are particular Buddhist doctrines and how could
we have faith in the Four Noble Truths? Develop faith in the Four Noble Truths is very
simple, because Four Noble Truths begin with the truth of suffering. It doesn't
require faith to experience suffering. You can see it everywhere e.g., in the news
paper, in the television. You don't need to grow faith. The first noble truth is right
there, so to speak. The first noble truth is a reality; it is not a theory. It is a fact of life.
We all encounter it in our daily lives, in our contact with other people, what is
happening in the world, among our relatives, among our friends. [I know a young
man, who is only 27 years old, diagnosed with a rare case of bone cancer. He went
through a massive operation, survived and apparently recovered. He managed to
finish his medical education, became a practicing doctor. 3 moths ago his cancer
came back. This cancer is so rare that only one person gets it in a year in the whole
world. It doesn't respond to the chemo-theraphy. So nothing can be done anymore.
Now he is going through much pain at the age of 27, someone whose whole life is
ahead of him, someone who is wonderful, loving, caring, humanist person who
believed and behaved according to the law of karma. Sometimes we say, you need to
have faith to accept the first of the Four Noble Truths.]
As far as the second Noble Truth is concerned, the causes of suffering is also the
subject of observation. It is said in the Kālāma Sutta, “Observe your mind, see
whether greed and anger when present, are you at peace, are you happy or not? If
you are not happy when greed and anger are present in your mind then observe your
mind and see what happens in their absence.” This is a simple experimentation that
everyone can do by oneself and as a result one can cultivate faith, develop faith in
the second of the Four Noble Truths.
Then with regard to the third and the fourth noble truths – the truth of the cessation
of suffering and the truth of the path – it is a bit difficult to develop faith in the truth
of the cessation of suffering, but then again sometimes we have less suffering and we
all experience moments of relative peace and happiness, the insinuation of cessation
of suffering if you like. The noble eightfold path is also subject to experiment and
verification. This is why we say that the Four Noble Truths are analogous to the
fundamental methodology of science.
The fundamental methodology of science makes use of four general steps. The first
of the four steps is the observation or the inductive method, that is to say, the
collecting of the data, observation of the facts. This is the first of the Four Noble
Truths; you observe the fact of suffering. The second step in the traditional
methodology of science is the formulation of a hypothesis – the deductive process.

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Once we have enough instances of suffering and once we connect suffering with
certain concomitant elements, events or factors, in other words, greed and anger
with unhappiness and agitation; the absence of greed and anger with calm and
peace; once we are able to establish this hypothesis that the greed, anger and
delusion are the causes of suffering then we can apply the principal ideal of
abstraction to the Four Noble Truths. What are the principles of abstraction? We can
see, for example, the string moves freely in the air than it does, for example, in water
or oil, then we can imagine in the vacuum the pendulum moves more freely. So when
we can see ourselves the suffering is lessened by the temporary absence of greed
and anger, then we can abstract, we can reset the situation by the complete
elimination of greed and anger.
And finally, the scientific method encourages in use of experiment and verification.
We can do this by the application of the steps of the noble eightfold path. The
observation that we made along the path indeed is the practice of the steps of noble
eightfold path, the true result of the end of suffering. So, all the Four Noble Truths
are susceptible to experiment and personal verification. And gradually the Four
Noble Truths can become determining, something that we can rely upon.
The gradual evolution of faith in the qualities of the Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha
through an aspiration, becomes determining, unshakable, not lessened by the
afflictions: greed, anger, delusion and which is not jeopardize by fear.
In order to develop this faith, one must make a positive commitment with the
practice of the Dharma. In this context, we are talking about making a positive
commitment in the Bodhisattva path. That positive commitment is taking a refuge.
There are levels of motivations for taking a refuge. Generally, there are three
motivations for taking refuge: fear, faith and compassion.
First we take refuge out of fear because we all are afraid of suffering, we are all afraid
of unwanted obstacles, uncalled for calamities and so on. So we take refuge in the
triple gem as a protection, as a guard against those unwanted calamities. We take
refuge in the triple gem because we believe that the triple gem has the power to
protect us from evil destinies, rebirth in the lower realms and so forth. So we take
refuge out of faith in the qualities of the triple gem. Lastly, we take refuge in the
triple gem out of compassion, because we want protection from evil destinies, not
only for ourselves, but also for other people.
In this connection there is a little story. Suppose you are caught in a violent storm.
You first look for a shelter, a refuge. That impulse would be out of fear, fear of
lightening, fear of some flying objects or a fallen tree. So you take refuge out of fear.
Then you look for a suitable refuge that has the characteristics that would guarantee
you the protection; you can have faith in that refuge, not something shaky one. That
would be analogous to seeking refuge motivated by faith or confidence. Finally, when
you have taken refuge under a sturdy building and have faith in that refuge, you think
about other fellow human beings those are still caught in the storm and you call
them to come under the shelter motivated by compassion. So you can see in this
simple story how the motivations of fear, faith and compassion are illustrated.

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7. The objects of refuge
Now let us talk about the objects of refuge. People talk about taking refuge in the
Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha, but what that actually means? When we take refuge in
the Buddha, actually we take refuge in the two aspects of the Buddha. We take
refuge in the transcendental dimension, that is to say, in his dharmakāya, in his
inconceivable aspect. And we take refuge in his phenomenal aspect, nirmāṇakāya.
We also take refuge in Dharma and in its twofold realities. Dharma does not only
mean the letters, the words, the texts, the teachings of the Buddha. Dharma is
represented by the Dharma books kept on the Shrine. That is only the external aspect
of the Dharma. The other aspect of the Dharma for which we go for refuge is the
internal aspect that we realize, that we know for ourselves.
Regarding the Saṅgha, we need to remember when we go for refuge to Saṅgha; we
go for two aspects of the Saṅgha. Strictly speaking the aspect of the Saṅgha for
which we go for refuge is the noble (Ārya) Saṅgha, the four classes of the holy
persons: stream winner, once returner, never returner and Arhat, and in the case of
Mahāyāna, the Bodhisattvas on the advance stages of Buddhahood. That is the real
Saṅgha we go for refuge. Again the holy Saṅgha is inextensible, so we can also regard
the fourfold Saṅgha, the worldly Saṅgha. We must not forget that the object of
refuge is the Holy Saṅgha, not the worldly Saṅgha, because the worldly Saṅgha
sometimes can be doubtful.
8. The metaphor of a journey
Now we will talk about the manner in which we go for refuge. I refer this metaphor
as a journey. It is like traveling to a distant city. In the journey Buddha as a guide,
Dharma is the path and the Saṅgha is our traveling companions. The triple gem
fulfills these requirements.
9. benefits and commitments
Lastly, we will talk about the benefits of taking refuge and some of the commitments.
There are a number of benefits from taking of refuge. Taking of refuge is a support,
an aid and something that sustains us over the course of the path towards
enlightenment and liberation. It has inconceivable benefits as it is the first step in a
process where the eventual result is achievement of Buddhahood. If it had a form,
the universe would not be sufficiently large to contain it.
The commitments refer to those promises, those vows that we take along with the
taking of refuge, because in any commitments there are certain responsibilities. In
the case of taking refuge the commitments are twofold; they come in the form of
principles and they come in form of precepts. We talk about the precepts. The five
precepts are well known. The principles are less well known but more important than
the precepts. The principle of the precepts, firstly, is non-injury or non-violence. And
secondly is altruism, to benefit others. The Buddha said, “Refrain from evil, do good,
purify the mind. This is the teachings of the all the Buddhas.” So we have here the

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threefold principles, commitments, responsibilities of a true Buddhists or a follower
of Buddhism. The principles are refraining from harming other living beings and
helping other living beings whenever and as much as we can. These are the principles
of Buddhist ethics and the fundamental commitments we make when we take
refuge. Precepts are particular and specific application of these principles. Precepts
are liable to modification; they are liable to fail to apply in certain circumstances, but
principles are applied in all circumstances.
Reading from the Bodhicaryāvatāra, Chap. 4 verses 15-20; Chapter 2, verses 39 – 48
I was inspired by the last few verses from the Bodhicaryāvatāra to return to the last
topic of the taking refuge. It seems that the topic is an important one, so I am going
to return to that before I take up todays topic. Not only it is an important topic in the
Bodhisattva path in the Mahāyāna tradition, but it is also important, because there
are some differences in the taking of refuge in the Mahāyāna tradition from the
taking of refuge in the Theravāda tradition. Let me talk about the taking of refuge
according to the Mahāyāna tradition in the context of the Bodhisattva path.
The three stages of practice
The first point I made was that there are three practices in any tradition of mental
development, and these three steps are, of course, the preparatory practice, the
actual practice and the dedication. These three steps are applied to whatever
meditation we do in this Bodhisattva path.
Normally, in most cases the preparatory stage will be taking refuge and the actual
practice will be the meditation on the precious human birth, on the death and
impermanence and so on. And then the actual practice will be followed by dedication
or the concluding part of the practice. In this particular case since the actual practice
is the refuge, the activities that precede would be the preparatory practice, that are
designed for making the suitable conditions for taking refuge. This can be the tiding
up the place to make the situation conducive for practice. This is important for the
concentration if we want to do any meditation. This is important, because these are
the external parallel to what we are going to do internally, to put our mind in order,
mental purification, of mental ordering for concentration. So it is a good idea to tidy
up the place where one is going to meditate. A disorganized situation is not
conducive to practice. In addition, one can do other things like offer water and
flowers, light up the lamp and incense and so forth. All these are preparatory
practice.
The refuge formula in the Mahāyāna tradition
I don't know whether you have something similar refuge formula in the Chinese
Mahāyāna tradition. Here I am referring to the refuge formula according to the Indo-
Tibetan tradition. I say Indo-Tibetan, because it originated in India and followed by
the Tibetan tradition.
First thing I like to say about taking refuge in the Mahāyāna context. Unlike the taking
refuge in the Theravāda context, in the Mahāyāna we take refuge not only for this life
but for all our future lives as well. It goes like this:

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In Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha I take refuge until enlightenment is gained
By the merit of my giving and other good deeds, may I attain Buddhahood for the
sake of all sentient beings.
I have already explained about the Buddha, Dharma and Saṅgha as the object of
refuge, so I won't repeat them, but I want you to notice in the first line of the phrase
“until enlightenment is gained.” That refers to the fact that in the Mahāyāna tradition
taking refuge for our future lives, not only for this life. And the statement 'we take
refuge until enlightenment is gained ' refers to our whole Bodhisattva carrier. The
second line is “by the merit of giving and etc., may I attain Buddhahood for the sake
of all sentient beings ' this indicates taking vows for liberating all living beings. This is
the resolution to attain Buddhahood for the sake of all living beings. In the Mahāyāna
tradition in this formula every time one takes refuge accepts the Boddhisattva vow,
because the second part of the refuge formula declares the Bodhisattva vow. We say
by the merit of my giving etc., that is to say, by the merit of my giving and other
perfections (morality, patience, energy, meditation and wisdom) may all living beings
attain Buddhahood. So we are now dedicating our merit for the gaining of
Buddhahood by all living beings. So the refuge formula in this particular case is
strictly an announcement of the Bodhisattva vow, i. e., attaining Buddhahood for the
sake of leading all living beings to the attainment of Buddhahood. So in the refuge
formula not only we take refuge for the rest of our carrier until we attain
enlightenment, but also a dedication of promise that by the merit of my practice of
generosity and other perfections all beings may be established on the level of
Buddhahood. This is the refuge formula that we use in the Indo-Tibetan tradition.
This is followed, of course, by dedication which runs 'by the merit of the dedication
may all beings attain Buddhahood'. So this is the dedication formula which includes
all the practice, all our meditative practices.
In this particular case of taking refuge, it is the first practice on the Bodhisattva path,
the preliminary practice is separated by the recitation of the refuge formula. Actual
practice is the recitation of the refuge formula which is recited at least three times or
as many times as possible. Then it is followed by the dedication of merit by the
formula 'Buddhahood be gained by all living beings'. This pattern is basically repeated
whatever the subject of meditation may be, like opportune conditions such as human
birth or fact of impermanence and death and so on. If these are the object of
meditation in that case the preparatory stage would be 'taking the refuge', actual
practice would be the 'meditation on the precious human birth' and dedication
would be focusing on the 'attainment of enlightenment by all living beings'.
The practice of dedication is very important in the Mahāyāna. Although in the
Theravāda tradition we also have the practice of transferrence of merit, but it is
extended and becomes an important part in the Mahāyāna practice. It is the positive
energy, the merit that we have accumulated through actual practice, has to be
focused, has to be channeled, can not allow to be diffused. Having created that
energy we want to direct it towards a particular goal. We do this by dedicating
practice, 'by the merit of this may I attain Buddhahood and may all living beings
without exception attain Buddhahood.' We dedicate it for the enlightenment of

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oneself and all living beings. Expression of dedication is another reiteration of the
Bodhisattva ideal that we should benefit all living beings and not only ourselves. That
is how we take refuge in the Mahāyāna tradition.
Normally refuge is taken before a master in a temple or otherwise in a special day or
otherwise, in an empowerment, ceremony or ritual. This can be done daily at home
if you have a shrine with an image of the Buddha. Taking refuge is the re-
enforcement. Taking refuge is a part of your daily practice. Even if you don't have a
shrine, don't have a Buddha image, still you can find a place to recite your refuge
formula daily many times if it is your main practice. During the preliminary session
reciting the refuge three times and then comes the main practice whatever that may
be like focusing on the breath or any structured meditation.
Transference of the merit always comes at the end. This refuge formula is not exactly
a dedication. It is a promise that 'by the merit of my practice of generosity and so
forth...' is a Bodhisattva vow, a resolution of a Bodhisattva, the awakening of the
enlightenment thought. In this case, we don't regard the second line as the
dedication perse although it has some characteristics of dedication. It is a promise to
work for the enlightenment of all sentient beings.
Certainly, self is present here. In the refuge formula, 'In Buddha....I take refuge....' It
is an individual taking refuge. Even in the second line. 'by the merit of my giving and
so forth...' So in the refuge formula the benefit of self and other is included.
The practice of reciting the refuge formula and the resolutiom to attain Buddhahood
for the sake of all sentient beings is, of course, very beneficial. If you are not doing it
as a part of a more extensive practice, you can do it in your own at your home also. It
is a constant reminder in our every day life. It can be done in the temple, in a
monastery but it can be extended in your daily routine. Taking refuge will be part of
the daily meditation.

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