Buddha Dhamma Sangha
In Buddhism we often talk about the “Three Jewels” (also known as the Three Refuges), and this is a concept I’m personally very fond of. So what are these three jewels? And if we aren’t Buddhists, can they mean anything useful to us?
The three jewels are the Buddha, the teachings (dhamma, or dharma), and the Buddhist community (sangha), and the reason we call them the three jewels is because we see them as three supremely valuable resources. We often chant:
I go to the Buddha for refuge
I go to the teachings for refuge
I go to the Buddhist community for refuge
Of course, this is not some sort of weird religious ritual where we give ourselves away to some nefarious group or guru (I live in France, where for many – perhaps most – people, anything like this is seen as a cult until proved innocent ...), but simply a reminder to us of how useful they are.
The Buddha, of course, was an actual person, and it makes sense to encourage ourselves to feel gratitude towards him as the one who taught us all this useful stuff. But going for refuge to the Buddha is much more than that; it’s reminding ourselves that the goal of our practice is to become what he became: free and happy.
The teachings are the methods and understandings that he (and other teachers who came after him and built on his foundation) taught. As a Buddhist, of course it makes sense to make use of all of these resources, and when we go for refuge, it’s a reminder that we can use those resources every day (“starting today”, said the life coach!)
The Buddhist community are the other people on this path, and you can define sangha as narrowly or broadly as you like; it can be your local meditation group or the whole wide Buddhist world – all your hundreds of millions of spiritual cousins, I like to think. This is definitely not about separating off any “us” and “them”; we’re not competing with or rejecting any “thems”! Rather, sangha are our support team, the people we can tap into for wisdom or help, and who will likely be receptive to what we have to offer. The term “like-minded people” fits quite well, though our sangha are certainly not clones!
But, you might be thinking, this all sounds very fine for the Buddhists reading this, but … the rest of us?
Well, I enjoy re-translating Buddhist concepts in terms that non-Buddhists can use, while staying true to the original meaning. So, here we go!
I choose to focus on, and value, my dearest goals
I choose to make use of the tools and strategies available to me
I choose to find others who will support my journey, and who I can support on theirs
See? No Buddhist stuff :-)
Though of course, even Buddhist stuff, in a way, is not “Buddhist stuff” either. It’s just a very well-thought out set of ideas and practices that are immensely practical and helpful, not only 2500 years ago in a faraway country, but here and now in our own minds and hearts.
PS People sometimes ask, “Do I need to be a Buddhist to come to a (/the!) Buddhist life coach?” Not at all! My newest client has done all her practice in the Advaita tradition (a branch of Hinduism) and is thriving with coaching. Another client is a devout Catholic. Quite a few are completely unaffiliated. I could go on.
The three jewels are the Buddha, the teachings (dhamma, or dharma), and the Buddhist community (sangha), and the reason we call them the three jewels is because we see them as three supremely valuable resources. We often chant:
I go to the Buddha for refuge
I go to the teachings for refuge
I go to the Buddhist community for refuge
Of course, this is not some sort of weird religious ritual where we give ourselves away to some nefarious group or guru (I live in France, where for many – perhaps most – people, anything like this is seen as a cult until proved innocent ...), but simply a reminder to us of how useful they are.
The Buddha, of course, was an actual person, and it makes sense to encourage ourselves to feel gratitude towards him as the one who taught us all this useful stuff. But going for refuge to the Buddha is much more than that; it’s reminding ourselves that the goal of our practice is to become what he became: free and happy.
The teachings are the methods and understandings that he (and other teachers who came after him and built on his foundation) taught. As a Buddhist, of course it makes sense to make use of all of these resources, and when we go for refuge, it’s a reminder that we can use those resources every day (“starting today”, said the life coach!)
The Buddhist community are the other people on this path, and you can define sangha as narrowly or broadly as you like; it can be your local meditation group or the whole wide Buddhist world – all your hundreds of millions of spiritual cousins, I like to think. This is definitely not about separating off any “us” and “them”; we’re not competing with or rejecting any “thems”! Rather, sangha are our support team, the people we can tap into for wisdom or help, and who will likely be receptive to what we have to offer. The term “like-minded people” fits quite well, though our sangha are certainly not clones!
But, you might be thinking, this all sounds very fine for the Buddhists reading this, but … the rest of us?
Well, I enjoy re-translating Buddhist concepts in terms that non-Buddhists can use, while staying true to the original meaning. So, here we go!
I choose to focus on, and value, my dearest goals
I choose to make use of the tools and strategies available to me
I choose to find others who will support my journey, and who I can support on theirs
See? No Buddhist stuff :-)
Though of course, even Buddhist stuff, in a way, is not “Buddhist stuff” either. It’s just a very well-thought out set of ideas and practices that are immensely practical and helpful, not only 2500 years ago in a faraway country, but here and now in our own minds and hearts.
PS People sometimes ask, “Do I need to be a Buddhist to come to a (/the!) Buddhist life coach?” Not at all! My newest client has done all her practice in the Advaita tradition (a branch of Hinduism) and is thriving with coaching. Another client is a devout Catholic. Quite a few are completely unaffiliated. I could go on.