Three Jewels
| Translations of the Three Jewels | |
|---|---|
| Pali : | tiratana, tisarana |
| Sanskrit : | त्रिरत्न (), रत्नत्रय () |
| Thai : | ไตรรัตน์ (trairat), รัตนตรัย (rattanatrai) |
| Lao : | ໄຕແກ້ວ (tài kɛ̂ːu) / ໄຕລັດ (tài lāt) |
| Sinhalese : | තෙරුවන් (teruwan) |
| Burmese : | ရတနာသုံးပါး (Burmese pronunciation: ) |
| Chinese : | 三宝, 三寶 (sānbǎo) |
| Vietnamese: | Tam bảo |
| Khmer : | ព្រះរតនត្រ័យ (Preah Ratanak-trey) |
| Korean : | 삼보 (sambo) |
| Japanese : | 三宝 (sambō, sampō) |
| Mongolian : | ɣurban erdeni |
| Tibetan : | དཀོན་མཆོག་གསུམ, (dkon mchog gsum) |
| English : | Three Jewels, Three Refuges, Three Treasures, Triple Gem |
| Marathi : | त्रिशरण (trisharan) |
The Three Jewels, also called the Three Treasures, the Siemese Triples, Three Refuges, or the Triple Gem (त्रिरत्न ()) (Pali: tiratana), are the three things that Buddhists take refuge in, and look toward for guidance, in the process known as taking refuge.
The Three Jewels are:
Refuge formula
Importance
The Triple Gem is in the center of one of the major practices of mental "reflection" in Buddhism; the reflection on the true qualities of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. These qualities are called the Mirror of the Dharma in the Mahaparinibbana Sutta and help the practitioner attain the true "mind like a mirror".
In the commentary on the Apannaka Jataka Buddha declares:
Explication
Tibetan Buddhism
History
Diamond Mind
Buddha's mind in his earth body or nirmanakaya is frequently associated with the greatest gem of all, the diamond, the hardest natural substance. In the Anguttara Nikaya(3:25), Buddha talks about the diamond mind which can cut through all delusion.
Ratana-sutta
The expression Three Gems are found in the earliest Buddhist literature of the Pali Canon, besides other works there is one sutta in the Sutta-nipata, called the Ratana-sutta which contains a series of verses on the Jewels in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
In the Ratana-sutta, all the qualities of the Sangha mentioned are attributes of the Buddha's enlightened disciples:
Jainism and Taoism
Art
Coins
There are a number of examples of the triratna symbol appearing on historical coins of Buddhist kingdoms in the Indian sub-continent. For example, the Triratna appears on the 1st century BCE coins of the Kingdom of Kuninda in the northern Punjab. It also surmounts the depictions of stupas, on some the coins of the Indo-Parthian king Abdagases of the 1st century, CE and on the coins of some of the Kushan kings such as Vima Kadphises, also of the 1st century CE.
See also
Notes
References
- Refuge : An Introduction to the Buddha, Dhamma, & Sangha. Thanissaro Bhikkhu : Third edition, revised, 2001
- "ガンダーラ美術の見方" (The art of Gandhara), Yamada Kihito, ISBN 4-89806-106-0
External links
Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Three_Jewels&oldid=463941793
