Topic of the Week: Explaining the term 'Three Jewels'
The Three Jewels form one of the fundamental concepts in Buddhism. The Buddha as the teacher, his teachings or the dharma as the path, and his followers or Sangha as the companion are known as triratna in Sanskrit, triratana in Pali and könchosum (དཀོན་མཆོག་གསུམ་ Wyl. dkon mchog gsum) in Tibetan. The Sanskrit term ‘ratna’ and and Pali ‘ratana’ means a jewel, gem or treasure. The Tibetan word ‘köncho’ literally means rare and supreme. Why are the Buddha, his teachings and followers considered as jewels or rare and supreme? What is the reason behind the term ‘three jewels’ or ‘triple gem’?
The Ratnagotravibhāga, which is a treatise on the spiritual gene of the Three Jewels, states in Verse l.22 that they are considered jewels or gems because they are rare, stainless, powerful, supreme, immutable and ornaments of the world. Find more translations and explanations of this verse here.
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