Triratna (Sanskrit for "Three Jewels") Pali Ti-ratana, also known as Threefold Refuge, is a Buddhist term that refers to the Buddha, the dharma (doctrine, or teaching), and the sangha (the monastic order, or community). The Triratna is a Buddhist emblem that is said to visually depict the Three Jewels of Buddhism. This article will explain to you the Triratnas which will be helpful in the Ancient History preparation for the UPSC Civil service exam.

Triratnas

• Triratna is a Sanskrit phrase that means "Three Jewels" and refers to the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
• Buddha counselled his disciples to avoid the two extremes of worldly pleasure and strict abstinence and asceticism.
• Instead, he directed that the 'Madhyam Marg,' or middle road, be taken.
• He emphasised Buddhism's individualism by stating that everyone was responsible for their own pleasure in life.
• His teachings are based on three pillars:
  • Buddha – Founder/Teacher
  • Dhamma – Teachings
  • Sangha – Order of Buddhist Monks and Nuns (Upasakas)
• Dukkha and its elimination are central to the Buddha's teachings. Suffering includes both the actual agony and the prospect of experiencing these things.
• The search for enlightenment is central to Buddhism. It refers to a manner of life that is devoid of self-indulgence and denial.
• There is no supreme god or divinity in Buddhism.

The Buddha

• Both the historical Buddha and the ideal of Buddhahood are referred to as the Buddha.
• The historical Buddha is the source of the whole Buddhist tradition, and all schools view him as their root founder, leader, and inspiration.
• Going to the Buddha for Refuge involves viewing him as the ultimate teacher and spiritual exemplar.
• It also entails committing to achieving Buddhahood - Enlightenment for the sake of all beings – which means aspiring to be someone who sees the nature of reality as it is and acts fully and naturally in accordance with that vision.
• This is the ultimate aim of the Buddhist spiritual life, and it represents the end of suffering for anybody who achieves it.

The Dharma

• The Buddha's teachings, or the truth he knew, are referred to as the Dharma.
• The term 'Dharma' has several meanings, the most fundamental of which is the unmediated Truth (as experienced by the Enlightened mind).
• It also includes Buddhist teachings as that same Truth mediated via language and conceptions.
• Dharma, in this second sense, is the teaching that arose when the Buddha first put his realisation into words and communicated it to others at Sarnath in Northern India.
• The event is usually known as "the first turning of the Dharma wheel," and the eight-spoked Dharma wheel is a common Buddhist symbol.
• Furthermore, Dharma refers to the complete corpus of scriptures considered to be the Buddhist canon.
• These include accounts of the Buddha's life (known as the Pali Canon), later texts, and the recorded teachings of those who reached Enlightenment over the years.
• The entire canon is many hundred times longer than the Bible and exhibits unrivalled treasures in literature.

The Sangha

• Buddhist monastic order traditionally made up of four groups: monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen.
• The sangha is a component of the Threefold Refuge, which includes the Buddha and the dharma (teaching).
• The sangha arose from a group of disciples who gave up their worldly lives to travel with the Buddha and listen to his teachings.
• After the Buddha's death, his disciples continued to live as a community, travelling from place to place and subsisting on alms.
• Followers of the Buddha would congregate fortnightly, during the full and new moons (the uposatha days), to reaffirm their feeling of community and purpose by reciting their basic beliefs, such as the Threefold Refuge and the standards of conduct.
• Modern sanghas are governed by disciplinary regulations (vinaya) derived from the sacred canon.
• Because Buddhist monks, particularly those of the Theravada school in Southeast Asia, do not engage in industry or agriculture.
• The monastic order is generally dependent on the lay community for economic assistance in the form of alms or major gifts of money and property.

Triratna Symbol

• The Triratna symbol is made up of the following elements:
  • A lotus flower surrounded by a circle.
  • A diamond rod, also known as a vajra.
  • A chakra of ananda.
  • A trident, or trisula, with three branches, symbolises Buddhism's three jewels: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.

Triratna Symbol - Sanchi stupa, 1st century BCE

• The Triratna is generally surmounted by the Dharma wheel on representations of the Buddha's footprint.
• The Triratna can be found on Sanchi frieze sculptures as the symbol crowning a flag standard (2nd century BCE).

Triratna - Coins

• A number of triratna symbols can be seen on historical coins of Buddhist countries in the Indian subcontinent.
• The triratna, for example, appears on coins of the Kuninda Kingdom in northern Punjab from the first century BCE.
• It also appears on several coins of Abdagases I of the Indo-Kingdom from the first century CE, as well as coins of the Kushan Empire, such as those issued by Vima Kadphises in the same year.

Conclusion

The Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha are referred to as the "Three Jewels" in Sanskrit. The Triratna is a Buddhist emblem that is claimed to graphically depict Buddhism's Three Jewels. The Triratna is usually topped by the Dharma wheel, which is based on images of the Buddha's footprint. There are several triratna symbols on historical coins from Buddhist countries in the Indian subcontinent.