The Ratana Sutta () () is a

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

discourse (Pali: '' sutta'') found in the

Pali Canon The Pāḷi Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhism, Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant Early Buddhist texts, early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from t ...

Sutta Nipata The ' () is a Buddhist scripture, a sutta collection in the Khuddaka Nikaya, part of the Sutta Pitaka of the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism. ''Sutta Nipata'' is a collection of discourses of Buddha. It is part of an early corpus of Buddh ...

(Snp 2.1) and Khuddakapatha (Khp 7); with a parallel in the Mahavastu. In the Pali it is seventeen verses in length, and in the Sanskrit version nineteen. The Ratana Sutta extols the characteristics of the three ''ratana'' (Pali for "gem" or "jewel" or "treasure") in Buddhism: the Enlightened One (''

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

''), the Teaching (''

Dhamma Dharma (; , ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term ''dharma'' does not have a single, clear translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit ''dhr-'', meaning ''to hold'' or ''to support' ...

'') and the noble community of disciples (''ariya

Sangha Sangha or saṃgha () is a term meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community". In a political context, it was historically used to denote a governing assembly in a republic or a kingdom, and for a long time, it has been used b ...

'').

Background

Theravada ''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' (anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or ''Dharma (Buddhi ...

Buddhism, according to post-canonical Pali commentaries, the background story for the Ratana Sutta is that the town of Vesali (or Visala) was being plagued by disease, non-human beings and famine; in despair, the townspeople called upon the

for aid; he had the Ven. Ananda go through town reciting this discourse leading to the dispersal of the town's woes.

The Ratana Sutta upholds the

Three Jewels In Buddhism, refuge or taking refuge refers to a religious practice which often includes a prayer or recitation performed at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. Its object is typically the Three Jewels (also known as the Triple ...

as follows: * the Buddha as the unequalled Realized One (verse 3: ''na no samam atthi Tathagatena'') * the Teaching (''dhamma'') of: **

Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

(verse 4: ), and ** the unsurpassed concentration (verse 5: ) leading to Nirvana * the noble Community () for having: ** attained Nirvana (verses 7: ), ** realized the

Four Noble Truths In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (; ; "The Four Arya (Buddhism), arya satya") are "the truths of the noble one (the Buddha)," a statement of how things really are (Three marks of existence, the three marks of existence) when they are seen co ...

(verses 8-9: ), and ** abandoned the first three fetters (verse 10: ) that bind us to .

Use

Theravadin ''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' ( anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or '' Dhamma'' in ...

Buddhist countries and also in

Navayana ''Navayāna'' (Devanagari: नवयान, IAST: ''Navayāna'', meaning "New Vehicle"), otherwise known as Navayāna Buddhism, refers to the Engaged Buddhism, socially engaged Buddhist schools, school of Buddhism founded and developed by th ...

, this discourse is often recited as part of religious, public and private ceremonies for the purpose of blessing new endeavors and dispelling inauspicious forces.See, e.g., Piyadassi (1999); and, Bodhi (2004).

Notes

Sources

* Anandajoti Bhikkhu (ed., trans.) (2004). ''Safeguard Recitals''. Kandy:

Buddhist Publication Society The Buddhist Publication Society (BPS) is a publishing house with charitable status, whose objective is to disseminate the teachings of Gautama Buddha. It was founded in Kandy, Sri Lanka, in 1958 by two Sri Lankan lay Buddhists, A.S. Karunaratn ...

. . * Bodhi, Bhikkhu (2004).
Sn 2.1 Ratana Sutta — Jewels [part 1
/nowiki>">art 1">Sn 2.1 Ratana Sutta — Jewels [part 1
/nowiki> (lecture). Retrieved as an mp3 from "Bodhi Monastery". * Piyadassi Thera (ed., trans.) (1999).
The Book of Protection: Paritta
'. Kandy:

. Retrieved 08-14-2008 from "Access to Insight".

External links

* Laurence Khantipalo Mills (trans.) (2015).
The Threefold Gem
' ( Sn 2.1). Retrieved 12-27-2019 from "SuttaCentral". *Piyadassi Thera (trans.) (1999).
Ratana Sutta: The Jewel Discourse
' ( Sn 2.1). Retrieved 08-22-2008 from "Access to Insight". * Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1994).
Ratana Sutta: Treasures
' ( Sn 2.1). Retrieved 08-22-2008 from "Access to Insight". * Anandajoti Bhikkhu (trans.) (2004)
The Discourse on the Treasures
Part o

(300+ pages) * Chandrabodhi chants the Ratana Sutta and other suttas in an 'Indian style' at
freebuddhistaudio
{{Buddhism topics Khuddaka Nikaya

Background

Contents

Use

See also

Notes

Sources

External links