“In order to explore our buddha-nature and journey toward enlightenment, we must understand the meaning of taking refuge. To take refuge daily is the most essential practice in all the schools of Buddhism. The Tibetan word for refuge is chab, which means “protection” and implies feelings of closeness, warmth, and trust toward the Buddha, his teaching, and those who are devoted to making the teaching a living experience. The Indian Dzogchen master Vimalamitra said:

When we clearly know the suffering of samsara,
As well as the qualities of enlightened beings,
We can go for refuge.

Discouraged by samsaric situations and an unstable mind, we learn to take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. As Chandragomin teaches in his Seventy Verses on Refuge:

Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha
Are the supporters of those who seek liberation.
Taking refuge in them
Brings freedom from suffering.”

 

Venerable Khenpo Rinpoches
Illuminating the Path: Ngondro Instructions According to the Nyingma School of Vajrayana Buddhism (pg 77)
www.padmasambhava.org/chiso/books-by-khenpo-rinpoches/illuminating-the-path-ngondro-instructions-according-to-the-nyingma-school-of-vajrayana-buddhism

 

Photo of Ven. Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche bestowing a Refuge Ceremony at PBC Palm Beach Dharma Center on January 22, 2020.