..续本文上一页ddition to it

　　 By whom and on which occasions have the three lower kinds been used

　　 Have they been administered to the devotees in a similar fashion as it is done today in the case of the traditional formula

　　 Those three lower kinds, namely, have in common the last sentence, being a call to witness: "Thus may you know me!" (iti mamdharetha). Does the plural form used in the Pali sentence, refer to an assembly of devotees that witnessed the act or, what seems to be more probable, was it merely a respectful way of addressing the spiritual teacher (guru) or the monk who may have administered that special formula of refuge, perhaps as a kind of initiation

　　 In any case, the concluding "call to witness" gives to those utterances a strong emphasis and the solemnity of a vow distinguishing it from the general formula of refuge. The commencing words ("From today onward...") too are stressing that character of a definite and personal dedication, as distinguished from an impersonal ritual. They mark the day of the first utterance as initiating a new period in the life of the devotee. Both the beginning and the end of these three modes of refuge are an echo of the earliest formulas of conversion, reported in the Suttas: "I take refuge in the Lord Gotama, the doctrine and the community of monks! May the Lord Gotama know of me as an upasaka! From today, as long as life lasts, I have taken refuge!" (...upaasaka.m ma.m bhava.m Gotama dhaaretu, ajjatagge pa.nupeta.m sara.nam gata.m.)

　　The commentator explains the three lower modes of refuge merely by reference to scriptural passages which do not enlighten us very much. From this fact we may conclude that in Buddhaghosa”s time and environment those modes of refuge were no longer a living practice, but only a reminiscence for which explanation had to be sought in literature. Otherwise the commentator would certainly have dealt with them in greater detail and probably illustrated them by some stories which he is usually so fond of relating. The fourth and highest mode of refuge has obviously been more familiar at that time and was probably still in use by those undergoing strenuous meditative practice, as evinced by a passage in the Visuddhimagga which we shall quote later.

　　But despite the lack of authentic information, the following facts become sufficiently clear from the formulae themselves. The ancient devotees who coined and used them have been obviously very sensitive as to the deep significance of that act of going for refuge, perceiving it as a most momentous step, decisive for life. By making a fourfold distinction demanding a definite and personal choice, they made provision for saving the performance of that act from becoming a soulless habit. The ancient devotees knew well the implication of that apparently simple act and have been aware of the sacred responsibilities resulting from it. They knew that taking refuge is actually consummated only by a complete self-surrender to the Triple Gem, without any reservations. In the lesser modes of the act, there is still something of the presumed self that is kept back; it is a going for refuge with reservations. Nevertheless these lesser modes too are definite steps towards the Highest, and should be consciously cultivated. As in any harmonious mental development, here too the higher level will not exclude the lower one but absorb it into its wider compass. In trying to obtain a clearer picture of those four modes, we shall therefore start not from the highest, but from the lowest level.

　　I.

　　Homage is the mental attitude, and the bodily and verbal expression, of reverence, resulting from the recognition and appreciation of something higher than oneself. It breaks through the first and hardest shell of pride and self-contented ignorance that know…

《The Threefold Refuge》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…