Taking Refuge | Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh

We might have the feeling that...

we are shaky,

we are not solid—

we have too much fear in us.

And that is the complex of...

inferiority—low self-esteem.

And of course, we would like
to look for something solid,

something we can take refuge in,

so that we can diminish our fear
and our uncertainty.

And that is why, looking for refuge,
you have to be careful.

You should only take refuge
in someone that is solid.

You should take refuge only
in something that is solid.

Suppose you take refuge in the sun.

The sun is something
that keeps its promise.

It will rise every morning.

It will never miss to be there
for you in the morning.

So taking refuge in the sun,
that is good.

Whether there is rain,
or not...

there's cloud or not,

the sun will be there
for you in the morning.

So there is stability,
there is certainty.

So you should rely on the sun.

You should rely on the Earth.

A farmer relies on the Earth

and he has faith in the Earth.

The fisherman

has confidence in the ocean

because...

he knows

the direction of the ocean.

Every time he goes to that direction,
he will meet the ocean.

And the ocean is the source of...
for his life.

He can fish. He can...

support his family.

So the ocean is his refuge.

The ocean always responds to his...

his needs.

The mountain also.

If you know a mountain, and if...

you want to meet the mountain,

you just go and you see the mountain.

The mountain will never disappear.

If you go in the right direction,
you'll see the mountain.

So, looking around, you can see...

one person, two persons, three persons,
who are like...

the sun,

or the ocean,

or the mountain.

He is always there for you

if you go in his or her direction.

Don't pick up someone who
doesn't have that kind of stability,

that solidity.

Because in the person
who has stability and solidity,

there is the Buddha,

there is the Dharma,

and there is the Sangha
in him or in her.

Because it is...

the strength—the energy, of the Three Gems
that make him or her stable and solid.

And in the beginning,
you might take refuge in him or in her.

And when you look at him,
you look at her deeply,

you find out what kind of...

elements, what kind of practice,
that have helped him or her

(be) stable and solid.

You can count on him.
You can count on her.

She is somehow like a sun.

And if you want to go into her direction,

she is always there for you.

Maybe she's silent.

She does not do much.
She does not make...

any declaration,

but she's there like a mountain,

he's there like ocean.

Even if you don't go to him or to her,
you just think of him or her,

you have a comfortable feeling.

And then you take refuge in him or in her.

That does not mean that
you have to make a declaration.

"Dear Brother, dear Sister,
I take refuge in you."

You don't have to do that.

When you look deeply into that person,

you see the seeds that
help him or her to be like that.

You see the practice that can
help him or her to be like that.