Three Jewels and Three Roots

Part of a series on
Vajrayana Buddhism
Traditions Historical traditions: Ari-Acharya Burmese-Bengal † Yunnan Indonesian Esoteric Buddhism † Filipino Esoteric Buddhism † East Asian Chinese Japanese Nepalese Inner Asian Tibetan Altaic (o, x, b, t, k, y) New branches: Gateway of the Hidden Flower New Kadampa Buddhism Shambhala Buddhism True Awakening Tradition
History Tantrism Mahasiddha Sahaja
Pursuit Buddhahood Bodhisattva Kalachakra
Practices Generation stage Completion stage Phowa Tantric techniques: Fourfold division: Kriyayoga Charyayoga Yogatantra Anuttarayogatantra Twofold division: Inner Tantras Outer Tantras Thought forms and visualisation: Mandala Mantra Mudra Thangka Yantra Yoga: Ngöndro Guru yoga Deity yoga Six yogas: Inner heat Luminosity yoga Dream yoga Death yoga Sex yoga
Festivals Ganachakra Ullambana Puja
Tantric texts Anuttarayoga Tantra Cakrasaṃvara Tantra Guhyagarbha Tantra Kulayarāja Tantra Mahāmāyā Tantra Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa Mañjuśrīnāmasamgīti Tattvasaṃgraha Tantra Vajrasekhara Sutra Yuthok Nyingthig
Symbols and tools Damaru Ghanta Melong Phurba Vajra Yab-Yum
Ordination and transmission Esoteric transmission Pointing-out instruction Samaya Vajracharya
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In Tibetan Buddhism, the Three Jewels and Three Roots are supports in which a Buddhist takes refuge by means of a prayer or recitation at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. The Three Jewels are the first and the Three Roots are the second set of three Tibetan Buddhist refuge formulations, the Outer, Inner and Secret forms of the Three Jewels. The 'Outer' form is the 'Triple Gem' (Sanskrit: triratna), the 'Inner' is the Three Roots and the 'Secret' form is the 'Three Bodies' or trikāya of a Buddha.

These are:^[1]

• the Buddha, the fully enlightened one
• the Dharma, the teachings expounded by the Buddha
• the Saṅgha, the monastic order of Buddhism that practice the Dharma
• the Lama (Sanskrit: guru) is the 'root of blessing' or 'root of grace'
• the Yidam (Sanskrit: ishtadevata) is the 'root of methods' or 'root of accomplishments'
• the Dakini or Dharmapala is the 'root of activity' or 'root of protection'.

The additional refuge formulations are employed by those undertaking deity yoga and other tantric practices within the Tibetan Buddhist Vajrayana tradition as a means of recognizing the universality of Buddha Nature. The Three Roots are commonly mentioned in the Nyingma and Kagyu literature of Tibetan Buddhism. Unlike most aspects of Tibetan Buddhism, which originated in India, the Three Roots may be an original Tibetan formulation from the time of Padmasambhava.^[2]