Lzh Mu Bi Pm Pc 44Precious Things
Pāli / Sanskrit:Ratana
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DISCOURSE ON PRECIOUS JEWELS (RATANA SUTTA)
Background
The Ratana discourse (precious jewels) is one of the additional discourses in the Khuddaka Nikāya of the Pāli Canon, recorded in the Khuddaka Pāṭha. This discourse appears in the Vinaya Piṭaka as a compilation of sacred teachings of the Buddha. According to the Theravāda tradition, the Ratana Sutta is regarded as a protective chant (paritta) with the power to protect spirit and body.
The Buddha delivered this discourse to guide male and female lay followers regarding the most precious things in the practice of the Buddha-Dharma. It is a discourse intended to remind Buddhists of spiritual treasures, not gold, silver, or worldly wealth, but enduring values in the Path.
Main Content
The Ratana discourse reveals the three most precious jewels of the Buddha-Dharma, called the “Three Jewels”: (1) the Buddha, the perfectly awakened one; (2) the Dharma, the teachings leading to awakening; and (3) the Sangha, the community of renunciants who practice the Dharma rightly.
The discourse teaches that these precious jewels are not material possessions that people commonly pursue. They are eternal values, not lost through time or death. One who practices with a unified mind is protected by the power of the Triple Gem.
In the Pāli Canon, Ratana is regarded as a mantra or paritta, a chant bearing protective power. When one lights incense, offers candles, or practices with a reverent mind toward the Three Jewels, one receives protection from adversity, strange disturbances, and illness. This power arises from true faith (saddhā) in the transcendent values of the Dharma, not from magical power.
The Ratana discourse reminds practitioners that those who remember the Three Jewels, practice the Five Precepts (pañcasīla), cultivate loving-kindness (mettā) and wisdom (paññā), will build a life protected by their own ethical actions.
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