Refuge And Bodhisattva Vows
This is a FREE event. It is traditional to make an offering to the Lama for this event. You may send your donation as an offering. For walk-ins, you may give your donations at the door at the Rime Institute.
This event will be available both Online and In-person.
If you would like to register for the online event in other languages, please sign up on Dzokden.org so we can best track your enrollment. This is the registration for the In-person event in Australia.
Refuge Vow
Until you have taken refuge, you have not committed your spiritual practice to a life direction. And once you take the refuge vow, you are recognizing that you yourself have Buddha nature and can unveil it. To do that, you need the support of a guide, (the Buddha), instructions on how to reveal your nature (the Dharma) and friends on the journey to keep you moving in the right direction (the Sangha). Taking refuge changes your life priorities and firmly plants you moving in the direction towards your Buddha nature. This is the first step as an official Buddhist on the path. While you can take it in your heart which is the most important form, you can also take it with a Buddhist master. It represents turning toward a genuine spiritual path that can be of benefit not only to ourselves but to others as well. Khentrul Rinpoche will offer this vow to those who would like to take it. Since this is the moment you recognizing yourself as part of the family of the Buddhas, you are given a new name, a refuge name which has profound meaning based on the qualities of the ultimate truth which you will work to cultivate and reveal in yourself. You can receive one in person or request one online.
Bodhisattva Vow
For those who want to know the truth of their nature, but also want everyone else to know the truth of their nature – there is the Bodhisattva Vow. This is a ceremony to commit to or to validate your choice to help all sentient beings in the 10 directions and 3 times to know their own sacred truth. It’s a commitment to help others awaken no matter what it takes, no matter how long, and no matter when it happens. It is a commitment to be here for their benefit. This is a step to cultivating the heart of love and compassion and the warrior spirit and energy that will stop at nothing to help other people see their truth.
The Bodhisattva Vow can only be taken after you have taken the Refuge Vow. In taking this vow, you move from a path of individual awakening to one of communal awakening commit to love and compassion as your path.
Schedule by Timezone:
Melbourne, Australia – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 07:00 PM
Hong Kong, Shanghai, Mongolia, Singapore and Taiwan – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 04:00 PM
Hanoi, Vietnam – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 03:00 PM
Romania – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 10:00 AM
Central Europe and South Africa – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 09:00 AM
Sao Paulo, Brazil – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 06:00 AM
East Coast USA, Toronto – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 03:00 AM
West Coast USA – SATURDAY December 09, 2023 / 12:00 AM
If you have taken these vows formally in the past this is a good time to renew them. If you are taking the Refuge Vow for the first time, you will be asked to request a refuge name.
The ceremony comes with a free digital book for the practice. For those that reserve a spot by the 1st of December, we may have a physical book in-person.
Questions?
If you have any questions, please send an email to help@dzokden.org.