Every single person in the world is looking for happiness, but most people seek it in the outer world - in fame, career, partnership, etc. One cannot deny that these things give us pleasure, but since everything conditioned will fall apart, these sources of happiness are not lasting. The following article is an excerpt of a lecture by Karola Schneider given during a course of Lama Ole Nydahl in 1995 in San Francisco, where over 400 people from the United States and Europe participated. Karola Schneider, who has been a student of Lama Ole Nydahl since 1979, was asked on this occasion to give a short lecture on the meaning of Buddhist refuge.
T aking refuge is something that all beings do.
It is our search for happiness, security, for something we can rely on. For Buddhists, taking refuge is a constant practice, and is far more than a ceremony which takes place once. Rather, it is like a thread which weaves a line through our lives. Taking refuge is the gateway into the Buddhist practice. These levels correspond to our more and more deepening understanding.