Ratana Sutta Verse 3

Whatever treasure there be either here or in the world beyond, whatever precious jewel there be in the heavenly worlds, there is nought comparable to the Tathāgata (the Perfect One). This precious jewel is the Buddha. By this asseveration of truth may there be happiness.

The verse talks about treasure. Treasure refers to something precious and valuable to mankind. A treasure is something that we want to protect and safeguard because it can bring us immense benefit and happiness.

And the Buddha is far more precious than any treasure in all the worlds, be it the human world or even the worlds of gods and devas.

Why is that so?

The Buddha Rarely Appears

Buddhas rarely appear in the universe.

In Buddhist cosmology, the universes or physical worlds that we know also undergo birth, decay, destruction and rebirth. In other words, existence unfolds through vast cycles of creation, expansion and destruction.

Whenever a universe comes into existence, a Buddha may appear—or may not appear at all. For a Buddha to arise, a sentient being must have undergone an immensely long period of development, cultivating wisdom and perfecting the mind. Then, the conditions in the world must also be right for that being to seek self-awakening.

Take the story of Prince Siddhartha. His life-changing decision to renounce the world was triggered by the events that we read about in the traditional accounts. There may also have been underlying conditions and circumstances that were never recorded and that we will never know.

Once we reflect carefully on all these conditions coming together, we begin to appreciate just how rare the appearance of a Buddha truly is.

The word Tathāgata is traditionally interpreted in several ways, including “Thus-Gone” and “Thus-Come.” In this context, we can reflect on the preciousness of all the conditions that came together to enable the arising and fulfilment of a Buddha.

From this verse, we are reminded that a Buddha is highly esteemed not only in our human world but throughout the realms of existence. The Buddha possesses the wisdom to see reality as it truly is.

Before the Buddha, people had their own understandings of this life and what lies beyond it—from the realms of hell to the heavenly realms. But the Buddha revealed that all these realms are still part of Saṃsāra, the cycle of birth and death. Beyond Saṃsāra lies something more profound: liberation from that cycle.

Even beings who believed themselves to be creators of the universe were shown, through the Buddha’s teaching, to be mistaken about the nature of their existence.

When we look at it from this perspective, we can appreciate just how precious the Buddha is. The Buddha did not merely provide another explanation of existence. He revealed a reality that had not previously been fully understood and showed a way beyond suffering and repeated existence.

The stanza then ends with an invocation of sorts:

“By this truth may there be happiness.”

This verse is powerful because the Buddha’s teaching presents a fuller understanding of reality. Human beings have often acted upon mistaken views of the world, and throughout history we have fought wars and committed terrible acts in the name of what we believed to be true.

The Buddha, however, taught a path grounded in seeing reality clearly. By understanding the Dhamma and practising it, genuine freedom from suffering—and therefore genuine happiness—becomes possible.

When we look at this verse from this perspective, our mind can become unshakeable, confident and bright.

Ratana Sutta Verse 4

The exquisite Deathless—ending, dispassion—
discovered by the Sakyan Sage in Samādhi:
There is nothing to equal that Dhamma.
This, too, is an exquisite treasure in the Dhamma.
By this truth may there be happiness.

The ultimate goal of Buddhism is Nibbāna. Nibbāna is also known as the Deathless, or the deathless state.

Beings in the six realms of existence—including the devas in the heavenly realms—experience impermanence. Even life in heaven is finite, and eventually that existence comes to an end. Death, therefore, is a common feature of existence within Saṃsāra.

The absence of death is possible only outside Saṃsāra. Therefore, to stop experiencing death and rebirth, we need to cease being reborn within Saṃsāra.

This state of Deathlessness was discovered by the Buddha during his profound meditative practice. The Buddha is referred to here as the Sakyan Sage, or Sakyamuni, and the deep meditative concentration through which he realised the truth is known as Samādhi.

It is important to note that Samādhi is a crucial part of the Buddhist path to awakening. It is a highly concentrated and purified state of mind. Meditation is one of the principal methods of training the mind so that such concentration and clarity can develop.

When the Buddha shared his realisation of the Deathless, or Nibbāna, he was sharing the Dhamma.

In this context, Dhamma refers to the truth of reality discovered and taught by the Buddha. The Buddha did not merely tell us that Nibbāna exists. He also taught a systematic path through which others could realise it for themselves.

The realisation of Nibbāna corresponds to the Third Noble Truth, the cessation of suffering. The way leading to that cessation is the Fourth Noble Truth, the Noble Eightfold Path.

It is through the discovery and teaching of these truths that the possibility of liberation from suffering became available to us.

Nibbāna is the end of suffering, the ending of craving and the ending of the cycle of repeated birth and death. Therefore, the stanza concludes:

“By this truth may there be happiness.”

The Buddha’s discovery of the Deathless is itself a precious treasure. And the Dhamma that reveals the way to that Deathless state is an even greater treasure—because it gives us not merely knowledge about liberation, but a path by which liberation can be realised.

Join me in the next post as I explore Ratana Sutta verse by verse.

May all be well and happy.