Ratana Sutta Verse 7

Those who, devoted, firm-minded,
apply themselves to Gotama’s message,
on attaining their goal, plunge into the Deathless,
freely enjoying the Liberation they’ve gained.
This, too, is an exquisite treasure in the Sangha.
By this truth may there be well-being.

https://accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.2.01.than.html

This verse continues the praise of the Sangha, but now focuses on those disciples who have fully accomplished the Buddha’s path.

The verse describes practitioners who are devoted and firm-minded, applying themselves wholeheartedly to the Buddha’s teaching until they reach its ultimate goal. Here, the goal refers to arahantship—the complete liberation from the defilements and the cycle of rebirth. The traditional translation therefore understands the “Deathless” as Nibbāna, rather than physical immortality.

This distinction is important.

When Buddhism speaks of the Deathless, it is not promising that an enlightened person will continue living forever. Rather, it points to the ending of the process that keeps beings caught in repeated birth and death. The arahant has reached the end of that journey.

The verse therefore celebrates something much deeper than supernatural protection or worldly prosperity. The greatest “treasure” in the Sangha is the existence of people who have actually completed the path and experienced liberation for themselves.

For me, this verse also invites a more personal reflection.

It is easy to admire enlightened beings as people somewhere outside ourselves—ancient monks, great teachers or spiritual heroes. But the verse also asks us to look at our own direction.

Are we merely admiring the Buddha’s teaching, or are we actually practising it?

Are we becoming less attached, less fearful and less driven by greed, anger and delusion?

Are we moving toward freedom, or are we simply collecting Buddhist knowledge and performing Buddhist practices?

We may not be arahants, and most of us have a very long way to go. But we can still ask whether our lives are moving in the same direction as the path.

In that sense, the verse is not merely praising the Sangha. It reminds us what the Sangha ultimately represents: the possibility of awakening and liberation.

Ratana Sutta Verse 8

An Indra pillar, planted in the earth, that even the four winds cannot shake: that, I tell you, is like the person of integrity, who — having comprehended the noble truths — sees. This, too, is an exquisite treasure in the Sangha. By this truth may there be well-being.

This verse uses a powerful image: a pillar firmly planted in the earth that cannot be shaken by the four winds.

The image represents the stability of someone who has directly comprehended the Noble Truths. The person is no longer easily shaken by the changing circumstances of life because their understanding has fundamentally changed.

Traditional explanations associate this verse with the Sotāpanna, or stream-enterer—the first stage of awakening. A stream-enterer has had a direct breakthrough into the Dhamma and has entered the “stream” leading toward full awakening.

This is an important distinction.

The verse does not simply describe someone who believes in the Four Noble Truths. A person can intellectually understand Buddhist teachings, memorise the suttas and even speak eloquently about the Dhamma without having attained stream-entry.

The person described here has seen the Noble Truths.

That seeing represents a transformation in understanding. The teachings are no longer merely ideas learned from a book or from a teacher; they have become directly understood.

The image of the unshakable pillar is therefore particularly appropriate. Life will continue to bring its four “winds”—success and failure, praise and criticism, pleasure and pain, gain and loss.

However, one is no longer shaken by what is happening externally. The goal towards Nibanna is unshakeable.

There is also an interesting connection to the next verse. The Ratana Sutta goes on to say that those who have realised the Noble Truths will not experience an eighth existence, traditionally meaning that a stream-enterer has at most seven more rebirths.

So the progression across these verses is quite beautiful:

Verse 6: The Sangha is precious because there are noble disciples who are worthy of offerings.

Verse 7: Among them are those who have reached the ultimate goal—the arahants who have attained liberation.

Verse 8: Even before that final attainment, there are those who have already seen the Noble Truths and entered the stream toward awakening.

For me, this makes the idea of the Sangha much more interesting than simply thinking of it as a community of monks.

The deepest meaning of the Sangha in these verses is the community of people who have genuinely walked the path and transformed their understanding.

And perhaps that gives us another way to look at Buddhist practice.

We do not have to pretend that we are already enlightened. We can simply ask:

Am I becoming less shaken by the winds of life?

Am I seeing the Dhamma more clearly?

Am I moving toward freedom rather than deeper attachment?

Those questions may be more meaningful than asking whether we have performed enough rituals, recited enough chants or accumulated enough Buddhist knowledge.

The pillar stands because it is deeply rooted.

Perhaps our practice should be the same.Join me in the next post as I explore Ratana Sutta verse by verse.

May all be well and happy.