"Buddha is the universe and Dharma is the teaching from the universe, and Sangha is the group of people who make the universe and its teaching alive in their lives.

[…]

To ‘take refuge’ does not mean to escape from the human world or from one another. In Japanese, to ‘take refuge’ is namu or namu kie; in Sanskrit it is namo. Namo means full devotion or throwing away the body and mind.

[…]

We take refuge in the Buddha because Buddha is our great teacher. ‘Great’ in this sense is completely beyond the human evaluation of good or bad….We take refuge in the law, in the Dharma, because it is good medicine. Dharma is teaching; this teaching is completely beyond human evaluation, beyond moral sense or ethical sense…We take refuge in Buddha’s community, or Sangha, because it is composed of excellent friends…Because we must be following the Buddha’s teaching, we must be following the essence, the virtue, the functioning of the universe, and therefore we become an excellent friend to others."

Dainin Katagiri Roshi, Returning to Silence: Zen Practice in Daily Life, “The Triple Treasure” (via sharanam) (via fuckyeahdukkha)