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Tangerine Dharma
“Since the first days of the Buddha’s teaching, if a person wanted to become a follower of the path, all they had to do was recite, “I take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Dharma (the teachings), I take refuge in the Sangha (the community of practitioners).” There is nothing to join, nothing to become — simply this turning of the heart. . .Like setting an intention or dedicating ourself to a goal, taking refuge reorients our life.” Jack Kornfield, from The Wise Heart
After years of practice, I’ve learned something about taking refuge. It’s a process I’ve nicknamed “tangerine dharma,” to remind myself that we can observe, paint, study, and talk about it till the cows come home.
But no real growth takes root until we eat it.
Nothing happens until we chew, swallow, and digest these words.
Noticing the tangerine.
In the early days of my practice, I burned with enthusiasm for the teachings. During a meditation retreat with Anam Thubten, (my teacher for twenty-three years now), a smile opened in my face, and I felt the sweetness of the path, the way you might notice a bright little tangerine on your kitchen table.
