July 27, 2025

Be a Refuge Unto Yourself - David Lewis

57 minutes

How can we simplify our life and our mind amid today’s overwhelming digital distractions and misinformation?

Here David Lewis explores the timeless relevance of Buddhist teachings in our modern, often chaotic world. He begins by reflecting on how suffering ushers many people toward the dharma, yet his own initial curiosity was about the nature of reality and truth, which he found deeply resonant in Buddhism’s investigative spirit.

David highlights the Buddha’s emphasis on self-reliance with his famous advice, “Be a lamp unto yourself,” encouraging us to seek refuge not outside but within our own experience. He unpacks the concept of taking refuge in the Triple Gem—Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha—explaining that this means recognizing our own potential for awakening, leaning on supportive community, and embracing the truth as revealed through direct experience, not just intellectual belief. He stresses the importance of curiosity as the magnet of dharma practice, and how meditation and mindful attention help us simplify life amid today’s overwhelm, which he compares to a modern form of suffering or “unreliability.”

As the world competes for our attention, David advises grounding ourselves in reality through direct sensory experience, mindfulness, and meditation—a radical act of reclaiming our attention and cultivating peace. He encourages us to let go of what obstructs our happiness, describing renunciation not as a loss but gaining freedom from craving and distraction. He reminds us that the practice is less about acquiring something new and more about creating space for stillness and clarity.

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David Lewis has been following the dharma path for 50 years. He has a degree in comparative religious studies and is a graduate of Spirit Rock Meditation Center’s Advanced Practitioners Program. David shares the dharma at several sanghas, including Mission Dharma, Insight Upper Market, and the Gay Buddhist Fellowship in San Francisco.

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