In the buddhist tradition, the three jewels represent the three supports for one’s spiritual journey: the buddha, the dharma, and the sangha  •  they are called jewels because they are colorful, multi-faceted, and very precious  •  the idea of buddha in this case refers to Gautama Buddha, the founder of this tradition who set the wheel of dharma in motion  •  it also refers to living teachers — those who represent the potential of awakening — as well as to the quality of awake within each of us  •  the second precious jewel, the dharma, refers to teachings  — not just the teachings in the Buddhist tradition, but any words that are true  •  it refers to the scholarly, conceptual insights and breakthroughs that can be so helpful in our practice and in our daily life  •  the third of the three jewels is the sangha, or community  •  whether you are a buddhist or not, it’s very hard to stick with any kind of discipline our training totally on your own  •  the sangha represents your fellow practitioners, those you can rely on to support you in developing the wisdom and compassion and skill needed to help this troubled world.