For the Benefit of All Beings: A Commentary on the Way of the Bodhisattva (Shambhala Classics)

by Dalai Lama XIV

The realization aspect of the dharmakāya is the culmination of the truth of the path, while its elimination aspect is the culmination of the truth of cessation. Together these two truths constitute the Dharma, the second of the Three Jewels in which we take refuge. The dharmakāya is thus the ultimate aspect of the Dharma. The sambhogakāya and nirmānakāya, which manifest from the dharmakāya, constitute the Sangha of beings who have have attained the path of no more learning. And the Buddha, who is free of defects and endowed with all good qualities, is the one who possesses the truth of the path and the truth of cessation. These three—Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha—are the three absolute refuges.