Refuge Vows with Gaylon Ferguson

Name: Refuge Vows with Gaylon Ferguson
Start: 2026-05-01T19:00:00-04:00
End: 2026-05-03T17:00:00-04:00
Location: 17309 Madison Ave, Lakewood, OH

Schedule

Fri, 01 May, 2026 at 07:00 pm to Sun, 03 May, 2026 at 05:00 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

17309 Madison Ave, Lakewood, OH | Lakewood, OH

The Refuge Vow has been part of the Buddhist path for centuries. Taking a vow in a formal ceremony is a way to set our intention and to plant a deep seed of aspiration for the unfolding of our spiritual path. First, we commit to freeing ourselves from confusion. The Refuge Vow takes the Buddha as a guiding example of an enlightened human being, the teachings as the path, and the community of practitioners as our companions in awakening. Then, we commit to the wisdom-heart of compassion, vowing to liberate all beings from suffering. This leads to the experience and realization of sacred world.
The Refuge Vow
The Refuge Vow is open to anyone who wants to make a formal commitment to the Buddhist Path. In taking the Refuge Vow, we take refuge in the three jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.
“In the Buddhist tradition, the purpose of taking refuge is to awaken from confusion and associate oneself with wakefulness… When we take refuge, we commit ourselves to the Buddhist path.”
– Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

Refuge Vows – Requirements:
There are no formal prerequisites for taking the Refuge Vows. However, it is recommended that one have a thorough understanding of the vows and their meaning before undertaking them.
Everyone, including friends and family, are welcome to the Refuge Vow Ceremony and reception on Sunday afternoon.

Registration
Please register with an email you check regularly. We will send important information about the program to you via email and don’t want you to miss it. An email with program details will be sent approximately 1 week before the program begins. Sometimes emails may end up in your promotions, spam or junk folder. It’s also possible that you’ve unsubscribed from emails from Shambhala, which prevents you from receiving the necessary emails. If you don’t receive the confirmation email, please contact [email protected].
If any of the program costs are an obstacle, please contact [email protected]

In-person participation
As an in-person event, all participants must agree to abide by the Shambhala Center’s current Coronavirus Precautions Policy. Additionally, we ask you to limit the use of scented products, as many people have chemical sensitivities.

About the preceptor
Gaylon Ferguson, PhD, has led group meditation retreats since 1976. He taught at Stanford, the University of Washington, and Naropa University, where he was a Core Faculty Member for fifteen years.
Gaylon is the author of three books, Natural Wakefulness (on the four foundations of mindfulness), Natural Bravery (on fear and fearlessness as path to manifesting bravery) and Welcoming Beginner’s Mind: Zen and Tibetan Wisdom on Experiencing Our True Nature (2024 from Shambhala Publications). His articles have appeared in Lion’s Roar, Tricycle, and Buddhadharma magazine. He contributed the foreword to the pioneering collection Black and Buddhist: What Buddhism Can Teach Us About Race, Resilience, Transformation and Freedom (Shambhala, 2020).