In the opening talk of the series, Padmasagara explores the profundity of the Buddha's statement that spiritual friendship is 'the whole of the spiritual life' or, in other words, the whole of the Going for Refuge. He emphasises the "guhya" (secret or hidden) nature of spiritual friendship and demonstrates how its emergence in the world was inseparable from the Buddha's ineffable Nirvana. The talk concludes by drawing out some important implications and challenges us to reflect on how central spiritual friendship is in our lives.
