It is the duty of every Buddhist to pay homage to the Buddha.
Before the commencement of any Buddhist recital, the following sentences in Pali
should be recited three times and only after that does one take refuge in the Triple Gem

Namo Tassa	-	Honour to Him
Bhagavatou	-	The Blessed One
Arahato	-	The Worthy One
Samma sambuddhassa	-	The Fully Enlightened One

To become Buddhist, one must take refuge in:

The Buddha	-	the holiest, most virtuous, wisest and most spiritually personality
The Dhamma	-	the Ultimate Truth about the Universe which explains the real nature of the world and of life
The Sangha	-	all the disciples of the Buddha who have attained sainthood. It also refers to the Holy Order of the Buddha, whose members lead the religious life and who are responsible for preserving His original teachings