4 Noble Truths in 3 Circles | First Teaching of the Buddha | Ajahn Dhammasiha | Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta

On Āsāḷhā Full Moon, the Buddha taught his first formal discourse, the "Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta" ("Discourse on Setting in Motion the Wheel of Dhamma") In his Dhamma Talk, Ajahn Dhammasiha goes through the essential content of this very famous Sutta, namely the Four Noble Truths. He tries to elicit answers from the audience 😉, to make sure that everyone knows the basic meaning of these most fundamental teaching of the Buddha: 1. The Noble Truth of Suffering: Birth, old age, sickness & death; Association with the disliked; Seperation from the liked; Not getting what one wants; In short, the five groups of clinging. 2. The Noble Truth of the Cause of Suffering: Craving. 3. The Noble Truth of the End of Suffering: The complete, remainderless cessation of craving. 4. The Noble Truth of the Practice Leading to the End of Suffering: The Noble Eight-Fold Path. Next, the Sutta elucidates three aspects of each Noble Truth. Only after his knowledge and vision of things as they truly are was completely purified in respect of the Four Noble Truths in their three aspects, did the Buddha proclaim supreme awakening. 1. The Noble Truth in and by itself. 2. The Duty attached to each Truth: Suffering has to be comprehended; The cause of suffering has to be abandoned; The end of suffering has to be realized; The Middle Way has to be developed. 3. The accomplishment of the duty Four Noble Truths in their three aspects constitute the 12-spoked Dhammacakka (4x3=12). That is the reason why we often see the Dhammawheel represented with 12 spokes, like the one depicted on the pedestal of our main Buddhastatue. That is the meaning of the 'mudra', the position of the hands of our statue: The first circle represents the Four Noble Truths, the second circle indicates the three aspects, and both hands together illustrate the 12fold matrix of: "Phenomena unheared of before, in respect to which vision arose, knowledge arose, wisdom arose, understanding arose, illumination arose."