Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta

 Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dhamma

The Prologue

Thus have I heard. At one time the Blessed One was staying near Varanasi, in the Deer Park at Isipatana. There he addressed the group of five monks:

The Middle Way

“Monks, these two extremes should not be cultivated by one who has gone forth from the household life. What are the two? There is indulgence in sensual pleasures, which is low, vulgar, worldly, ignoble, and leads to no benefit. And there is indulgence in self-mortification, which is painful, ignoble, and leads to no benefit.

“Avoiding both these extremes, the Realized One has awakened to the middle way of practice—which gives vision, gives knowledge, and leads to peace, direct realization, awakening, and Nibbāna. And what is that middle way? It is simply this Noble Eightfold Path: right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration.

The Four Noble Truths

1. The Noble Truth of Suffering

“Now this, monks, is the noble truth of suffering: birth is suffering, aging is suffering, sickness is suffering, death is suffering; sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair are suffering; association with the disliked is suffering, separation from the liked is suffering, not getting what one wants is suffering—in brief, the five aggregates of clinging are suffering.

2. The Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering

“Now this, monks, is the noble truth of the origin of suffering: it is this craving that leads to renewed existence, accompanied by delight and lust, finding enjoyment now here, now there; that is, craving for sensual pleasures, craving for existence, and craving for non-existence.

3. The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering

“Now this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: it is the complete fading away and cessation of that very craving—giving it up, relinquishing it, letting it go, and being released from it.

4. The Noble Truth of the Path Leading to the Cessation of Suffering

“Now this, monks, is the noble truth of the path leading to the cessation of suffering: it is simply this Noble Eightfold Path—that is, right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration.

The Three Turns and Twelve Aspects

“For each of these noble truths, monks, there are three turns and twelve aspects:

For the noble truth of suffering:

· ‘This is the noble truth of suffering’: such was the vision, knowledge, wisdom, understanding, and light that arose in me regarding things not heard before.

· ‘This noble truth of suffering is to be fully understood’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of suffering has been fully understood’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

For the noble truth of the origin of suffering:

· ‘This is the noble truth of the origin of suffering’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of the origin is to be abandoned’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of the origin has been abandoned’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

For the noble truth of the cessation of suffering:

· ‘This is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of cessation is to be realized’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of cessation has been realized’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

For the noble truth of the path:

· ‘This is the noble truth of the path leading to the cessation of suffering’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of the path is to be developed’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

· ‘This noble truth of the path has been developed’: such was the vision… that arose in me.

The Realization and the Proclamation

“As long as my knowledge and vision of these four noble truths in their three turns and twelve aspects was not fully purified, monks, I did not claim to have awakened to the unsurpassed perfect enlightenment in this world with its gods, Māras, and Brahmās, in this generation with its ascetics and brahmins, its gods and humans.

“But when my knowledge and vision of these four noble truths in their three turns and twelve aspects was fully purified, then I claimed to have awakened to the unsurpassed perfect enlightenment in this world with its gods, Māras, and Brahmās, in this generation with its ascetics and brahmins, its gods and humans.

“And knowledge and vision arose in me: ‘Unshakable is my liberation. This is my last birth. Now there is no more renewed existence.’”

The Conclusion

This is what the Blessed One said. The group of five monks rejoiced and delighted in the Blessed One’s words.

And while this discourse was being spoken, there arose in the Venerable Kondañña the dust-free, stainless vision of the Dhamma: “Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to cessation.”

And when the Wheel of Dhamma had been set in motion by the Blessed One, the earth-dwelling deities raised a cry: “At Varanasi, in the Deer Park at Isipatana, the unsurpassed Wheel of Dhamma has been set in motion by the Blessed One—which cannot be stopped by any ascetic, brahmin, god, Māra, Brahmā, or anyone in the world.”