dhammacakkappavattana

This painting is called "dhammacakkappavattana" (धम्मचक्कप्पवत्तन) which means "setting in motion the wheel of dhammā". I repainted the same scene from an earlier painting called "Khanti".

Buddha set the wheel of dhamma in motion by delivering the "dhammacakkappavattana sutta" (धम्मचक्कप्पवत्तन सुत्त) in the Deer Park in Sarnath, Varanasi to five of his meditation companions: Konadaññā, Vappa, Bhaddiya, Mahānāma, and Assaji (कोनदञ्ञा, वप्प, भद्दिय, महानाम, अस्सजि) who became his first disciples.

In this sutta, Buddha talks about following:

1. A monk who wants to achieve nibbana should stay away from the two extremes of sensual pleasures and self-mortification, and should practice the middle path.

2. The noble eight fold path (categorized under sila, samādhi and pañña).

3. The four noble truths and how to fully experience them in 12 steps within the framework of meditation.

While listening to the sutta, Konadaññā entered the state of nibbāna (निब्बान). He became a stream winner or sotāpanna (सोतापन्न), and came to be known as aññātakonadaññā (अञ्ञातकोनदञ्ञा) meaning konadaññā who has experienced the dhammā.

Later, Buddha worked with the rest of them, teaching them Samatha and Vipassanā (विपस्सना). Eventually all four of them experienced nibbāna and became stream winners.

Then, Buddha delivered another very important sutta in the same place called Anattalakkhaṇa sutta (अनत्तलक्खण सुत्त) where he discussed anatta or non-self (अनात्म) in detail and all five disciples became fully liberated or arahata (अरहत).

   

The dhammacakkappavattana sutta starts as follows:

Ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā bārāṇasiyaṃ viharati isipatane migadāye (एकं समयं भगवा बाराणसियं विहरति इसिपतने मिगदाये) which means one time the blessed one was living in the deer park in issipattan, Varanasi. 

Issipattana means a place where rishis meet (descend) to travel to the Himalayas.

dhammā means the law of nature.