By Victor M Fontane
The Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta is a Buddhist scripture that is considered by Buddhists to be a record of the first sermon given by Gautama Buddha, the Sermon in the Deer Park at Sarnath. On it the Blessed One set the Wheel of Dharma in first motion. The “three turnings of the wheel of the dharma” mark three historical points at which new developments in Buddhist thought emerged in India. “Turning the Wheel” is a metaphor for the setting in motion of new teachings.
The first turning is mainly concerned with abandoning negative actions of the body, speech and mind. The second turning is primarily about abandoning clinging to the self of individual and of phenomena. The third turning is about abandoning clinging to emptiness.
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