The First Teaching: Radical Medicine for a Painful World (Sangha Live)
Guest teaching at Sangha Live Sunday Sangha, July 19, 2026
The July full moon marks Dhamma Day (Āsāḷha Pūjā), the anniversary of the Buddha’s very first teaching, given to five friends in a deer park 2,614 years ago. This one ancient talk is said to contain the entire path. And it still asks something extraordinary of us: a complete reorientation of how we live. We’ll listen for the fierce compassion at the heart of that original message—and explore how to actually take the medicine, right now, in the middle of everything.
“Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to cessation.”
– Venerable Kondañña, upon hearing the first teaching (SN 56.11)
This talk references Saṃyutta Nikāya 56.11, “Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dhamma”.
