528 BCE
Buddhas First Sermon
About this moment
The Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta (Pali; Sanskrit: Dharmacakrapravartana Sūtra; English: The Setting in Motion of the Wheel of the Dhamma Sutta or Promulgation of the Law 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. The main topic of later versions of this sutta is the Four Noble Truths, which refer to and express the basic orientation of Buddhism in a formulaic expression, while earlier versions center on insight into impermanence, and the stilling of unwholesome mental drives. This sutta also refers to the Buddhist concepts of the Middle Way, impermanence, and dependent origination.