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The First Teaching: Radical Medicine for a Painful World

With Sean Oakes recorded on July 19, 2026.

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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)

“It’s not a middle way that is a compromise where you can cut out the hard bits and split the difference so you feel good about it.”
– Ajahn Pasanno

This talk will reference Saṃyutta Nikāya 56.11, “Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dhamma”. Listen and read along to Sean reading the discourse here.

Listen to the audio version below, or click here to download the mp3.

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