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The 'Dharmacakra' (Sanskrit) or 'Dhammacakka' (Pāli), Tibetan ''chos kyi 'khor lo'', Chinese ''fălún'' 法輪, "Wheel of Dharma" is an auspicious symbol representing dharma (''law'') in Hinduism and the Buddha's teaching of the path to enlightenment. It is also sometimes translated as 'wheel of doctrine' or 'wheel of law'. A similar symbol is also in use in Jainism.

Contents

History

Symbolism

Multiple turnings of the Wheel

Dharmacakra in Jainism

Other

See also

Further reading

History

The Dharmacakra symbol has the form of a wheel with eight or more spokes (sometimes 24 spokes representing the solar cycle). It is one of the oldest Hindu and Buddhist symbols, found in Indian art from the Vedic time and the time of the Buddhist king Aśoka, and used by all Buddhist nations ever since. One version of the symbol, taken from the capital of a pillar erected by Aśoka, is found on the flag of the modern state of India. In its simplest form, it is recognized globally as a symbol for Buddhism.

Symbolism

The eight spokes represent the Noble Eightfold Path of Buddhism. They are said to have sharp edges to cut through ignorance.
Other symbolisms in the eight-spoked Dharmacakra in Buddhism:

★ Its overall shape is that of a circle (''cakra''), representing the perfection of the dharma teaching

★ The hub stands for discipline, which is the essential core of meditation practice

★ The rim, which holds the spokes, refers to mindfulness or ''samadhi'' which holds everything together
The corresponding mudrā, or symbolic hand gesture, is known as the Dharmacakra Mudrā.
The Dharmacakra is one of the eight auspicious symbols of Tibetan Buddhism.
The dharma wheel can refer to the dissemination of the dharma teaching from country to country. In this sense the dharma wheel began rolling in India, carried on to Central Asia, and then arrived in South East Asia and East Asia.

Multiple turnings of the Wheel

Main articles: Three Turnings of the Wheel of Dharma

According to some Buddhist schools, the Buddha turned one or more Dharmacakras over the course of his teaching. All Buddhists agree that the original turning of the wheel occurred when the Buddha taught the five ascetics at the Deer Park in Sarnath (Because of this, a Dharmacakra is sometimes seen with a deer on each side).
According to the Theravada Buddhism, the 'later turnings of the wheel' (as distinguished in Mahayana and Vajrayana) are not original teachings given by Gautama Buddha. These later turnings do also not appear in the Pali Canon nor in the Agamas.
Accounts of the subsequent turnings of the wheel vary. For instance, the second wheel of Dharma was said to be the Abhidharma, whereas the third wheel of Dharma were the Mahāyāna Perfection of Wisdom Sutras, and the fourth wheel of Dharma were the Yogacarya or Cittamatrin sutras that taught the Tathāgatagarbha. Tantric (Vajrayāna) Buddhists also use the term "turning of the dharma wheel" to refer to the progressive development of Buddhism which culminates in their school. According to this image:

★ The first turning of the dharma wheel refers to Gautama Buddha's original teaching, in particular the Four Noble Truths which describes the mechanics of attachment, desire, suffering, and liberation via the Eightfold Path.

★ The second turning refers to the teaching of the Perfection of Wisdom sutra, a foundational text of Mahayana Buddhism.

★ The third turning refers to the teaching of the Mahavairocana Sutra, a foundational text of Tantric Buddhism.
The Doctrine of Three Wheels is Buddha's teaching that the dharma wheel must turn three times for a student to understand the dharma: once for ''hearing'', again for ''understanding'', and finally for ''internalizing''.

Dharmacakra in Jainism

In Jainism, the Dharmachakra is worshipped as a symbol of the dharma.

Other

The dharmacakra from Ashoka's Lion Capital at Sarnath is the national emblem of India. It represents the dharma i.e. natural conduct of a nation. The wheel is also in the Flag of India, where it replaced the spinning wheel originally displayed on the party flag of the Indian National Congress.





In the Unicode computer standard, the Dharmacakra is called the "Wheel of Dharma" and found in the eight-spoked form. It is represented as U+2638 (☸).
The Dharmacakra is also the U.S. Armed Forces military chaplain insignia for Buddhist chaplains.
A stylized Dharmacakra is used as the logo for the fictional DHARMA Initiative from the television show Lost.

See also

★ Ashtamangala

★ Chakravarti

Further reading

★ Buddhism for the West: Theravāda, Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna; a comprehensive review of Buddhist history, philosophy, and teachings from the time of the Buddha to the present day, Dorothy C. Donath, , , Julian Press, 1971, ISBN 0-07-017533-0 .