Dhamma (Pali), or in the perhaps more familiar Sanskrit form, Dharma, is a fabulous word which means not only Truth, nature, law, order, and duty, it also means “the secret of nature which must be understood in order to develop life to the highest possible purpose and benefit.”
The four primary meanings of Dhamma are: nature; the law and truth of nature; the duty to be performed in accordance with natural law; and the results or benefits that arise from the performance of that duty.
Further, Dhamma is the cosmic principle of truth, lawfulness, and virtue discovered, fathomed, and taught by the Buddha. It is, especially when referred to as The Dhamma, the Buddha’s teaching as an expression of that principle. It is the Buddha’s teaching that leads to enlightenment and liberation.
Although re-discovered (as the Buddha himself claimed) and spoken 2,500 years ago, the Dhamma is as relevant today as it was then. In fact, I would venture to say that it is more relevant today than ever, since the ills that have befallen Man have accumulated further since the Buddha’s time, and today there is hardly a man or woman on this earth who does not—in his or her heart of hearts—yearn for and end to suffering, and for a way out of the labyrinth we call life.
For me, personally, the Dhamma is the way out. It is the wisdom, colossal in its simplicity, that can and will (if you yearn for true freedom) take you by the hand and guide you all the way out.
It is what I am dedicating the rest of my life to.
Ulf Wolf