Lets use the example of a person experiencing defensiveness to illustrate the Twelve Nidanas of dependent origination.

1. Ignorance (avijja): The person lacks an understanding of the true nature of reality, including the impermanence and empty nature of all phenomena.

2. Mental formations (sankhara): Due to ignorance, the person forms habitual patterns of reacting defensively to situations that they perceive as threatening or critical.

3. Consciousness (viññana): The persons consciousness is conditioned by these mental formations, making them prone to experiencing defensiveness.

4. Name and form (nama-rupa): The persons body and mind manifest in a way that is susceptible to defensiveness.

5. The six sense bases (salayatana): The persons sense organs interact with the external world.

6. Contact (phassa): The person encounters a situation or stimulus that they perceive as critical or threatening.

7. Feeling (vedana): The person experiences an unpleasant feeling as a result of the contact with the perceived threat.

8. Craving (tanha): The person develops an aversion to the unpleasant feeling and a desire to protect themselves.

9. Clinging (upadana): The persons attachment to their defensiveness intensifies, and they cling to their defensive behavior as a way of dealing with the situation.

10. Becoming (bhava): This clinging to defensiveness reinforces the persons habitual patterns and karmic tendencies, perpetuating the cycle.

11. Birth (jati): The persons defensive behavior manifests in the form of an argument or angry outburst, reinforcing the cycle of mental formations and karmic consequences.

12. Old age and death (jara-marana): The persons defensiveness, if left unaddressed, can lead to physical, mental, and emotional suffering and perpetuate negative consequences in future situations or even future lives.

In this example, we can see how the Twelve Nidanas apply to the arising and perpetuation of defensiveness. By understanding the dependent origination of defensiveness and recognizing the interdependence of the Twelve Links, a person can cultivate mindfulness and work towards breaking the cycle of defensiveness, ultimately leading to greater peace and freedom from suffering.

How to break cycle at each point:

Certainly, I can give examples of how to break the cycle at each point:

1. Ignorance (avijja): Develop an understanding of the true nature of reality, including the principles of impermanence, suffering, and non-self. Cultivate mindfulness and insight through meditation and study of Buddhist teachings.

2. Mental formations (sankhara): Practice ethical conduct and cultivate wholesome mental states to influence habitual patterns of reactivity. Develop positive intentions, engage in virtuous actions, and cultivate mental qualities like loving-kindness, compassion, and equanimity.

3. Consciousness (viññana): Through mindfulness and concentration practice, gain insight into the workings of consciousness, and become more aware of how conditioned patterns of thought and perception inform your reaction to situations.

4. Name and form (nama-rupa): Cultivate mindfulness of the body and mind, becoming more aware of how perceptions and mental formations arise from sensory experience. Develop an understanding of the impermanence and empty nature of all phenomena, reducing attachment and suffering.

5. The six sense bases (salayatana): Practice restraint of the senses, becoming mindful of how sensory experiences shape your perception of a situation. This awareness can lead to healthier relationships with sensory experiences, reducing the potential for craving and attachment.

6. Contact (phassa): Practice mindfulness of how contact between the senses and their objects affects your mental and emotional states. By gaining awareness of how this connection happens, you can become less reactive to situations and avoid developing aversions or clinging.

7. Feeling (vedana): Cultivate mindfulness of feelings, whether they are pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral, to become less reactive to them. By understanding the nature of the feelings and their arising, you can respond more skillfully to them, reducing the potential for suffering.

8. Craving (tanha): Through mindfulness practice, become aware of the arising of craving and the impulse to protect oneself. By being mindful of these impulses, you can learn to detach from them and reduce clinging.

9. Clinging (upadana): Recognize the dangers of clinging to defensiveness, understand that clinging intensifies these patterns, and learn to let go of this behavior through mindfulness and ethical conduct.

10. Becoming (bhava): Develop a deep understanding of how clinging to defensiveness reinforces the cycle of habitual patterns and karmic tendencies. By recognizing the consequences of these actions, you can begin to let go of them.

11. Birth (jati): Learn to recognize your defensive behavior and consciously decide not to indulge it anymore. Practicing ethical conduct and mindfulness can help you refrain from acting out defensively.

12. Old age and death (jara-marana): By breaking the cycle of defensiveness, you can reduce the potential for mental, emotional, and physical suffering, leading to personal growth and eventually, liberation from the cycle of samsara.