Our article explores how the twelve nidanas of dependent origination relate to the cycle of deflection, which can have negative consequences in our lives, preventing us from facing difficult emotions and situations. The twelve nidanas highlight how our internal processes and external stimuli interact, leading to suffering and negative patterns of behavior.

We begin by explaining how ignorance, our lack of understanding of the true nature of reality, including the interconnectedness of all phenomena and the root causes of our deflection, is the first nidana. This ignorance leads to mental formations, our habitual patterns of avoiding, deflecting, or denying uncomfortable or difficult emotions, situations or topics of conversation.

These mental formations, in turn, condition our consciousness, making us prone to deflection in the face of challenging situations. This affects our name and form, the psychophysical constituents of our being, which manifest in a way that is susceptible to deflection.

Our six sense bases - sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and mind - interact with the external world, leading to contact, or the moment we encounter a situation or stimulus that triggers our deflection. This leads to feelings, unpleasant or uncomfortable sensations that arise from contact with external stimuli, and craving, our desire to avoid or deflect these sensations.

This attachment to our deflection habit intensifies, perpetuating the cycle of avoidance or denial, and reinforcing our habitual patterns and karmic tendencies. This cycle results in our deflection behaviors manifesting and reinforcing the cycle of deflection behavior, and can lead to emotional, mental, and physical suffering, both currently and in the future.

However, by recognizing and understanding the interdependence of the twelve nidanas, we can break this cycle and promote greater emotional resilience and authenticity. To break the cycle of deflection, we can focus on developing self-awareness and integrating practices at each step.

These practices include developing knowledge and understanding, cultivating positive habits, cultivating awareness of our thoughts and emotions, practicing embodiment, developing mindfulness of sensory experiences, engaging compassionately with difficult emotions, cultivating equanimity, practicing non-attachment, cultivating self-awareness, staying present with difficult emotions and situations, and developing resilience and strength through mindful engagement with adversity.