Lets use the example of unresolved grief to illustrate the Twelve Nidanas of dependent origination.
1. Ignorance (avijja): The person lacks understanding of the true nature of reality, including the impermanence of all things and the nature of suffering.
2. Mental formations (sankhara): Due to ignorance, the person has formed habitual patterns of suppressing or avoiding their grief, rather than acknowledging and processing it.
3. Consciousness (viññana): The persons consciousness is conditioned by these mental formations, making them prone to avoiding or suppressing their grief.
4. Name and form (nama-rupa): The persons body and mind manifest in a way that is susceptible to unresolved grief and the resulting emotional and physical pain.
5. The six sense bases (salayatana): The persons sense organs interact with the external world.
6. Contact (phassa): The person encounters situations, people, or objects that trigger memories or emotions related to their unresolved grief.
7. Feeling (vedana): The person experiences intense emotional pain related to their unresolved grief.
8. Craving (tanha): The person desires to alleviate their emotional pain and seeks relief through various means, including avoidance, distraction, or negative coping mechanisms.
9. Clinging (upadana): The person clings to these negative coping mechanisms, reinforcing the cycle of avoidance and suppression of their unresolved grief.
10. Becoming (bhava): This clinging to negative coping mechanisms reinforces the persons habitual patterns and karmic tendencies, perpetuating the cycle of unresolved grief.
11. Birth (jati): The persons unresolved grief manifests in the form of depression, anxiety, or other mental and physical health consequences.
12. Old age and death (jara-marana): Unresolved grief, if left unaddressed, can lead to physical, mental, and emotional suffering throughout a persons life 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 unresolved grief. By understanding the dependent origination of unresolved grief and recognizing the interdependence of the Twelve Links, a person can cultivate compassion for themselves, acknowledge and process their grief, and work towards breaking the cycle of suffering, ultimately leading to greater emotional wellbeing and a deeper understanding of the nature of suffering.

How to break cycle at each point:

To break the cycle of unresolved grief at each point of the Twelve Nidanas may involve the following:

1. Ignorance (avijja): To break the cycle at this point, the person needs to start by acknowledging and understanding the nature of impermanence and suffering. Through learning from Buddhist teachings, therapy, or through conversations with others, they can begin to accept the reality of their loss and the consequent grieving process.

2. Mental formations (sankhara): The individual needs to develop positive mental formations that support healthy grieving. For example, they can develop habits of allowing themselves to feel their emotions and acknowledge their grief, seeking support from friends and family, or finding constructive outlets such as journaling or creative expression.

3. Consciousness (viññana): The person needs to cultivate awareness of their emotional state throughout the grieving process, through practices like mindfulness meditation. By being present to their emotions in a non-judgemental way, they can avoid getting caught up in habitual patterns of avoidance or suppression.

4. Name and form (nama-rupa): The person can apply self-compassion and self-care practices that support their physical, emotional and mental well-being. Regular exercise or healthy eating habits, time in nature, and other practices that promote relaxation and grounding can help them process their grief in a healthier way.

5. The six sense bases (salayatana): The individual can learn to identify triggers that arise when they are reminded of their loss. They can develop healthy strategies to deal with such triggers or begin to avoid certain situations or environments that they may find emotionally overwhelming.

6. Contact (phassa): The person can learn to approach situations that involve the object of their grief in a more constructive way. This may involve practicing meditation or deep breathing exercises to ground themselves in the present moment and acknowledge the emotions that arise.

7. Feeling (vedana): Practicing non-judgmental awareness and compassion towards oneself can help the person accept and process their emotions without getting caught up in them. This reduces the intensity of the emotions, making them more manageable or moving them through the grieving process more peacefully.

8. Craving (tanha): Instead of distracting themselves from the pain of grief, the individual needs to practice patience and courage by facing the intensity of the emotion, processing it properly, and finding constructive outlets or support to move forward.

9. Clinging (upadana): The person needs to let go of old coping mechanisms that no longer serve them, and develop new habits that support healthy grieving. They can seek the assistance of a therapist, engage in mindfulness practices, or develop healthy tools for coping with difficult emotions.

10. Becoming (bhava): The individual needs to recognize habitual patterns of behaviour and thought that contribute to the cycle of unresolved grief. By adopting new healthier habits and avoiding situations or people who may trigger negative emotions or behaviours, they can break out of these negative habits and patterns.

11. Birth (jati): The person may need to seek professional help from a therapist or healthcare provider if their grief continues to have negative physical or mental health impacts.

12. Old age and death (jara-marana): By learning to heal unresolved grief in the present, the person may break the cycle of negative karmic consequences and prevent adverse effects on their future lives.