Buddha's story of life
2500 Years ago...
Prince Siddharta Gautama was
born some 2500 years ago as a prince in what is now called Lumbini in
Nepal. At his birth, many special signs appeared. His father asked a
sage living in his kingdom for advice on his son. The sage predicted
that Gautama would become either a great King or a great spiritual
teacher.
The King wanted his son to be his successor and tried
to keep him far away from all matters of life that could incline him to
a spiritual life. Gautama usually spent his life in his father's
palace, surrounded by all the possible luxuries of the time. He proved
to be a special child, being quite intelligent as well as an excellent
sportsman. He married to a beautiful woman he loved, and they had a son.
spiritual quest
When
Gautama was 29 years old, he discovered there was much suffering in the
world around him. Traditionally it is explained that he suddenly
recognised the problems of sickness, old age and death when visiting
the city. Being shocked by the suffering of all living beings, he
decided to search for way to end it. He left his wife and child, the
palace and even his royal clothes, and started out on a spiritual quest.
Gautama
studied under various teachers and followed their practices until he
mastered them all. His first teacher was Alara Kalama who taught a form
of meditation leading to an exalted form of absorption called "the
state of no-thingness", a state without moral or cognitive dimension.
Gautama saw this was not going to solve suffering, and continued his
search.
The next teacher was Udraka Ramaputra who taught him
meditative absorption leading to "the state of neither perception nor
non-perception". Again, Gautama realised this was not the state he was
looking for. (Both Alara and Udraka are by some scholars considered to
be Jain followers.)
Extremes
Next, he tried extreme ascetic practices at Uruvilva in North India, with five other ascetics who turned into his followers. In the end, Gautama nearly died of starvation.
After
about six years of searching, he realised that just wearing down his
body did not generate new insights, but rather leads to weakness and
self-destruction. When he decided to give up extreme asceticism, his
five students left him.
Enlightenment
He then sat down in a place now called Bodhgaya (North India) under
a Bodhi-tree and decided not to get up anymore until he discovered the
truth. Just a short time later, he became a fully enlightened Buddha.
This means that he actualised all positive potentials of a sentient
being and rid himself of all negative qualities. With this, he realised
the true nature of existence and suffering (emptiness), and how
suffering can be ended.
Seven weeks after enlightenment, the
Buddha gave his first discourse in Sarnath, near Varanasi. Here he taught the 4 Noble Truths. The Buddha continued
to teach during his life, until passing away at the age of 81.
The Buddha once summarised his entire teachings in one sentence:
"I teach about suffering and the way to end it".
The
main disciples of the Buddha are also known as the Great Arhants:
Shariputra, known for his understanding of the Abidharma teachings;
Maudgalyayana, known for his psychic powers; Mahakashyapa, the great
ascetic; and Ananda, the personal attendant of the Buddha who recalled
every word the Buddha spoke.
The Buddha's life is also sometimes summarized in the so called '12 Deeds of the Buddha'.