About Lord Buddha

The birth of Prince Siddharth was a significant episode in the history of mankind.
Born in 563 B.C. /King Suddhodana / Queen Mayadevi /Lumbini between Devadaha and Kapilvastu. Mayadevi was Koliya Princes



According to Buddhists literature the newly born Prince Siddhartha took seven steps and utters some precious words making message to the suffering humanity "This is my final rebirth" as he entered the world.


The royal family belonged to the Gautama Gotra of the Shakya clan of the solar race ( Surya Vanshi).

kingdom Kapilvastu was between the Nepalese foothills and the river Rapti. The Shakyas were priestly warriors, wealthy knights and landowners.

Unfortunately, Mayadevi died in seven days after the birth of Siddhartha and so, he was brought up by his stepmother, Gautami, younger sister of Mayadevi.

When the King Shuddhodhana came to know about the prediction , he naturally became extremely alert and tried to prevent a thing that was bound to happen, and he did not let Siddhartha even move out of the palace. It was the deepest desire of the king that his son would fulfill his father's dream one day by becoming a King.



Lord Buddha: Was born – Friday
Left Palace – Monday (used Eastern gate) Enlightened – Wednesday(Mid-night before 12) Died – Tuesday (Cremation after 8 days )



On the 5th day of the birth of the prince, the naming ceremonies were performed (rituals was practiced in 5 days) and it was predicted that the newly born was destined to be either a universal monarch or a supreme enlightened one, a Buddha.

King was shocked by this prediction and enquired, "What will my son see that will be the occasion of his forsaking the household life ?" The astrologers said, "Four signs" and described them as "a man worn by age, a sick man, a dead body and a hermit".



•The King provided his son with all luxuries, and ensured a comfortable and pleasure-filled childhood with the best education. He took special care to protect him from any negative sight. In his youth at the age of 16, Prince Siddhartha married Koliya Princess Yasodhara. She gave a birth to a son named Rahul. But all these worldly ties were not able to stop him from giving up worldly pleasures.



During one of his few excursions, Siddhartha saw
four things, which opened his eyes towards the harsh realities of life.
Saw an old man suffering from the weakness
of age, a sick man suffering from disease, a beggar suffering from hunger and he saw a dead body.
All these events affected him immensely and
Siddhartha finally came to the conclusion that nothing is permanent in life . The infirmities (weakness) of old age, the pangs of hunger, the pain of sickness and end of life brought sufferings that he had never experienced. All these events in his life forced him to search for truth that eventually changed his life.



At the age of twenty-nine, he left his home in search of the answers to his questions, leaving behind his wife and son, his father and a crown that held the promises of power and glory as "Great Departure".

-Name of Horse : Kanthak & and Sarathi - Chhannak

After leaving his homeland, Siddhartha made his way to the hermitage of renowned sages of that time. But found these teachers' range of knowledge was insufficient to grant him that which was still unknown to him. He followed the path of self- embarrassment and went on testing the truth of it for six years but could not attain his desired goal.



Self-mortification could not lead to his desired aim. He came to death's door and realized the utter uselessness of self-humiliation. He gave up self-torture, extreme fasting and began to take nourishing food. Gradually he regained strength and his original appearance. Then began an intense meditation program until he came to know about the absolute truth.

He followed the “Middle Way ” ( Madhya Marga)

He was given rice-pudding by Sujata a village woman as she thought that he was forest God (bana debata)

Cont...

He meditated under the Bodhi tree in Bodhgaya in Urubela forest. At the end of his meditation, in just one night at the age of 35 , Siddhartha came to know about all his previous lives and the truth about cycle of birth and rebirth and how to end the cycle of infinite sorrow. Siddhartha became the "Buddha" or "awakened one".

After two months Lord Buddha decided to impart knowledge and enlightenment to others. The first sermon of Buddha was held at the deer garden in Sarnath, Banaras . Buddha called his teachings "the Middle Way" because it was midway between asceticism (simplicity) and indulgence (extravagance ).

Cont...

His "Four Noble Truths (arya satya)", which are the foundation of all Buddhist beliefs, are:

1. All human life is suffering.
2. All suffering is caused by human desire 3. An end of human desire is the end of
human sufferings. (there is way to end human suffering)
4. An end to al