Who is Buddha?

(First published in Small World Ezine on 24 April 2002)

 

Lately, since Dhalai Lama traveled West, Buddhism has become
a subject of interest. You probably have heard about Dharma,
Karma, Nirvana, meditation, and other Buddhist talks. But do
you know anything about Lord Buddha?

"Buddha" is not a name. It is a title meaning "One who is
Awake". Lord Buddha was born "Siddhartha".

Siddhartha was born about 2625 years ago in Lumbini, a garden
near the foothills of the Himalayas... then India... now
Nepal. He was the Prince of a very rich and powerful warrior 
class (like royal) family -- Goutama.

Growing up, wealth and power sheltered Siddhartha from the 
harsher facts of the world. He was also married with a son.
They lived comfortable lives within the palace. But this was
not forever...

One day the Prince felt bored and went outside to see what 
it was like outside the palace. He met with an old man, a 
sick man, and a dying man. He saw how suffering it could be 
and was determined to find the way to help people from being
suffered. So, Siddhartha left the palace one night to search 
for the truth of life.

It was a belief at that time that one liberated the spirit 
by weakening the physical body. In his first 6 years of 
truth-searching, Siddhartha practiced the extreme religious
austerities. He refused to bathe, wore no clothes, and ate
and drink very little. They said he was too thin his belly 
almost touched his back in the 6th year he tortured himself.

His fame in asceticism brought followers from all over India,
but Siddhartha learned nothing near what he was looking for.
Realizing that his austerities had led him nowhere, despite 
his fame and reputation as a holy ascetic, Siddhartha 
abondoned his previous course. He bagan to eat in moderation. 
And his followers thought he gave up. They left him in 
disgust.

Alone, sitting calmly in the shade of a tree, Siddhartha fell 
into deep meditation. Gradually he found what he was looking
for just inside of him -- the wisdom. On a full moon night of 
May, complete enlightenment had finally dawned, and 
Shddhartha Gautama became "Buddha". He then decided to teach 
people about the Great Truth he'd found until he passed away
at the age of 80. And that year was referred to as the first
Buddhist Era (B.E.). 

 

More:

Lord Buddha started teaching when he was 35. He passed away 
at 80. During the time, aside from his teachings, there were 
legends and myths of miracle and such; but Buddhists do not 
take them seriously. Some raise Lord Buddha as a god. Some 
say he was a great human teacher. And that's OK because it 
is not the principles of Lord Buddha's teachings -- the 
Great Truth. 


Here's one example...

Wherever he could, Lord Buddha helped people see things as 
they really are. One day, a woman came to see him. Her child
had died and she was distraught. She asked the Buddha for a
medicine which will restore her child's life. 

"Very well" said Lord Buddha, "But first you have to bring
me a cabbage seed".

A cabbage seed? How easy!

"But" Lord Buddha added, "The seed must come from a house 
where on-one has died".

The woman rushed off with her dead child in her arms to beg 
for the seed. She dashed from house to house. People were 
very willing to help her, but whenever she asked "Has anyone 
ever died in this family?" the answer was the same. "Yes."

As the woman passed from house to house, the message began
to sink in. Death comes to all. There is no getting away 
from it. She returned to Lord Buddha and laid down her dead
child "I know now that I am not alone in this great grief.
Death comes to all."