![]() who, upon seeing people poor and dying, realized that human life is suffering. Buddhists do not believe in any kind of deity or god, although there are supernatural figures who can help or hinder people on the path towards enlightenment.īorn on the Nepali side of the present day Nepal-India border, Siddhartha Gautama was a prince around the fifth century B.C.E. Siddhartha Gautama was the first person to reach this state of enlightenment and was, and is still today, known as the Buddha. Buddhists believe that human life is a cycle of suffering and rebirth, but that if one achieves a state of enlightenment ( nirvana), it is possible to escape this cycle forever. with Siddhartha Gautama, and over the next millennia it spread across Asia and the rest of the world. It originated in South Asia around the 5th century B.C.E. ![]() The Teacherīuddha set in motion the wheel of teaching: rather than worshipping one god or gods, Buddhism centres around the timeless importance of the teaching, or the dharma.įor the next 45 years of his life the Buddha taught many disciples, who became Arahants or 'noble ones', who had attained Enlightenment for themselves.Buddhism is one of the world’s major religions. The Mahabodhi Temple at the site of Buddha's enlightenment, is now a pilgrimage site.īuddhist legend tells that at first the Buddha was happy to dwell within this state, but Brahma, king of the gods, asked, on behalf of the whole world, that he should share his understanding with others. He finally achieved Enlightenment and became the Buddha. One day, seated beneath the Bodhi tree (the tree of awakening) Siddhartha became deeply absorbed in meditation, and reflected on his experience of life, determined to penetrate its truth. Enlightenmentīodhi tree next to Mahabodhi temple, the spot where Buddha achieved enlightenment © Instead, he pursued the Middle Way, which is just what it sounds like neither luxury nor poverty. He abandoned the strict lifestyle of self-denial and ascetism, but did not return to the pampered luxury of his early life. Siddhartha followed this life of extreme asceticism for six years, but this did not satisfy him either he still had not escaped from the world of suffering. The Buddha also practised meditation but concluded that in themselves, the highest meditative states were not enough. Siddhartha encountered an Indian ascetic who encouraged him to follow a life of extreme self-denial and discipline. He searched for a way to escape the inevitability of death, old age and pain first by studying with religious men. Siddhartha's travels showed him much more of the the suffering of the world. Siddhartha had also seen a monk, and he decided this was a sign that he should leave his protected royal life and live as a homeless holy man. This greatly disturbed him, and he learned that sickness, age, and death were the inevitable fate of human beings - a fate no-one could avoid. When he went outside he saw, each for the first time, an old man, a sick man, and a corpse. One day, after growing up, marrying and having a child, Siddhartha went outside the royal enclosure where he lived. He was born into a royal family in the village of Lumbini in present-day Nepal, and his privileged life insulated him from the sufferings of life sufferings such as sickness, age and death. Historians have dated his birth and death as circa 566-486 BCE but more recent research suggests that he lived later than this, from around 490 BCE until circa 410 BCE. ![]() Opinions differ as to the dates of Siddhartha Gautama's life. Siddhartha Gautama - The Buddhaīy finding the path to Enlightenment, Siddhartha was led from the pain of suffering and rebirth towards the path of Enlightenment and became known as the Buddha or 'awakened one'. The history of Buddhism is the story of one man's spiritual journey to Enlightenment, and of the teachings and ways of living that developed from it. ![]()
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