Download Siddhartha Gautama

THE BUDDHA
Siddhartha Gautama
“The Enlightened One”
(c.560-480 B.C.E)
Introduction
When it came time to pick who to write my paper on I wasn’t sure who my topic would be
about. I enjoyed Lao-Tzu’s teachings, his “Art of Waiting” ,”non-Action”, and Thomas Aquinas
“The Angelic Doctor” his philosophy on “The Problem of Evil” was very interesting and true.
Also, Rene Descartes “The Rationalist” I was fascinated by his philosophy, “I’s in ME”, his
structure of thinking. There were many I would have liked to do my paper on but in the end I
decided to do my paper on “The Buddha”, Siddhartha Gautama. As a Tibetan-Buddhist I’ve never
had a chance to look into the life of “The Buddha”. I figured this was a good opportunity to do so.
Buddhism is the world’s 4th largest religion in the world. It is estimated that there are 350 million
followers of the Buddha’s teaching. That’s almost 6% of the world’s population. Most historians
believed that Buddhism began in Northern India by Siddhartha Gautama in the 5th century B.C.E.
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Named Siddhartha meaning “he who brings good” by his father “King Suddhodhana” was
born in 560 B.C.E. in Lumbini, what is now Nepal. Some legends says that “The Buddha” talked and
walked at birth and meditated at a young age. During the celebration of Siddhartha’s birth an
unexpected guest, respected by many made his presence, the revered hermit and astrologer “Asita”.
He prophesied that prince Siddhartha was going to be a great military conqueror or a great spiritual
teacher. King Suddhodhana was only concerned about the first outcome. Soon after his birth his
mother became ill and past way.
As an only child he was bred to be a “Great King”. His family showered him with all the
finest amenities you could imagine. Very intelligent, a great hunter and athlete. By age sixteen he
married his cousin. He had everything he could imagine, his father wanted to shield him from the
ugliness of life, by confining him to the palace grounds only. Keep him from the knowledge of
religion and human suffering. His father surrounded him with servants who were young and
attractive to spare him the sight of the effects of age. His father tried very hard to keep Siddhartha
from seeing poverty, hunger, sickness and death. But Siddhartha being young he was very curious
to see what was beyond the palace walls.
During his secrete trips outside the palace grounds with his closest servant “Channa”, he
ventured out to a nearby city. He saw a destitute, someone who has no basic necessities of life, a
homeless, a dead person being mourned and a diseased handicapped person. It is believed that
these are the 3 of the 4 famous signs that changed his life forever. When Siddhartha encountered
his first sight of suffering the seeds of the Buddha were planted “Compassion”. Before his trips
outside the palace grounds he had no real idea of what sickness and old age could do to the body
and spirit. He never knew the deepness of poverty and was oblivious to the power of grief. Thanks
to his cocoon life hidden from the suffering of others, he felt bored and unease. He felt compelled
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to stray outside, all the pleasures and wealth of his family could not settle his discomfort knowing
what was past the palace walls. How could he live the way he was when Siddhartha knew so much
suffering was outside the walls. Even the birth of his son and the love for his wife could not remove
the pain he felt for he knew them too will have to suffer, grow old and die. So at age 29, he decided
to go search the answer or suffering.
He left the palace grounds at night to search the answer for suffering he saw a wandering
monk, an Ascetics, someone who has given up all the comforts of life, living on plain food, wearing
little or no clothes until they have reached enlightenment. During this encounter Siddhartha
experienced last of the Four Signs. He saw the look of serenity, purpose, and detachment in the
ascetics. Finally he saw an escape from suffering from self-discipline and a platform of conflict to
the ego’s cravings and fears. He decide that he was going to be an ascetics, he shaved his head and
changed his prince’s clothes for a beggars robe. He was convinced he was going to find someone
to answers life’s most basic questions.

Why live if suffering is inescapable?

Is it possible to be happy in the face of inevitable
sickness, old age, and death?

What is the real meaning of life?
The Middle Way
After many years of searching for someone to answer his questions he was unsuccessful
on doing so. But from his search he found techniques on meditating and disciplining his body and
many clever philosophical notions. As he was wandering, searching, and meditating he gained a
few followers. With them he meditated for years, fasting and searching for his answers. It is said
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at this time he controlled most of his physical appetites and weakness and learned how to control
his mind. On his path to find his answer he had become an extreme asceticism, the famous quote
Siddhartha had said was “When I touched my stomach, I could feel my backbone.” His extreme
asceticism had left his body a wasted shell. Siddhartha realized his body was important, if he
wanted to find his answers. He understood the Way cannot be found either by indulgence or denial.
We must walk a Middle Path. For example like a string on a guitar, if you make it too tight the
string will snap. If you leave it too slack, it won’t play. His followers were not pleased by
Siddhartha’s Middle way, they stopped following him. The ascetics believed they couldn’t learn
from him anymore, they believed he had given up the great search for enlightenment.
Legend says that a young women presented him with a bowl of rice milk because she had
a vision/dream where she gave a golden bowl full of rice milk to a single figure sitting under a
tree. She believed this figure was god because if the special glowing light around him, she was
obviously seeing the Buddha. After accepting the rice milk he threw the empty bowl into the river
stating, “If I can reach enlightenment, may this bowl float upstream.” The bowl floated upstream.
The Buddha continued his meditation under a fig tree known as the “Bodhi tree”. During
his meditation, it is written that he had a great battle against “Mara”, (Destruction). Mara didn’t
want Siddhartha to reach enlightenment. He tried to attack Siddhartha with his army of monsters
but Siddhartha sat unharmed. He tried to seduce Siddhartha with his beautiful daughters, nothing
worked. He believed enlightenment was his and not for a human to have, Mara had his army as
witness to that. When he asked who Siddhartha’s witness was, Siddhartha touched the earth with
his right hand and the earth replied “I bear you witness”, (this pose is often portrayed in the pictures and
statues of The Buddha, with his left hand on his lap and right hand touching the earth.)
the battle was over
Siddhartha had won. "House-builder, you're seen! You will not build a house again. All your rafters
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broken, the ridge pole destroyed, gone to the Unformed, the mind has come to the end of craving."
[Dhammapada, verse 154] From the Buddhist Book of Proverbs. Stating to Mara that he is Enlightened.
On the full moon on 524 B.C.E in Bodh Gaya in India of May, The Buddha was awakened
or had reached enlightenment.
The Buddha wanted to teach what he learned to others but realized that it wasn’t going to
be an easy task. Compassion pursued him to find a way to get his message. Instead of teaching his
principles about enlightenment, he recommended a path of practice through which people can
understand enlightenment for themselves.
The Four Noble Truths: Dharma
1. What is the essence of life?
(Dukkha) Suffer
(Annata) Abstinence
2. Why we suffer so much? (Tanha)
Selfishness
3. What to do? (Trishna) Greed,
4. What
is
the
Goal?
(Anicca)
Liberation
The Buddha devoted his life to teaching his philosophy, gaining many followers. He
reconciled with his father king Suddhodhana, and reunited with his wife Yasodhara and his son
Rahula. His wife became a nun and his disciple. His son Rahula became a novice monk at age 7
and spent rest of his life beside his father.
Siddhartha Gautama died at around age 80. It’s
believed that he died of poisonous mushrooms or
tinted pork he consumed at a humble blacksmiths
home. Before he died he let his closets disciple Ananda know to not blame the blacksmith. He told
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him that he was to be blessed, for the blacksmith was the vehicle which the Buddha would escape
“the wheel of suffering” and obtain nirvana.
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Work Citied:
Barbara Obrien, “The Life of The Buddha”
(Oberien)http://www.patheos.com/Library/Buddhism/Origins/Beginnings.html , Web. 18
November .2014
“Buddha’s Biography” http://www.notablebiographies.com/Br-Ca/Buddha.html , Web.
18 November.2014
Soccio, Douglas J, “Archetypes of Wisdom” An Introduction to Philosophy, pages (4251)
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