Buddhism is based on the teachings of Buddha, the enlightened one. His journey is extremely fascinating, from his birth to being a young prince to a religious leader. Come, lets learn more about his journey.
Buddha was born Siddhartha Gautam between 6th to 4th Century BCE to Queen Mahamaya and King Sudhodana in then Northern India, now Nepal. His birth story is absolutely magical, supposedly his mother gave a painless birth to him and was visited by a soothsayer who said the young prince would become a renouncer, someone who transcends the earthly life.
Although, after the early demise of his mother, Siddhartha Gautam was kept in the palace walls to keep him away from the life soothsayer had predicted for him, it didn’t take long until he grew up and took four rounds around the palace in his chariot and knew that his purpose was relieving the suffering of his surroundings.
After an early marriage at 16, soon Siddhartha became a father but he decided the calling to finding an answer to suffering in the world was too strong, and he left his wife and son to follow it. Initially, he went to the forest to meditate and starved himself seeking those answers. But after 6 years he realised, that starvation was not the answer.
It’s said that at the age of 35, Siddhartha is believed to have achieved enlightenment, a state of heightened awareness to what Buddhists see as the truth. During this period, he achieved nirvana. It means unbinding, it is the release of all attachments and achieving peace, exiting the cycle of death and rebirth.
After achieving enlightenment, he decided not to keep the knowledge to himself, but instead spent next 45 years teaching, writing, and traveling and taught the world how to end suffering.
