Transcript
PRINCE BECOMINGTHE BUDDHA
SEEKING SOLUTIONSFOR THE SUFFERING
He first tried meditation, which he learned from two
teachers.
He felt that these were valuable skills.
However, meditation could not be extended forever.
He eventually had to return to normal waking consciousness and face the unsolved problems relating to birth, sickness, old age and death.
He then joined a group of similarly-minded students of
Brahmanism in a forest where he practiced breath
control and fasted intensely for six years.
He is said to have brought himself to the brink of death by only eating a few grains of
rice each day.
Some sources say that he consumed only a spoonful of bean soup per day.
This technique produced a series of physical discomforts.
A woman, by the aid of her servant, went to see a strange man meditating under a tree who was
already thin, hungry and weak.
The was Sujata. She offered the prince milk porridge.
And thus ended the long extreme ascetic life
THE MIDDLE WAY
Ultimately, the prince rejected this extreme ascetic path as well.
He realized that neither the extremes of the mortification of the flesh or of hedonism would lead to enlightenment.
Extreme Mortification or having very little of everything
Extreme Hedonism Or having too much of everything
He determined that a better path to achieve the state of Nirvana -- a state of liberation and freedom from suffering –
was to pursue a "Middle Way." This way was largely defined by moderation and meditation.
MARA AND HISTEMPTATIONS
Mara (Thai: มาร;) in Buddhism, is the demon that tempted Gautama Buddha by trying to seduce him
Mara brought his most beautiful daughters to
seduce Siddhartha.
Siddhartha, however, remained in meditation.
Then Mara sent vast armies of monsters to attack him. Yet Siddhartha sat still and untouched.
Mara claimed that the seat of enlightenment rightfully belonged to him and not to the mortal Siddhartha.
Mara's monstrous soldiers cried out together, "I am his witness!" Mara challenged Siddhartha, who will speak for
you?
Siddhartha said:“The Earth is my witness.”
Mara and his demons were subdued. Siddhartha overcame the temptations
ATTAINING ENLIGHTENMENT
One night, at the age of 35, he was seated underneath a large tree -- later known as the Bodhi tree.
He began to experience some major spiritual breakthroughs– these are called the FOUR WATCHES OF THE NIGHT.
During the first watch of the night, he developed the
ability to recall the events of his previous reincarnations
in detail and sees the rebirth of beings.
During the Second Watch he recognized that the cycle of rebirth affects all sentient
beings in all worlds, and that the law of karma determines
the quality and type of rebirth, and its suffering
During the third watch, he was able to see how the good and
bad deeds that many living things performed during their lifetimes led to the nature of their following reincarnation
into their next life and the means of freeing oneself from
this.
During the fourth watch, he learned that he had progressed beyond "spiritual defilements," craving, desire, hatred, hunger, thirst, exhaustion, fear, doubt, and
delusions.
He had attained nirvana. He would never again be reincarnated into a future life.
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AFTERENLIGHTENMENT
The prince assumed the title Buddha
A name which means one who has awakened or the one who has attained enlightenment by himself.
For seven days, he puzzled over his future whether to:
1. Withdraw from the world and live a life of seclusion,
2. Reenter the world and teach his Middle Way.
He decided on the latter course: to proclaim his
Dharma (teachings) to other humans so that they could also attain enlightenment.
He located five of his fellow seekers with
whom he had earlier fasted, and rejoined them near Benares.
They quickly became aware of the changes brought about by his
enlightenment.
It was to them that he preached his first
sermon.
It contained the essential teachings of Buddhism.
All five accepted his teachings and were ordained as monks.
After the Buddha's second sermon, all five achieved enlightenment. They are referred to as
Arhants (saints).
THE BUDDHAYEARS AFTER
He wandered around Northeast India for decades, teaching all who would listen.
He covered a territory some 150 miles long by 250 miles wide.
He had tens of thousands of disciples and accumulated a large public following.
He later established an order of monks and a corresponding order of nuns.
His wife Yaśodhara (his wife when he was 16 years old) became the first nun.
His health began to fail when he was in this late 70s.
After forty-five years of teaching, he died in a small
town named Kuśinagara (Kushinagar, India), at the age of 80, apparently of
natural causes.
His final words were: "Decay is inherent in all things. Be sure to strive with clarity of
mind" for Nirvana
Buddha never claimed to have come from any divine
source.
He did not also claim that he received any divine
messages from heavens. He meditated but he did not
pray to any god/gods.
He did not choose a successor.
He felt that the Dharma (his teachings) plus the
Vinaya (his code of rules for the monks and nuns) would
be a sufficient guide.
Two and a half centuries later, a council of Buddhist monks collected his teachings and the oral traditions of the faith into
written form, called the Tripitaka.
This included a very large collection of commentaries and traditions; most are
called Sutras (discourses).
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:BIRTH PLACE OF THE BUDDHA
In February 1996, a team of United Nations- sponsored archeologist announced that they have discovered the ancient birth chamber of Prince Siddhartha beneath the Mayadevi temple in Lumbini, more than 200 miles (350 kilometers) southwest of Nepalese capital, Kathmandu (Compton’s, 2005).
This discovery is important because it settled the long and
international debate over whether Buddha was born in
India or in Nepal
END
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