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Biography of Lord Buddha

Siddhartha, who later became known as the Buddha – or The Enlightened One –
was a prince who forsook the comforts of a palace to seek enlightenment. He
realised the essential unreality of the world and experienced the bliss of Nirvana.
After his enlightenment, he spent the remainder of his life teaching others how to
escape the endless cycle of birth and death.

Daibutsu Buddha Kamakura, Japan

Buddha was born approximately 400 BCE in the area now known as Nepal. He was
brought up in a palace with all the comforts and luxuries possible. Growing up a
young noble prince, it is said his father sought to shield the young prince
Siddhartha from the pain and suffering of the world. It is said his father had a
premonition that Siddhartha would one day renounce the world.
However, at one point in his early adult life, Siddhartha sought to find a greater
meaning to life. In disguise, he left the palace and wandered around the kingdom.
Here, Siddhartha came across different people suffering from old age and illness
and witnessed death. This showed him the transitory nature of life, which had a
great impact on him. As a consequence, Siddhartha resolved to seek a deeper
meaning of life.
Secretly, Siddhartha left the palace – leaving behind his wife, son and all the
worldly comforts that he had enjoyed. He devoted himself to meditation, seeking
enlightenment amongst the ascetics of the forest.
In his intense quest for enlightenment, Siddhartha fasted excessively so his body
wasted away; however, despite his great efforts enlightenment still remained a
far cry. At one point, a passing woman gave him some food to eat and Siddhartha
realised it was a mistake to seek enlightenment by torturing the body. He
regained his strength and resolved to follow a ‘middle path’, avoiding excesses of
both fasting and feasting.
On one day, Siddhartha resolved to sit under a Bodhi tree until he attained
enlightenment. For several days, he sat in meditation seeking Nirvana. He was
tested by various forces which tried to prevent him realising the goal.
However, Siddhartha was successful and entered into the blissful consciousness
of Nirvana for several days. On returning to normal consciousness, Siddhartha the
Buddha (Buddha means ‘enlightened one’) made the decision to spend the
remainder of his life teaching others how to escape the inherent suffering of life.
For many years, Buddha travelled around India, especially around the Ganges
plain and in Nepal, teaching his philosophy of liberation. His teachings were
transmitted orally and not written down until many years after his death.
Many stories relate to the life of the Buddha in this teaching phase. His essential
teachings were of love, compassion and tolerance. The Buddha taught that a
seeker must have compassion for all living beings and this was the most
important teaching. Although the Buddha disliked formal rules, a monastic
following sprung up for those interested in following his path. He advocated strict
celibacy for those wishing to follow his monastic path.
The Buddha would often give talks on enlightenment, but on one occasion, he
simply held up a flower and maintained silence. Many left not understanding the
point, but when later questioned, the Buddha replied that his real teaching could
only be understood in silence. Talks could only give limited intellectual
information which was not real enlightenment.
The Buddha sought to avoid deep philosophy, he avoided using the term God,
preferring to talk about the practical way that a person may escape the cycle of
birth and rebirth and attain enlightenment. Like many spiritual teachers, he often
taught in parables to keep his teachings simple and practical.
The Buddha attracted hostility from those jealous of his popularity and spiritual
development. One of his own monks Devadatta later became jealous of the
Buddha and sought to split the community. He even tried on three occasions to
kill the Buddha, but on each occasion, he failed.
The Buddha passed away after many years of teaching and travelling throughout
India. On his deathbed, he told Ananda (his dearest disciple) that he should now
rely on his teachings and own ethical conduct to be the guide of his life.
“For centuries the light of the Buddha has shone as a beacon beckoning men from
across the sea of darkness. Like lost children, millions of seekers have reached out
to the light with their heart’s inmost cry, and the Buddha has shown them the
Way. The world stood before the Buddha with its ignorance, and the Buddha, the
Enlightened One, gave man Truth. The world offered its age-old suffering to the
Buddha’s heart and the Buddha, Lord of Compassion, showed man the Dharma.”
– Sri Chinmoy
Prince Siddhartha: The Story of Buddha
 
Prince Siddhartha: The Story of Buddha at Amazon
Citation: Pettinger, Tejvan. “Biography of Lord Buddha”, Oxford, UK
– www.biographyonline.net.  19th May 2013. Updated 26 June 2017
Teachings of the Buddha

Some of the fundamentals of the teachings of Gautama Buddha are:

* The Four Noble Truths: that suffering is an inherent part of existence; that the
origin of suffering is ignorance and the main symptoms of that ignorance are
attachment and craving; that attachment and craving can be ceased; and that
following the Noble Eightfold Path will lead to the cessation of attachment and
craving and therefore suffering.
* The Noble Eightfold Path: right understanding, right thought, right speech, right
action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration.
* Love. The Buddha stressed the importance of calming the mind and seeking the
peace that each individual has within. With this inner peace, we can react to
awkward situations with love, compassion and generosity.
Conquer the angry man by love.
Conquer the ill-natured man by goodness.
Conquer the miser with generosity.
Conquer the liar with truth.
– The Dhammapada
* Power of the Mind. The Buddha taught it is our own mind which creates our
own suffering, but also we can use this power to create happiness.
“Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much
as your own unguarded thoughts.”
– Lord Buddha
“All that we are is the result of what we have thought.
If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him.
If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness follows him, like a shadow
that never leaves him.”
– Lord Buddha
Related pages

Spiritual figures – Famous saints, mystics and religious figures.

Including Jesus Christ, The Buddha, Lord Krishna, St Teresa of Avila.

Famous Religious leaders and founders – Key people who helped to

found different religions and spiritual movements. Including Moses, Sri Krishna,
Buddha, Jesus Christ, Muhammad and Guru Nanak.
 100 most influential people – A list of 100 most influential people as
chosen by Michael H. Hast, from his book 100 most influential people in the world.
Includes; Muhammad, Jesus Christ, Lord Buddha, Confucius, St Paul and Johann
Gutenberg.
Buddhist links
 Buddhist Traditions
 Buddhist Principles
 Differences between Buddhism and Christianity
 Writings on Lord Buddha by Sri Chinmoy