Lord Buddha was born as the son of King Suddhodana and Mayadevi at Lumbini near Kapilavastu. He was named Siddharta, which is translated as “He who has accomplished his purpose”. A learned Brahim Rishi (hermit) was invited to the palace to see the royal child. The hermit prophesied, “The supernatural signs indicate that the newborn child will bring deliverance to the whole world”.
The hermit further added that if the child would come across the old, the diseased or the dead he might renounce the world and start a life of a devotee. The King was shocked by this situation and could not at any price afford this to happen. Therefore he imprisoned Siddharta in a pleasure garden providing him all sorts of enjoyment and keeping him at arm’s length from all sorts of pains and miseries.
The king also got him married at a very early age to keep him occupied but unfortunately the inevitable happened. The Prince was curious to see the world. During the course of his visit to the city, he came across an old man, a diseased man, and a dead man. On asking a person nearby, he was told that these three states were inevitable fates of a human being. He was disturbed by these sights and words and plunged into deep thought for a long time.
His return to the Palace
On his return to the palace, he was informed that his wife had given birth to a healthy male son. Instead of being happy and rejoicing at this fact, he thought, “It is bondage heaped on bondage” and decided to renounce everything. In order to fulfill destiny and the object of his existence, he became a recluse and went into meditation in search of the unanswered questions. He went to Uruvilva and stayed there beneath a tree, under a vow to attain enlightenment. After six years long years of hard meditation, the much-awaited and desired enlightenment dawned upon him and he became a Bodhisattva and started preaching the new gospel. He delivered his first sermon at Sanath near Varanasi. He preached hi great message for full forty-five years. Though Hindus are not actually Buddhists, Hindus worship Gautama Buddha as one of the ten Avataras. Gautama Buddha’s immaculate character left indelible marks on the hearts of people. His service to the suffering humanity is beyond measure and his life and teachings have certainly influenced many people.
A wise saying by Gautama Buddha
You can develop, cultivate, and protect your mind as you go for great benefits to come, says Buddha. You risk danger, suffering, and possibly harm if you don’t. And if you go about in unproductive ways or dangerous and harmful ways, you could be in for sufferings too.
