The Buddha | Siddhartha Gautama | History of Buddhism

Privileged youth

Siddhartha Gautama was born around the 6th century BC in the village of Lumbini, which is in the present-day Nepal and was the founder of Buddhism. Upon his birth a holy man said Gautama would either be a military conquerer or a spiritual leader. When Gautama was just a few days old he performed several miracles, proclaiming "Supreme am I in the world, Greatest am I in the world, Noblest am I in the world. This is my last birth. I shall never be re-born." Gautama born into a royal family and was the son of a king who who shielded and insulated him from the the life of suffering and misfortune outside the royal palace.

Life transition

At the age of 29 Gautama was married and had a child. Out of curiosity one day he ventured outside the palace Gautama and saw human suffering for the first time. He saw an elderly man, a sick man, a corpse and a ascetic. Gautama's sightings that day would later be called the Four Sights. Upon returning to the palace Gautama was no longer happy with the luxuries which his father provided him. He shaved his head, dressed in a street person's clothes and left the palace to live the life of homeless holy man. After performing several forms self-denial such as fasting for several years Gautama started to focus on breathing patterns through meditation. His companions who had been solely focused on self-denial abandoned him. Gautama's method of meditation became known as the Middle Way, a way of moderating oneself between self-indulgence and self-inflicted pain. For Gautama this Middle Way represented a balance between his lavish youth and experiences of hardship after having left the palace. After meditating for a long time under the sacred Bodhi Tree Gautama reached Enlightenment at the age of 35, thus becoming the Buddha, or "Awakened One". The Buddha was able to understand and see life's truths through his dedicated spiritual journey by being totally absorbed in meditation.

Venerable Master

After reaching enlightenment the Buddha dedicated the remaining 45 years of his life towards traveling through what is now northern India and teaching disciples about the path to Enlightenment. The core of the Buddha's teachings focused on helping people to find the path to Enlightenment themselves and not on preaching rigid doctrines. This remains a core concept of Buddhism today. After great travel the Buddha died at the age of 80 with a large following.

Learn more about Buddhism:

• Basic Beliefs of Buddhism
• The Origin of Buddhism
• The Philosophy of Buddhism
• The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism
• History of Buddhism
• Do Buddhists Worship the Buddha?
• How to Become a Buddhist