🧘 Buddha Shakyamuni

Attributes & Domains

The Life Story of the Buddha

The Buddha's journey from prince to enlightened teacher demonstrates the path available to all beings.

Key Events:

• Birth in Lumbini (c. 563 BCE): Born as Prince Siddhartha Gautama to King Suddhodana and Queen Maya. Prophesied to become either a great king or a great spiritual teacher. His mother died seven days after his birth, and he was raised by his aunt Mahaprajapati.
• The Four Sights: Sheltered in palace luxury until age 29, when on four trips outside the palace walls he encountered an old man, a sick man, a corpse, and a wandering ascetic. These "Four Sights" revealed the reality of suffering and inspired his spiritual quest.
• The Great Renunciation: Left his palace, wife Yasodhara, and infant son Rahula to seek enlightenment. Cut his hair, exchanged his royal robes for simple cloth, and became a wandering ascetic, studying with various teachers and practicing extreme austerities for six years.
• Enlightenment at Bodh Gaya: Realizing extreme asceticism was not the path, he accepted food from a village girl named Sujata and sat under the Bodhi tree, vowing not to rise until achieving enlightenment. After 49 days of meditation, he defeated Mara (the demon of delusion) and achieved perfect enlightenment, understanding the Four Noble Truths and the nature of suffering and liberation.
• The First Turning of the Dharma Wheel: Initially hesitated to teach, believing the truth too subtle for others to grasp. Brahma descended to request he teach for the benefit of beings. The Buddha delivered his first sermon in the Deer Park at Sarnath, teaching the Middle Way between indulgence and asceticism, the Four Noble Truths, and the Eightfold Path to his first five disciples.
• 45 Years of Teaching: Traveled throughout northern India teaching all who would listen—kings and beggars, brahmins and outcasts, men and women. Established the Sangha (monastic community) and accepted his son Rahula and stepmother Mahaprajapati as monastics. Faced challenges from his jealous cousin Devadatta and criticism from Brahmins, but the Dharma flourished.
• Final Nirvana (Parinirvana): At age 80, after eating spoiled food offered by the blacksmith Cunda, the Buddha fell ill. He assured his disciples that Cunda bore no fault and that this was simply the natural end. He lay down between two sal trees near Kushinagar, gave final teachings, and entered final nirvana. His last words: "All conditioned things are subject to decay. Strive with diligence."

In the Sutras

Explore key Buddhist concepts in the scriptural corpus:

Core Teachings

The Four Noble Truths

• Dukkha (Suffering): Life involves suffering—birth, aging, sickness, death, separation from loved ones, contact with what we dislike, not getting what we want.
• Samudaya (Origin): Suffering arises from craving (tanha)—desire for pleasure, existence, and non-existence. This craving leads to clinging and continued rebirth.
• Nirodha (Cessation): Suffering can end. Nirvana is the cessation of craving and the liberation from the cycle of rebirth.
• Magga (Path): The Eightfold Path leads to the cessation of suffering.

The Eightfold Path

The practical method for achieving liberation, divided into three trainings:

• Wisdom (Prajna): Right View, Right Intention
• Ethics (Sila): Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood
• Meditation (Samadhi): Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration

Core Principles

• The Three Marks of Existence: Impermanence (anicca), suffering/unsatisfactoriness (dukkha), non-self (anatta)
• Dependent Origination: All phenomena arise dependently, nothing exists independently
• The Middle Way: Avoiding extremes of indulgence and self-mortification
• Karma: Intentional actions create consequences across lifetimes

Sacred Sites & Pilgrimage

The Four Great Sites

The Buddha himself designated these as pilgrimage destinations:

• Lumbini, Nepal: Birthplace of the Buddha
• Bodh Gaya, India: Site of enlightenment under the Bodhi tree
• Sarnath, India: Site of the first sermon (First Turning of the Dharma Wheel)
• Kushinagar, India: Site of the Buddha's final nirvana (parinirvana)

Festivals

• Vesak (Buddha Day): Celebrates birth, enlightenment, and death (usually full moon in May). Temples are decorated, offerings made, sutras chanted, and acts of generosity performed.
• Bodhi Day: Commemorates the Buddha's enlightenment (December 8 in Zen tradition, varies in others). Meditation retreats and reflection on the path to awakening.

Offerings

Traditional offerings to Buddha images and at sacred sites include flowers (representing impermanence), incense (spreading wisdom), candles/lamps (illuminating darkness of ignorance), water (purity), and food (sustenance for the Sangha).