Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a
wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in
Lumbini, in what is now
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङà¥à¤˜à¥€à¤¯ लोकतानà¥à¤¤à¥à¤°à¤¿à¤• गणतनà¥à¤¤à¥à¤° नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
, to royal parents of the
Shakya clan, but
renounced his
home life to live as a wandering ascetic ( sa, śramaṇa). After leading a life of
begging,
asceticism
Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...
, and meditation, he attained
enlightenment
Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to:
Age of Enlightenment
* Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...
at
Bodh Gaya
Bodh Gaya is a religious site and place of pilgrimage associated with the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Gaya district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is famous as it is the place where Gautama Buddha is said to have attained Enlightenment ( pi, ...
in what is now India. The Buddha thereafter wandered through the lower
Indo-Gangetic Plain
The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian River Plain, is a fertile plain encompassing northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, including most of northern and eastern India, around half of Pakistan, virtually all of Bangla ...
, teaching and building a
monastic order
Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic life plays an important role ...
. He taught a
Middle Way
The Middle Way ( pi, ; sa, ) as well as "teaching the Dharma by the middle" (''majjhena dhammaṃ deseti'') are common Buddhist terms used to refer to two major aspects of the Dharma, that is, the teaching of the Buddha.; my, အလယ်ဠ...
between sensual indulgence and severe asceticism, leading to
Nirvana
( , , ; sa, निरà¥à¤µà¤¾à¤£} ''nirvÄṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbÄna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvÄṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient BenÄres to Modern Colombo.' ...
, that is,
freedom
Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...
from
ignorance,
craving,
rebirth, and suffering. His teachings are summarized in the
Noble Eightfold Path
The Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.
The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: ri ...
, a
training of the mind that includes
meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...
and instruction in
Buddhist ethics
Buddhist ethics are traditionally based on what Buddhists view as the Enlightenment in Buddhism, enlightened perspective of the Buddha. The term for ethics or morality used in Buddhism is ''Śīla'' or ''sÄ«la'' (PÄli). ''Śīla'' in Buddhism i ...
such as
right effort
The Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.
The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: ri ...
,
mindfulness
Mindfulness is the practice of purposely bringing one's attention to the present-moment experience without evaluation, a skill one develops through meditation or other training. Mindfulness derives from ''sati'', a significant element of Hind ...
, and ''
jhana
In the oldest texts of Buddhism, ''dhyÄna'' () or ''jhÄna'' () is a component of the training of the mind (''bhavana''), commonly translated as meditation, to withdraw the mind from the automatic responses to sense-impressions, "burn up" the ...
''. He died in
Kushinagar, attaining ''
paranirvana''. The Buddha has since been venerated by numerous religions and communities across Asia.
A couple of centuries after his death, he came to be known by the title
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
, which means "Awakened One" or "Enlightened One." His teachings were compiled by the Buddhist community in the
Vinaya
The Vinaya (Pali & Sanskrit: विनय) is the division of the Buddhist canon ('' Tripitaka'') containing the rules and procedures that govern the Buddhist Sangha (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). Three parallel Vinaya traditions remai ...
, his codes for monastic practice, and the
Sutta Piá¹aka
The Sutta Pitaka (; or Suttanta Pitaka;
Basket of Discourse; cf Sanskrit ) is the second of the three divisions of the Tripitaka or Pali Canon, the Pali collection of Buddhist writings of Theravada Buddhism. The other two parts of the Tripiá¹a ...
, a compilation of teachings based on his discourses. These were passed down in
Middle Indo-Aryan
The Middle Indo-Aryan languages (or Middle Indic languages, sometimes conflated with the Prakrits, which are a stage of Middle Indic) are a historical group of languages of the Indo-Aryan family. They are the descendants of Old Indo-Aryan (OIA; ...
dialects through an
oral tradition
Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985 ...
. Later generations composed additional texts, such as systematic treatises known as ''
Abhidharma
The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the f ...
'', biographies of the Buddha, collections of stories about his past lives known as ''
Jataka tales'', and additional discourses, i.e., the
Mahayana sutras
The MahÄyÄna sÅ«tras are a broad genre of Buddhist scriptures (''sÅ«tra'') that are accepted as canonical and as ''buddhavacana'' ("Buddha word") in MahÄyÄna Buddhism. They are largely preserved in the Chinese Buddhist canon, the Tibetan B ...
.
Etymology, names and titles
SiddhÄrtha Gautama and Buddha Shakyamuni
According to Donald Lopez Jr., "... he tended to be known as either Buddha or Sakyamuni in China, Korea, Japan, and Tibet, and as either Gotama Buddha or Samana Gotama (“the ascetic Gotamaâ€) in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia."
His family name was SiddhÄrtha Gautama (Pali: Siddhattha Gotama). "SiddhÄrtha" (Sanskrit; P. Siddhattha; T. Don grub; C. Xidaduo; J. Shiddatta/Shittatta; K. Siltalta) means "He Who Achieves His Goal." The clan name of Gautama means "descendant of Gotama", "Gotama" meaning "one who has the most light," and comes from the fact that
Kshatriya
Kshatriya ( hi, कà¥à¤·à¤¤à¥à¤°à¤¿à¤¯) (from Sanskrit ''ká¹£atra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''ká¹£atriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...
clans adopted the names of their house priests.
While term "Buddha" is used in the Agamas and the Pali Canon, the oldest surviving written records of the term "Buddha" is from the middle of the 3rd century BCE, when several
Edicts of Ashoka
The Edicts of Ashoka are a collection of more than thirty inscriptions on the Pillars of Ashoka, as well as boulders and cave walls, attributed to Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Empire who reigned from 268 BCE to 232 BCE. Ashoka used the expres ...
(reigned c. 269–232 BCE) mention the Buddha and Buddhism.
Ashoka's
Lumbini pillar inscription commemorates the Emperor's pilgrimage to Lumbini as the Buddha's birthplace, calling him the Buddha Shakyamuni (
Brahmi script
Brahmi (; ; ISO: ''BrÄhmÄ«'') is a writing system of ancient South Asia. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the AÅ›okan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as 'lath' o ...
: 𑀩𑀼𑀥
𑀲𑀓ð‘†ð‘€¬ð‘€«ð‘€¼ð‘€¦ð‘€» ''Bu-dha Sa-kya-mu-nÄ«'', "Buddha, Sage of the Shakyas").
''Buddha'', "Awakened One" or "Enlightened One," is the masculine form of ''
budh'' (बà¥à¤§à¥ ), "to wake, be awake, observe, heed, attend, learn, become aware of, to know, be conscious again,"
"to awaken" ""to open up" (as does a flower)," "one who has awakened from the deep sleep of ignorance and opened his consciousness to encompass all objects of knowledge." It is not a personal name, but a title for those who have attained
bodhi
The English term enlightenment is the Western translation of various Buddhist terms, most notably bodhi and vimutti. The abstract noun ''bodhi'' (; Sanskrit: बोधि; Pali: ''bodhi''), means the knowledge or wisdom, or awakened intellect ...
(awakening, enlightenment). ''Buddhi'', the power to "form and retain concepts, reason, discern, judge, comprehend, understand,"
is the faculty which discerns truth (''
satya
''Satya'' (Sanskrit: सतà¥à¤¯; IAST: ''satya)'' is a Sanskrit word loosely translated as truth, essence. A. A. Macdonell, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Asian Educational Services, , pp. 330–331 It also refers to a virtue in Indian relig ...
'') from falsehood.
Shakyamuni () means "Sage of the
Shakyas."
TathÄgata
''TathÄgata'' (
Pali
Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''PÄli Canon'' or ''Tipiá¹aka'' as well as the sacred language of ''TheravÄda'' Buddhism ...
; ) is a term the Buddha commonly used when referring to himself or other Buddhas in the
PÄli Canon
The PÄli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the PÄli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school.
During th ...
. The exact meaning of the term is unknown, but it is often thought to mean either "one who has thus gone" (''tathÄ-gata''), "one who has thus come" (''tathÄ-Ägata''), or sometimes "one who has thus not gone" (''tathÄ-agata''). This is interpreted as signifying that the TathÄgata is beyond all coming and going – beyond all
transitory phenomena.
[Chalmers, Robert]
The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1898. pp.103-115
A ''tathÄgata'' is "immeasurable", "inscrutable", "hard to fathom", and "not apprehended."
[Peter Harvey, ''The Selfless Mind.'' Curzon Press 1995, p.227]
Common epithets
A common list of
epithet
An epithet (, ), also byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) known for accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, di ...
s are commonly seen together in the canonical texts, and depict some of his perfected qualities:
* ''Bhagavato (Bhagavan)'' –
The Blessed one, one of the most used epithets, together with ''tathÄgata''
* ''Sammasambuddho'' –
Perfectly self-awakened
* ''Vijja-carana-sampano'' – Endowed with higher knowledge and ideal conduct.
* ''
Sugata
Sugata is a Sanskrit epithet for Gautama Buddha.
Etymology
''"Su"' is a prefix meaning good and ''"gata"'' is the past passive participle of "to go".
Among other meanings, Buddhaghosa says the Buddha is ''sugata'' because both the way he to ...
'' – Well-gone or Well-spoken.
* ''Lokavidu'' – Knower of the
many worlds
The many-worlds interpretation (MWI) is an interpretation of quantum mechanics that asserts that the universal wavefunction is objectively real, and that there is no wave function collapse. This implies that all possible outcomes of quantum me ...
.
* ''Anuttaro Purisa-damma-sarathi'' – Unexcelled trainer of untrained people.
* ''Satthadeva-Manussanam'' – Teacher of
gods and humans.
* ''Araham'' – Worthy of homage. An
Arahant is "one with taints destroyed, who has lived the holy life, done what had to be done, laid down the burden, reached the true goal, destroyed the fetters of being, and is completely liberated through final knowledge."
* ''
Jina'' – Conqueror. Although the term is more commonly used to name an individual who has attained liberation in the religion
Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current ...
, it is also an alternative title for the Buddha.
The
Pali Canon
The PÄli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the PÄli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school.
During th ...
also contains numerous other titles and epithets for the Buddha, including: All-seeing, All-transcending sage, Bull among men, The Caravan leader, Dispeller of darkness, The Eye, Foremost of charioteers, Foremost of those who can cross, King of the Dharma (''Dharmaraja''), Kinsman of the Sun, Helper of the World (''Lokanatha''), Lion (''Siha''), Lord of the Dhamma, Of excellent wisdom (''Varapañña''), Radiant One, Torchbearer of mankind, Unsurpassed doctor and surgeon, Victor in battle, and Wielder of power. Another epithet, used at inscriptions throughout South and Southeast Asia, is ''Maha sramana'', "great ''sramana''" (ascetic, renunciate).
Sources
Historical sources
Pali suttas
On the basis of
philological evidence, Indologist and PÄli expert
Oskar von Hinüber
Oskar von Hinüber (born 18 February 1939 in Hanover) is a German Indologist. He joined the German Navy after leaving high school, and holds the rank of Commander as a reservist. From 1960 to 1966 he studied at University of Tübingen, University ...
says that some of the PÄli suttas have retained very archaic place-names, syntax, and historical data from close to the Buddha's lifetime, including the ''
MahÄparinibbÄṇa Sutta'' which contains a detailed account of the Buddha's final days. Hinüber proposes a composition date of no later than 350–320 BCE for this text, which would allow for a "true historical memory" of the events approximately 60 years prior if the Short Chronology for the Buddha's lifetime is accepted (but he also points out that such a text was originally intended more as
hagiography
A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies migh ...
than as an exact historical record of events).
John S. Strong sees certain biographical fragments in the canonical texts preserved in PÄli, as well as Chinese, Tibetan and Sanskrit as the earliest material. These include texts such as the "Discourse on the Noble Quest" (: ''AriyapariyesanÄ-sutta'') and its parallels in other languages.
Pillar and rock inscriptions
![Bhagavato Sakamunino Bodho inscription in Bharhut](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Bhagavato_Sakamunino_Bodho_inscription_in_Bharhut.jpg)
No written records about Gautama were found from his lifetime or from the one or two centuries thereafter. But from the middle of the 3rd century BCE, several
Edicts of Ashoka
The Edicts of Ashoka are a collection of more than thirty inscriptions on the Pillars of Ashoka, as well as boulders and cave walls, attributed to Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Empire who reigned from 268 BCE to 232 BCE. Ashoka used the expres ...
(reigned c. 268 to 232 BCE) mention the Buddha and Buddhism. Particularly,
Ashoka's
Lumbini pillar inscription commemorates the Emperor's pilgrimage to Lumbini as the Buddha's birthplace, calling him the ''Buddha Shakyamuni'' (
Brahmi script
Brahmi (; ; ISO: ''BrÄhmÄ«'') is a writing system of ancient South Asia. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the AÅ›okan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as 'lath' o ...
: 𑀩𑀼𑀥
𑀲𑀓ð‘†ð‘€¬ð‘€«ð‘€¼ð‘€¦ð‘€» ''Bu-dha Sa-kya-mu-nÄ«'', "Buddha, Sage of the Shakyas").
Another one of his edicts (
Minor Rock Edict No. 3) mentions the titles of several ''
Dhamma
Dharma (; sa, धरà¥à¤®, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for ''d ...
'' texts (in Buddhism, "dhamma" is another word for "dharma"), establishing the existence of a written Buddhist tradition at least by the time of the
Maurya era. These texts may be the precursor of the
PÄli Canon
The PÄli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the PÄli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school.
During th ...
.
"Sakamuni" is also mentioned in the reliefs of
Bharhut, dated to c. 100 BCE, in relation with his illumination and the
Bodhi tree, with the inscription ''Bhagavato Sakamunino Bodho'' ("The illumination of the Blessed Sakamuni").
Oldest surviving manuscripts
The oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts are the
GandhÄran Buddhist texts
The GandhÄran Buddhist texts are the oldest Buddhist manuscripts yet discovered, dating from about the 1st century BCE to 3rd century CE. They represent the literature of Gandharan Buddhism from present-day northwestern Pakistan and eastern Afgha ...
, found in
Gandhara
GandhÄra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
(corresponding to modern northwestern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan) and written in
GÄndhÄrÄ«, they date from the first century BCE to the third century CE.
Biographical sources
Early canonical sources include the ''Ariyapariyesana Sutta'' (
MN 26), the ''MahÄparinibbÄṇa Sutta'' (
DN 16), the ''MahÄsaccaka-sutta'' (MN 36), the ''Mahapadana Sutta'' (DN 14), and the ''Achariyabhuta Sutta'' (MN 123), which include selective accounts that may be older, but are not full biographies. The
JÄtaka tales retell previous lives of Gautama as a
bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩ð‘„𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢ð‘†ð‘€¢ð‘†ð‘€¯ (BrahmÄ«), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
, and the first collection of these can be dated among the earliest Buddhist texts. The ''MahÄpadÄna Sutta'' and ''Achariyabhuta Sutta'' both recount miraculous events surrounding Gautama's birth, such as the bodhisattva's descent from the
Tuá¹£ita Heaven into his mother's womb.
The sources which present a complete picture of the life of SiddhÄrtha Gautama are a variety of different, and sometimes conflicting, traditional biographies from a later date. These include the ''
Buddhacarita'', ''
Lalitavistara SÅ«tra
The ''Lalitavistara SÅ«tra'' is a Sanskrit Mahayana sutras, Mahayana Buddhist sutra that tells the story of Gautama Buddha from the time of his descent from Tushita until his first sermon in the Deer Park at Sarnath near Varanasi. The term ''La ...
'', ''
MahÄvastu'', and the ''NidÄnakathÄ''. Of these, the ''Buddhacarita'' is the earliest full biography, an epic poem written by the poet
Aśvaghoṣa
, also transliterated Ashvaghosha, (, अशà¥à¤µà¤˜à¥‹à¤·; lit. "Having a Horse-Voice"; ; Chinese 馬鳴è©è–© pinyin: MÇŽmÃng púsà , litt.: 'Bodhisattva with a Horse-Voice') CE) was a SarvÄstivÄda or Mahasanghika Buddhist philosopher, ...
in the first century CE. The ''Lalitavistara SÅ«tra'' is the next oldest biography, a
MahÄyÄna
''MahÄyÄna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhism, Buddhist traditions, Buddhist texts#MahÄyÄna texts, texts, Buddhist philosophy, philosophies, and practices. MahÄyÄna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BC ...
/
SarvÄstivÄda
The ''SarvÄstivÄda'' (Sanskrit and Pali: 𑀲𑀩ð‘†ð‘€©ð‘€¢ð‘†ð‘€£ð‘€ºð‘€¯ð‘€¸ð‘€¤, ) was one of the early Buddhist schools established around the reign of Ashoka (3rd century BCE).Westerhoff, The Golden Age of Indian Buddhist Philosophy ...
biography dating to the 3rd century CE. The ''MahÄvastu'' from the
MahÄsÄṃghika
The MahÄsÄṃghika (Brahmi: 𑀫𑀳𑀸𑀲𑀸ð‘€ð‘€–𑀺𑀓, "of the Great Sangha", ) was one of the early Buddhist schools. Interest in the origins of the MahÄsÄṃghika school lies in the fact that their Vinaya recension appears in se ...
LokottaravÄda
The LokottaravÄda (Sanskrit, लोकोतà¥à¤¤à¤°à¤µà¤¾à¤¦; ) was one of the early Buddhist schools according to Mahayana doxological sources compiled by BhÄviveka, Vinitadeva and others, and was a subgroup which emerged from the MahÄsÄá ...
tradition is another major biography, composed incrementally until perhaps the 4th century CE. The
Dharmaguptaka
The Dharmaguptaka (Sanskrit: धरà¥à¤®à¤—à¥à¤ªà¥à¤¤à¤•; ) are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools, depending on the source. They are said to have originated from another sect, the MahÄ«Å›Äsakas. The Dharmaguptakas had a p ...
biography of the Buddha is the most exhaustive, and is entitled the ''Abhiniá¹£kramaṇa SÅ«tra'', and various Chinese translations of this date between the 3rd and 6th century CE. The ''NidÄnakathÄ'' is from the
Theravada
''TheravÄda'' () ( si, ථේරවà·à¶¯à¶º, my, ထေရá€á€«á€’, th, เถรวาท, km, ážáŸážšážœáž¶áž‘, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
tradition in Sri Lanka and was composed in the 5th century by
Buddhaghoá¹£a
Buddhaghosa was a 5th-century Indian Theravada Buddhist commentator, translator and philosopher. He worked in the Great Monastery (''MahÄvihÄra'') at AnurÄdhapura, Sri Lanka and saw himself as being part of the VibhajjavÄda school and in t ...
.
Historical person
Understanding the historical person
Scholars are hesitant to make claims about the historical facts of the Buddha's life. Most of them accept that the Buddha lived, taught, and founded a monastic order during the
Mahajanapada, and during the reign of
Bimbisara, the ruler of the
Magadha
Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
empire; and died during the early years of the reign of
Ajatashatru, who was the successor of Bimbisara, thus making him a younger contemporary of
Mahavira
Mahavira (Sanskrit: महावीर) also known as Vardhaman, was the 24th ''tirthankara'' (supreme preacher) of Jainism. He was the spiritual successor of the 23rd ''tirthankara'' Parshvanatha. Mahavira was born in the early part of the 6t ...
, the Jain
tirthankara
In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a 'ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the ''dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable passag ...
.
There is less consensus on the veracity of many details contained in traditional biographies, as "Buddhist scholars
..have mostly given up trying to understand the historical person." The earliest versions of Buddhist biographical texts that we have already contain many supernatural, mythical or legendary elements. In the 19th century some scholars simply omitted these from their accounts of the life, so that "the image projected was of a Buddha who was a rational, socratic teacher—a great person perhaps, but a more or less ordinary human being". More recent scholars tend to see such demythologisers as remythologisers, "creating a Buddha that appealed to them, by eliding one that did not".
Dating
The dates of Gautama's birth and death are uncertain. Within the Eastern Buddhist tradition of China, Vietnam, Korea and Japan, the traditional date for the death of the Buddha was 949 BCE. According to the Ka-tan system of time calculation in the
Kalachakra tradition, Buddha is believed to have died about 833 BCE.
Buddhist texts present two chronologies which have been used to date the lifetime of the Buddha. The "long chronology," from Sri Lankese chronicles, states that the Buddha was born 298 years before the coronation of
Asoka, and died 218 years before his coronation. According to these chronicles Asoka was crowned in 326 BCE, which gives the dates of 624 and 544 BCE for the Buddha, which are the accepted dates in Sri Lanka and South-East Asia. However, most scholars who accept the long chronology date Asoka's coronation to 268 or 267 BCE, based on Greek evidence, thus dating the Buddha at 566 and ca. 486.
Indian sources, and their Chinese and Tibetan translations, contain a "short chronology," which place the Buddha's birth at 180 years before Asoka's coronation, and his death 100 years before Asoka's coronation. Following the Greek sources of Asoka's coronation, this dates the Buddha at 448 and 368 BCE.
Most historians in the early 20th century dated his lifetime as to 483 BCE. More recently his death is dated later, between 411 and 400 BCE, while at a symposium on this question held in 1988, the majority of those who presented definite opinions gave dates within 20 years either side of 400 BCE for the Buddha's death. These alternative chronologies, however, have not been accepted by all historians.
The dating of Bimbisara and Ajatashatru also depends on the long or short chronology. In the long chrononology, Bimbisara reigned , and died 492 BCE, while Ajatashatru reigned . In the short chronology Bimbisara reigned c. 400 BCE, while Ajatashatru died between c. 380 BCE and 330 BCE.)
Historical context
Shakyas
According to the Buddhist tradition, Shakyamuni Buddha was a
Sakya
The ''Sakya'' (, 'pale earth') school is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the others being the Nyingma, Kagyu, and Gelug. It is one of the Red Hat Orders along with the Nyingma and Kagyu.
Origins
Virūpa, 16th century. It depict ...
, a sub-Himalayan ethnicity and clan of north-eastern region of the Indian subcontinent. The Shakya community was on the periphery, both geographically and culturally, of the eastern Indian subcontinent in the 5th century BCE. The community, though describable as a small republic, was probably an
oligarchy
Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate, r ...
, with his father as the elected chieftain or oligarch. The Shakyas were widely considered to be non-Vedic (and, hence impure) in Brahminic texts; their origins remain speculative and debated.
Bronkhorst terms this culture, which grew alongside Aryavarta without being affected by the flourish of Brahminism, as
Greater Magadha
Greater Magadha is a concept in studies of the early history of India. It is used to refer to the political and cultural sphere that developed in the lower Gangetic plains ( Johannes Bronkhorst defines the region to comprise modern day Bihar and e ...
.
The Buddha's tribe of origin, the Shakyas, seems to have had non-Vedic religious practices which persist in Buddhism, such as the veneration of trees and sacred groves, and the worship of tree spirits (yakkhas) and serpent beings (nagas). They also seem to have built burial mounds called stupas.
Tree veneration remains important in Buddhism today, particularly in the practice of venerating Bodhi trees. Likewise, yakkas and nagas have remained important figures in Buddhist religious practices and mythology.
Shramanas
The Buddha's lifetime coincided with the flourishing of influential
śramaṇa
''Åšramaṇa'' (Sanskrit; Pali: ''𑀲𑀫𑀦'') means "one who labours, toils, or exerts themselves (for some higher or religious purpose)" or "seeker, one who performs acts of austerity, ascetic".Monier Monier-Williams, शà¥à¤°à¤®à¤£ Å›r ...
schools of thought like
Ājīvika,
CÄrvÄka
Charvaka ( sa, चारà¥à¤µà¤¾à¤•; IAST: ''CÄrvÄka''), also known as ''LokÄyata'', is an ancient school of Indian materialism. Charvaka holds direct perception, empiricism, and conditional inference as proper sources of knowledge, embrace ...
,
Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current ...
, and
Ajñana
''AjñÄna'' () was one of the ''nÄstika'' or "heterodox" schools of ancient Indian philosophy, and the ancient school of radical Indian skepticism. It was a Åšramaṇa movement and a major rival of early Buddhism, Jainism and the Ä€jÄ«vika ...
. The ''
Brahmajala Sutta'' records sixty-two such schools of thought. In this context, a śramaṇa refers to one who labours, toils or exerts themselves (for some higher or religious purpose). It was also the age of influential thinkers like
Mahavira
Mahavira (Sanskrit: महावीर) also known as Vardhaman, was the 24th ''tirthankara'' (supreme preacher) of Jainism. He was the spiritual successor of the 23rd ''tirthankara'' Parshvanatha. Mahavira was born in the early part of the 6t ...
,
Pūraṇa Kassapa,
Makkhali GosÄla,
Ajita Kesakambalī,
Pakudha KaccÄyana, and
Sañjaya Belaá¹á¹haputta, as recorded in
Samaññaphala Sutta
The Samaññaphala Sutta, "The Fruit of Contemplative Life," is the second discourse (Pali, ''sutta''; Skt., ''sutra'') of the Digha Nikaya.
In terms of narrative, this discourse tells the story of King AjÄtasattu, son and successor of King Bi ...
, with whose viewpoints the Buddha must have been acquainted.
ÅšÄriputra
ÅšÄriputra ( sa, शारिपà¥à¤¤à¥à¤°; Tibetan: ཤཱ་རིའི་བུ་, Pali: ''SÄriputta'', lit. "the son of ÅšÄri", born Upatiá¹£ya, Pali: ''Upatissa'') was one of the top disciples of the Buddha. He is considered the fir ...
and
MoggallÄna
MaudgalyÄyana ( pi, MoggallÄna), also known as MahÄmaudgalyÄyana or by his birth name Kolita, was one of the Buddha's closest disciples. Described as a contemporary of disciples such as Subhuti, ÅšÄriputra ('), and MahÄkÄÅ›yapa ( pi, M ...
, two of the foremost disciples of the Buddha, were formerly the foremost disciples of Sañjaya Belaá¹á¹haputta, the sceptic; and the PÄli canon frequently depicts Buddha engaging in debate with the adherents of rival schools of thought. There is also philological evidence to suggest that the two masters,
Alara Kalama ''Alara'' may refer to:
People
* Alara of Ilara-Mokin, the king of Ilara-Mokin land in Nigeria
* Alara of Nubia, a king of Kush
* ĀḷÄra KÄlÄma, a hermit saint, a teacher of yogic meditation and teacher of Gautama Buddha
* Luis Alberto Fernán ...
and
Uddaka RÄmaputta, were indeed historical figures and they most probably taught Buddha two different forms of meditative techniques. Thus, Buddha was just one of the many Å›ramaṇa philosophers of that time. In an era where holiness of person was judged by their level of asceticism, Buddha was a reformist within the Å›ramaṇa movement, rather than a reactionary against Vedic Brahminism.
Coningham and Young note that both Jains and Buddhists used stupas, while tree shines can be found in both Buddhism and Hinduism.
Urban environment and egalitarism
The rise of Buddhism coincided with the
Second Urbanisation, in which the Ganges Basin was settled and cities grew, in which egalitarism prevailed. According to Thapar, the Buddha's teachings were "also a response to the historical changes of the time, among which were the emergence of the state and the growth of urban centres." While the Buddhist mendicants renounced society, they lived close to the villages and cities, depending for alms-givings on lay supporters.
According to Dyson, the Ganges basin was settled from the north-west and the south-east, as well as from within, "
omingtogether in what is now
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
(the location of
Pataliputra
Pataliputra (IAST: ), adjacent to modern-day Patna, was a city in ancient India, originally built by Magadha ruler Ajatashatru in 490 BCE as a small fort () near the Ganges river.. Udayin laid the foundation of the city of Pataliputra at the ...
)." The Ganges basin was densely forested, and the population grew when new areas were deforestated and cultivated. The society of the middle Ganges basin lay on "the outer fringe of Aryan cultural influence," and differed significantly from the
Aryan society of the western Ganges basin. According to Stein and Burton, "
e gods of the brahmanical sacrificial cult were not rejected so much as ignored by Buddhists and their contemporaries." Jainism and Buddhism opposed the social stratification of Brahmanism, and their egalitarism prevailed in the cities of the middle Ganges basin. This "allowed Jains and Buddhists to engage in trade more easily than Brahmans, who were forced to follow strict caste prohibitions."
Semi-legendary biography
Nature of traditional depictions
In the earliest Buddhist texts, the
nikÄyas and
Ägamas, the Buddha is not depicted as possessing
omniscience
Omniscience () is the capacity to know everything. In Hinduism, Sikhism and the Abrahamic religions, this is an God#General conceptions, attribute of God. In Jainism, omniscience is an attribute that any individual can eventually attain. In B ...
(''sabbaññu'') nor is he depicted as being an eternal transcendent (''lokottara'') being. According to
Bhikkhu Analayo, ideas of the Buddha's omniscience (along with an increasing tendency to deify him and his biography) are found only later, in the
Mahayana sutras
The MahÄyÄna sÅ«tras are a broad genre of Buddhist scriptures (''sÅ«tra'') that are accepted as canonical and as ''buddhavacana'' ("Buddha word") in MahÄyÄna Buddhism. They are largely preserved in the Chinese Buddhist canon, the Tibetan B ...
and later
Pali
Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''PÄli Canon'' or ''Tipiá¹aka'' as well as the sacred language of ''TheravÄda'' Buddhism ...
commentaries or texts such as the ''MahÄvastu''. In the ''Sandaka Sutta'', the Buddha's disciple
Ananda outlines an argument against the claims of teachers who say they are all knowing while in the ''Tevijjavacchagotta Sutta'' the Buddha himself states that he has never made a claim to being omniscient, instead he claimed to have the "higher knowledges" (
abhijñÄ
AbhijÃ±Ä ( sa, अà¤à¤¿à¤œà¥à¤žà¤¾; Pali pronunciation: ''abhiññÄ''; bo, མངོན་ཤེས ''mngon shes''; ) is a Buddhist term generally translated as "direct knowledge", "higher knowledge"Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-5), pp. 64-65. o ...
). The earliest biographical material from the Pali Nikayas focuses on the Buddha's life as a śramaṇa, his search for enlightenment under various teachers such as
Alara Kalama ''Alara'' may refer to:
People
* Alara of Ilara-Mokin, the king of Ilara-Mokin land in Nigeria
* Alara of Nubia, a king of Kush
* ĀḷÄra KÄlÄma, a hermit saint, a teacher of yogic meditation and teacher of Gautama Buddha
* Luis Alberto Fernán ...
and his forty-five-year career as a teacher.
Traditional biographies of Gautama often include numerous miracles, omens, and supernatural events. The character of the Buddha in these traditional biographies is often that of a fully transcendent (Skt. ''lokottara'') and perfected being who is unencumbered by the mundane world. In the ''MahÄvastu'', over the course of many lives, Gautama is said to have developed supramundane abilities including: a painless birth conceived without intercourse; no need for sleep, food, medicine, or bathing, although engaging in such "in conformity with the world"; omniscience, and the ability to "suppress karma". As noted by Andrew Skilton, the Buddha was often described as being superhuman, including descriptions of him having the 32 major and 80 minor marks of a "great man", and the idea that the Buddha could live for as long as an aeon if he wished (see DN 16).
The ancient Indians were generally unconcerned with chronologies, being more focused on philosophy. Buddhist texts reflect this tendency, providing a clearer picture of what Gautama may have taught than of the dates of the events in his life. These texts contain descriptions of the culture and daily life of ancient India which can be corroborated from the
Jain scriptures
Jain literature (Sanskrit: जैन साहितà¥à¤¯) refers to the literature of the Jain religion. It is a vast and ancient literary tradition, which was initially transmitted orally. The oldest surviving material is contained in the ca ...
, and make the Buddha's time the earliest period in
Indian history for which significant accounts exist. British author
Karen Armstrong writes that although there is very little information that can be considered historically sound, we can be reasonably confident that SiddhÄrtha Gautama did exist as a historical figure.
Michael Carrithers goes a bit further by stating that the most general outline of "birth, maturity, renunciation, search, awakening and liberation, teaching, death" must be true.
Previous lives
![Ascetic Sumedha and Dipankara Buddha](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Ascetic_Sumedha_and_Dipankara_Buddha.jpg)
Legendary biographies like the Pali ''
Buddhavaṃsa'' and the Sanskrit ''JÄtakamÄlÄ'' depict the Buddha's (referred to as "
bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩ð‘„𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢ð‘†ð‘€¢ð‘†ð‘€¯ (BrahmÄ«), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
" before his awakening) career as spanning hundreds of lifetimes before his last birth as Gautama. Many stories of these previous lives are depicted in the
Jatakas
The JÄtakas (meaning "Birth Story", "related to a birth") are a voluminous body of literature native to India which mainly concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form. According to Peter Skilling, this genre is ...
. The format of a Jataka typically begins by telling a story in the present which is then explained by a story of someone's previous life.
Besides imbuing the pre-Buddhist past with a deep karmic history, the Jatakas also serve to explain the bodhisattva's (the Buddha-to-be) path to Buddhahood. In biographies like the ''Buddhavaṃsa'', this path is described as long and arduous, taking "four incalculable ages" (''
asamkheyyas'').
In these legendary biographies, the bodhisattva goes through many different births (animal and human), is inspired by his meeting of
past Buddhas, and then makes a series of resolves or vows (''
pranidhana'') to become a Buddha himself. Then he begins to receive predictions by past Buddhas. One of the most popular of these stories is
his meeting with Dipankara Buddha, who gives the bodhisattva a prediction of future Buddhahood.
Another theme found in the Pali Jataka Commentary (''JÄtakaá¹á¹hakathÄ'') and the Sanskrit ''JÄtakamÄlÄ'' is how the Buddha-to-be had to practice several "perfections" (''
pÄramitÄ
''PÄramitÄ'' (Sanskrit, Pali: पारमिता) or ''pÄramÄ«'' (PÄli: पारमी), is a Buddhist term often translated as "perfection". It is described in Buddhist commentaries as noble character qualities generally associated with ...
'') to reach Buddhahood. The Jatakas also sometimes depict negative actions done in previous lives by the bodhisattva, which explain difficulties he experienced in his final life as Gautama.
Birth and early life
![Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Buddhist_pilgrimage_sites_in_India.svg)
According to the Buddhist tradition, Gautama was born in
Lumbini,
now in modern-day Nepal, and raised in
Kapilavastu. The exact site of ancient Kapilavastu is unknown. It may have been either
Piprahwa,
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
, in present-day India, or
Tilaurakot
Tilaurakot is a neighborhood in Kapilvastu Municipality in Kapilvastu District, in the Lumbini Province of southern Nepal. Previously it was a Village development committee. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 5684 people ...
, in present-day Nepal. Both places belonged to the Sakya territory, and are located only apart.
In the mid-3rd century BCE the Emperor
Ashoka determined that Lumbini was Gautama's birthplace and thus installed a pillar there with the inscription: "...this is where the Buddha, sage of the ÅšÄkyas (''ÅšÄkyamuni''), was born."
According to later biographies such as the ''
Mahavastu'' and the ''
Lalitavistara'', his mother,
Maya (MÄyÄdevÄ«), Suddhodana's wife, was a princess from
Devdaha
Devdaha (Deva Daha, देवदह) is a municipality in Rupandehi District of Nepal, the ancient capital of Koliya Kingdom, located 7 km east of Lumbini and east of Butwal and shares a border with Nawalparasi district on the east side. ...
, the ancient capital of the
Koliya Kingdom (what is now the
Rupandehi District of
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङà¥à¤˜à¥€à¤¯ लोकतानà¥à¤¤à¥à¤°à¤¿à¤• गणतनà¥à¤¤à¥à¤° नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
). Legend has it that, on the night Siddhartha was conceived, Queen Maya dreamt that a
white elephant with six white tusks entered her right side, and ten
months later Siddhartha was born. As was the Shakya tradition, when his mother Queen Maya became pregnant, she left Kapilavastu for her father's kingdom to give birth. However, her son is said to have been born on the way, at Lumbini, in a garden beneath a
sal tree. The earliest Buddhist sources state that the Buddha was born to an aristocratic
Kshatriya
Kshatriya ( hi, कà¥à¤·à¤¤à¥à¤°à¤¿à¤¯) (from Sanskrit ''ká¹£atra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''ká¹£atriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...
(Pali: ''khattiya'') family called Gotama (Sanskrit: Gautama), who were part of the
Shakyas, a tribe of rice-farmers living near the modern border of India and Nepal. His father
Åšuddhodana was "an elected chief of the
Shakya clan", whose capital was Kapilavastu, and who were later annexed by the growing Kingdom of
Kosala
The Kingdom of Kosala (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indian kingdom with a rich culture, corresponding to the area within the region of Awadh in present-day Uttar Pradesh to Western Odisha. It emerged as a janapada, small state during the late Ve ...
during the Buddha's lifetime. Gautama was his
family name
In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community.
Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...
.
The early Buddhist texts contain very little information about the birth and youth of Gotama Buddha. Later biographies developed a dramatic narrative about the life of the young Gotama as a prince and his existential troubles. They also depict his father Åšuddhodana as a
hereditary monarch of the
Suryavansha
The Solar dynasty (IAST: Suryavaṃśa or Ravivaṃśa in Sanskrit) or the Ikshvaku dynasty was founded by the legendary king Ikshvaku.Geography of Rigvedic India, M.L. Bhargava, Lucknow 1964, pp. 15-18, 46-49, 92-98, 100-/1, 136 The dynasty is ...
(Solar dynasty) of (PÄli: OkkÄka). This is unlikely however, as many scholars think that Åšuddhodana was merely a Shakya aristocrat (''khattiya''), and that the Shakya republic was not a hereditary monarchy. Indeed, the more egalitarian
form of government, as a political alternative to Indian monarchies, may have influenced the development of the śramanic
Jain
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
and Buddhist
sanghas
Sankhvast ( fa, سنخواست, also Romanized as SankhvÄst; also known as Sanghas, Sangkhuast, SankhÄÅŸ, and SankhÄst) is a city and capital of Jolgeh Sankhvast District, in Jajrom County, North Khorasan Province, Iran
Iran, off ...
, where monarchies tended toward
Vedic Brahmanism.
The day of the Buddha's birth is widely celebrated in
Theravada
''TheravÄda'' () ( si, ථේරවà·à¶¯à¶º, my, ထေရá€á€«á€’, th, เถรวาท, km, ážáŸážšážœáž¶áž‘, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
countries as
Vesak.
Buddha's Birthday is called ''Buddha
Purnima'' in Nepal, Bangladesh, and India as he is believed to have been born on a full moon day.
According to later biographical legends, during the birth celebrations, the hermit seer
Asita
Asita or Kaladevala or Kanhasiri was a hermit ascetic depicted in Buddhist sources as having lived in ancient India. He was a teacher and advisor of Suddhodana, the father of the Buddha, and is best known for having predicted that prince Siddhar ...
journeyed from his mountain abode, analyzed the child for the
"32 marks of a great man" and then announced that he would either become a great king (''
chakravartin'') or a great religious leader. Suddhodana held a naming ceremony on the fifth day and invited eight
Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, बà¥à¤°à¤¾à¤¹à¥à¤®à¤£, brÄhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
scholars to read the future. All gave similar predictions.
Kondañña, the youngest, and later to be the first
arhat
In Buddhism, an ''arhat'' (Sanskrit: अरà¥à¤¹à¤¤à¥) or ''arahant'' (Pali: अरहनà¥à¤¤à¥, ð‘€…ð‘€ð‘€³ð‘€¦ð‘†ð‘€¢ð‘†) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana'' and liberated ...
other than the Buddha, was reputed to be the only one who unequivocally predicted that Siddhartha would become a
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
.
Early texts suggest that Gautama was not familiar with the dominant religious teachings of his time until he left on his religious quest, which is said to have been motivated by existential concern for the human condition. According to the
early Buddhist Texts
Early Buddhist texts (EBTs), early Buddhist literature or early Buddhist discourses are parallel texts shared by the early Buddhist schools. The most widely studied EBT material are the first four Pali Nikayas, as well as the corresponding Chines ...
of several schools, and numerous
post-canonical accounts, Gotama had a wife,
Yasodhara, and a son, named
RÄhula. Besides this, the Buddha in the early texts reports that "'I lived a spoilt, a very spoilt life, monks (in my parents' home)."
The legendary biographies like the ''
Lalitavistara'' also tell stories of young Gotama's great martial skill, which was put to the test in various contests against other Shakyan youths.
Renunciation
![Great Departure](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Great_Departure.JPG)
While the earliest sources merely depict Gotama seeking a higher spiritual goal and becoming an ascetic or ''śramaṇa'' after being disillusioned with lay life, the later legendary biographies tell a more elaborate dramatic story about how he became a mendicant.
The earliest accounts of the Buddha's spiritual quest is found in texts such as the Pali ''AriyapariyesanÄ-sutta'' ("The discourse on the noble quest," MN 26) and its Chinese parallel at
MÄ€ 204. These texts report that what led to Gautama's renunciation was the thought that his life was subject to old age, disease and death and that there might be something better (i.e. liberation, nirvana).
The early texts also depict the Buddha's explanation for becoming a sramana as follows: "The household life, this place of impurity, is narrow – the ''samana'' life is the free open air. It is not easy for a householder to lead the perfected, utterly pure and perfect holy life." MN 26, MĀ 204, the
Dharmaguptaka
The Dharmaguptaka (Sanskrit: धरà¥à¤®à¤—à¥à¤ªà¥à¤¤à¤•; ) are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools, depending on the source. They are said to have originated from another sect, the MahÄ«Å›Äsakas. The Dharmaguptakas had a p ...
Vinaya and the
MahÄvastu all agree that his mother and father opposed his decision and "wept with tearful faces" when he decided to leave.
![Siddharta Gautama Borobudur](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Siddharta_Gautama_Borobudur.jpg)
Legendary biographies also tell the story of how Gautama left his palace to see the outside world for the first time and how he was shocked by his encounter with human suffering. These depict Gautama's father as shielding him from religious teachings and from knowledge of human
suffering
Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, may be an experience of unpleasantness or aversion, possibly associated with the perception of harm or threat of harm in an individual. Suffering is the basic element that makes up the negative valence of a ...
, so that he would become a great king instead of a great religious leader. In the ''
Nidanakatha
The JÄtakas (meaning "Birth Story", "related to a birth") are a voluminous body of literature native to India which mainly concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form. According to Peter Skilling, this genre is ...
'' (5th century CE), Gautama is said to have seen an old man. When his charioteer
Chandaka explained to him that all people grew old, the prince went on further trips beyond the palace. On these he encountered a diseased man, a decaying corpse, and an
ascetic
Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...
that inspired him. This story of the "
four sights" seems to be adapted from an earlier account in the ''Digha Nikaya'' (DN 14.2) which instead depicts the young life of a previous Buddha,
Vipassi.
The legendary biographies depict Gautama's departure from his palace as follows. Shortly after seeing the four sights, Gautama woke up at night and saw his female servants lying in unattractive, corpse-like poses, which shocked him. Therefore, he discovered what he would later understand more deeply during his
enlightenment
Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to:
Age of Enlightenment
* Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...
: ''
dukkha'' ("standing unstable," "dissatisfaction") and the end of ''dukkha''. Moved by all the things he had experienced, he decided to leave the palace in the middle of the night against the will of his father, to live the life of a wandering ascetic. Accompanied by Chandaka and riding his horse
Kanthaka
According to Buddhist legend, Kanthaka (in Pali and Sanskrit) (6th century BC, in Kapilvastu and Tilaurakot, Nepal) was a favourite white horse of length eighteen cubits that was a royal servant of Prince Siddhartha, who later became Gautam ...
, Gautama leaves the palace, leaving behind his son
Rahula and
Yaśodhara. He travelled to the river
Anomiya, and cut off his hair. Leaving his servant and horse behind, he journeyed into the woods and changed into
monk's robes there, though in some other versions of the story, he received the robes from a
''Brahma'' deity at Anomiya.
According to the legendary biographies, when the ascetic Gautama first went to Rajagaha (present-day
Rajgir
Rajgir, meaning "The City of Kings," is a historic town in the district of Nalanda in Bihar, India. As the ancient seat and capital of the Haryanka dynasty, the Pradyota dynasty, the Brihadratha dynasty and the Mauryan Empire, as well as the d ...
) to beg for
alms
Alms (, ) are money, food, or other material goods donated to people living in poverty. Providing alms is often considered an act of virtue or Charity (practice), charity. The act of providing alms is called almsgiving, and it is a widespread p ...
in the streets, King
Bimbisara of
Magadha
Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
learned of his quest, and offered him a share of his kingdom. Gautama rejected the offer but promised to visit his kingdom first, upon attaining enlightenment.
Ascetic life and awakening
![Miracle of the Buddha walking on a River - East Face - South Pillar - East Gateway - Stupa 1 - Sanchi](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Miracle_of_the_Buddha_walking_on_a_River_-_East_Face_-_South_Pillar_-_East_Gateway_-_Stupa_1_-_Sanchi.jpg)
Majjhima Nikaya 4 mentions that Gautama lived in "remote jungle thickets" during his years of spiritual striving and had to overcome the fear that he felt while living in the forests. The Nikaya-texts also narrate that the ascetic Gautama practised under two teachers of
yogic
Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...
meditation. According to the ''AriyapariyesanÄ-sutta'' (MN 26) and its Chinese parallel at MÄ€ 204, after having mastered the teaching of
Ä€rÄá¸a KÄlÄma ( pi, Alara Kalama), who taught a meditation attainment called "the sphere of nothingness", he was asked by Ä€rÄá¸a to become an equal leader of their spiritual community. However, Gautama felt unsatisfied by the practice because it "does not lead to revulsion, to dispassion, to cessation, to calm, to knowledge, to awakening, to Nibbana", and moved on to become a student of
Udraka RÄmaputra ( pi, Udaka Ramaputta). With him, he achieved high levels of meditative consciousness (called "The Sphere of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception") and was again asked to join his teacher. But, once more, he was not satisfied for the same reasons as before, and moved on.
According to some sutras, after leaving his meditation teachers, Gotama then practiced ascetic techniques. The ascetic techniques described in the early texts include very minimal food intake, different forms of
breath control, and forceful mind control. The texts report that he became so emaciated that his bones became visible through his skin. The ''MahÄsaccaka-sutta'' and most of its parallels agree that after taking asceticism to its extremes, Gautama realized that this had not helped him attain nirvana, and that he needed to regain strength to pursue his goal. One popular story tells of how he accepted milk and
rice pudding from a village girl named
Sujata. His break with asceticism is said to have led his five companions to abandon him, since they believed that he had abandoned his search and become undisciplined. At this point, Gautama remembered a previous experience of ''dhyana'' he had as a child sitting under a tree while his father worked. This memory leads him to understand that ''dhyana'' ("meditation") is the path to liberation, and the texts then depict the Buddha achieving all four dhyanas, followed by the "three higher knowledges" (''
tevijja''), culminating in complete insight into the
Four Noble Truths
In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (Sanskrit: ; pi, cattÄri ariyasaccÄni; "The four Arya satyas") are "the truths of the Noble Ones", the truths or realities for the "spiritually worthy ones"., thereby attaining Moksha">liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
from ''samsara'', the endless cycle of rebirth.
According to the ''Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta'' (SN 56),
the Tathagata, the term Gautama uses most often to refer to himself, realized "the
Middle Way
The Middle Way ( pi, ; sa, ) as well as "teaching the Dharma by the middle" (''majjhena dhammaṃ deseti'') are common Buddhist terms used to refer to two major aspects of the Dharma, that is, the teaching of the Buddha.; my, အလယ်ဠ...
"—a path of moderation away from the extremes of
self-indulgence and self-mortification, or the
Noble Eightfold Path
The Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.
The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: ri ...
.
In later centuries, Gautama became known as the ''Buddha'' or "Awakened One". The title indicates that unlike most people who are "asleep", a Buddha is understood as having "woken up" to the true nature of reality and sees the world 'as it is' (''yatha-bhutam''). A Buddha has achieved liberation (''vimutti''), also called Nirvana, which is seen as the extinguishing of the "fires" of desire, hatred, and ignorance, that keep the cycle of suffering and rebirth going.
Following his decision to leave his meditation teachers, MÄ€ 204 and other parallel early texts report that Gautama sat down with the determination not to get up until full awakening (''sammÄ-sambodhi'') had been reached; the ''AriyapariyesanÄ-sutta'' does not mention "full awakening", but only that he attained nirvana. This event was said to have occurred under a
pipal tree—known as "the
Bodhi tree"—in
Bodh Gaya
Bodh Gaya is a religious site and place of pilgrimage associated with the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Gaya district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is famous as it is the place where Gautama Buddha is said to have attained Enlightenment ( pi, ...
,
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
.
As reported by various texts from the Pali Canon, the Buddha sat for seven days under the bodhi tree "feeling the bliss of deliverance". The Pali texts also report that he continued to meditate and contemplated various aspects of the Dharma while living by the
River NairañjanÄ, such as
Dependent Origination
A dependant is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included in this definition. In some jurisdictions, supporting a dependant may enabl ...
, the
Five Spiritual Faculties
''Indriya'' (literally "belonging to or agreeable to Indra") is the Sanskrit and Pali term for physical strength or ability in general, and for the senses more specifically. The term literally means "belonging to Indra," chief deity in the Rig Veda ...
and suffering (''dukkha'').
The legendary biographies like the ''
Mahavastu,
Nidanakatha
The JÄtakas (meaning "Birth Story", "related to a birth") are a voluminous body of literature native to India which mainly concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form. According to Peter Skilling, this genre is ...
'' and the ''
Lalitavistara'' depict an attempt by
Mara
Mara or MARA may refer to:
Animals
* Mara (mammal), a species of the cavy family
*Mara the Lioness, in the movie ''Born Free''
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Mara (''Doctor Who''), an evil being in two ''Doctor Who'' serials
*Mara, ...
, the ruler of the desire realm, to prevent the Buddha's nirvana. He does so by sending his daughters to seduce the Buddha, by asserting his superiority and by assaulting him with armies of monsters. However the Buddha is unfazed and calls on the earth (or in some versions of the legend, the
earth goddess) as witness to his superiority by
touching the ground before entering meditation. Other miracles and magical events are also depicted.
First sermon and formation of the saá¹…gha
![Sarnath1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Sarnath1.jpg)
According to MN 26, immediately after his awakening, the Buddha hesitated on whether or not he should teach the ''
Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धरà¥à¤®, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
'' to others. He was concerned that humans were overpowered by ignorance, greed, and hatred that it would be difficult for them to recognise the path, which is "subtle, deep and hard to grasp". However, the god
BrahmÄ Sahampati convinced him, arguing that at least some "with little dust in their eyes" will understand it. The Buddha relented and agreed to teach. According to AnÄlayo, the Chinese parallel to MN 26, MÄ€ 204, does not contain this story, but this event does appear in other parallel texts, such as in an ''
Ekottarika-Ägama'' discourse, in the ''Catusparisat-sÅ«tra'', and in the ''Lalitavistara''.
According to MN 26 and MÄ€ 204, after deciding to teach, the Buddha initially intended to visit his former teachers,
Alara Kalama ''Alara'' may refer to:
People
* Alara of Ilara-Mokin, the king of Ilara-Mokin land in Nigeria
* Alara of Nubia, a king of Kush
* ĀḷÄra KÄlÄma, a hermit saint, a teacher of yogic meditation and teacher of Gautama Buddha
* Luis Alberto Fernán ...
and
Udaka Ramaputta Udaka may refer:
*Uddaka RÄmaputta, teacher of Gautama Buddha.
*Shinji Udaka, a Japanese Baseball player.
*Udakanuketiya, a town in Sri Lanka.
*Udaka vadya, an Indian musical instrument.
{{Dab ...
, to teach them his insights, but they had already died, so he decided to visit his five former companions. MN 26 and MÄ€ 204 both report that on his way to
VÄrÄnasÄ« (Benares), he met another wanderer, called Ä€jÄ«vika Upaka in MN 26. The Buddha proclaimed that he had achieved full awakening, but Upaka was not convinced and "took a different path".
MN 26 and MÄ€ 204 continue with the Buddha reaching the
Deer Park (Sarnath) (''MrigadÄva'', also called ''Rishipatana'', "site where the ashes of the ascetics fell")
near VÄrÄnasÄ«, where he met the group of five ascetics and was able to convince them that he had indeed reached full awakening. According to MÄ€ 204 (but not MN 26), as well as the TheravÄda Vinaya, an
''Ekottarika-Ägama'' text, the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya, the
MahÄ«Å›Äsaka
MahÄ«Å›Äsaka ( sa, महीशासक; ) is one of the early Buddhist schools according to some records. Its origins may go back to the dispute in the Second Buddhist council. The Dharmaguptaka sect is thought to have branched out from MahÄ ...
Vinaya, and the ''MahÄvastu'', the Buddha then taught them the "first sermon", also known as the "Benares sermon",
i.e. the teaching of "the noble eightfold path as the middle path aloof from the two extremes of sensual indulgence and self-mortification." The Pali text reports that after the first sermon, the ascetic
Koṇá¸añña (Kaundinya) became the first
arahant (liberated being) and the first Buddhist
bhikkhu
A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: à¤à¤¿à¤•à¥à¤–à¥, Sanskrit: à¤à¤¿à¤•à¥à¤·à¥, ''bhiká¹£u'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunÄ«'', Sanskrit ''bhiká¹£uṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist ...
or monastic. The Buddha then continued to teach the other ascetics and they formed the first
, the company of Buddhist monks.
Various sources such as the ''MahÄvastu,'' the ''MahÄkhandhaka'' of the TheravÄda Vinaya and the ''Catusparisat-sÅ«tra'' also mention that the Buddha taught them his second discourse, about the characteristic of
"not-self" (''
AnÄtmalaká¹£aṇa SÅ«tra''), at this time or five days later.
After hearing this second sermon the four remaining ascetics also reached the status of ''arahant.''
The TheravÄda Vinaya and the ''Catusparisat-sÅ«tra'' also speak of the conversion of
Yasa, a local guild master, and his friends and family, who were some of the first laypersons to be converted and to enter the Buddhist community.
The conversion of three brothers named Kassapa followed, who brought with them five hundred converts who had previously been "matted hair ascetics", and whose spiritual practice was related to fire sacrifices. According to the TheravÄda Vinaya, the Buddha then stopped at the Gayasisa hill near
Gaya
Gaya may refer to:
Geography Czech Republic
*Gaya (German and Latin), Kyjov (HodonÃn District), a town
Guinea
* Gaya or Gayah, a town
India
*Gaya, India, a city in Bihar
**Gaya Airport
*Bodh Gaya, a town in Bihar near Gaya
*Gaya district, Bi ...
and delivered his third discourse, the ''
Ä€dittapariyÄya Sutta'' (The Discourse on Fire), in which he taught that everything in the world is inflamed by passions and only those who follow the Eightfold path can be liberated.
At the end of the rainy season, when the Buddha's community had grown to around sixty awakened monks, he instructed them to wander on their own, teach and ordain people into the community, for the "welfare and benefit" of the world.
Travels and growth of the saá¹…gha
![Jetavana](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Jetavana.jpg)
For the remaining 40 or 45 years of his life, the Buddha is said to have travelled in the
Gangetic Plain
The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian River Plain, is a fertile plain encompassing northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, including most of northern and eastern India, around half of Pakistan, virtually all of Bangla ...
, in what is now
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
,
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
, and southern Nepal, teaching a diverse range of people: from nobles to servants, ascetics and householders, murderers such as
Angulimala, and cannibals such as Alavaka. According to Schumann, the Buddha's travels ranged from "
Kosambi
Kosambi (Pali) or Kaushambi (Sanskrit) was an important city in ancient India. It was the capital of the Vatsa kingdom, one of the sixteen mahajanapadas. It was located on the Yamuna River about southwest of its confluence with the Ganges at ...
on the
Yamuna
The Yamuna (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), also spelt Jumna, is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a ...
(25 km south-west of
Allahabad
Allahabad (), officially known as Prayagraj, also known as Ilahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi (Benares). It is the administrat ...
)", to Campa (40 km east of
Bhagalpur
Bhagalpur is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern banks of the river Ganges. It is the 2nd largest city of Bihar by population and also the headquarters of Bhagalpur district and Bhagalpur division. Known as the Silk ...
)" and from "Kapilavatthu (95 km north-west of
Gorakhpur) to Uruvela (south of Gaya)." This covers an area of 600 by 300 km. His sangha enjoyed the patronage of the kings of
Kosala
The Kingdom of Kosala (Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indian kingdom with a rich culture, corresponding to the area within the region of Awadh in present-day Uttar Pradesh to Western Odisha. It emerged as a janapada, small state during the late Ve ...
and
Magadha
Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
and he thus spent a lot of time in their respective capitals,
Savatthi and
Rajagaha
Rajgir, meaning "The City of Kings," is a historic town in the district of Nalanda in Bihar, India. As the ancient seat and capital of the Haryanka dynasty, the Pradyota dynasty, the Brihadratha dynasty and the Mauryan Empire, as well as the d ...
.
Although the Buddha's language remains unknown, it is likely that he taught in one or more of a variety of closely related
Middle Indo-Aryan
The Middle Indo-Aryan languages (or Middle Indic languages, sometimes conflated with the Prakrits, which are a stage of Middle Indic) are a historical group of languages of the Indo-Aryan family. They are the descendants of Old Indo-Aryan (OIA; ...
dialects, of which
Pali
Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''PÄli Canon'' or ''Tipiá¹aka'' as well as the sacred language of ''TheravÄda'' Buddhism ...
may be a standardisation.
The sangha wandered throughout the year, except during the four months of the
Vassa rainy season when ascetics of all religions rarely travelled. One reason was that it was more difficult to do so without causing harm to flora and animal life. The health of the ascetics might have been a concern as well. At this time of year, the sangha would retreat to monasteries, public parks or forests, where people would come to them.
The first vassana was spent at
Varanasi
Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.
*
*
*
* The city has a syncretic t ...
when the sangha was formed. According to the Pali texts, shortly after the formation of the sangha, the Buddha travelled to
Rajagaha
Rajgir, meaning "The City of Kings," is a historic town in the district of Nalanda in Bihar, India. As the ancient seat and capital of the Haryanka dynasty, the Pradyota dynasty, the Brihadratha dynasty and the Mauryan Empire, as well as the d ...
, capital of
Magadha
Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
, and met with King
Bimbisara, who gifted a bamboo grove park to the sangha.
The Buddha's sangha continued to grow during his initial travels in north India. The early texts tell the story of how the Buddha's
chief disciples,
SÄriputta and
MahÄmoggallÄna
MaudgalyÄyana ( pi, MoggallÄna), also known as MahÄmaudgalyÄyana or by his birth name Kolita, was one of the Buddha's closest disciples. Described as a contemporary of disciples such as Subhuti, ÅšÄriputra ('), and MahÄkÄÅ›yapa ( pi, M ...
, who were both students of the skeptic sramana
Sañjaya Belaá¹á¹hiputta, were converted by
Assaji
Assaji (Pali: ''Assaji'', Sanskrit: ''Aśvajit'') was one of the first five arahants of Gautama Buddha. He is known for his conversion of Sariputta and Mahamoggallana, the Buddha's two chief male disciples, counterparts to the nuns Khema and Upp ...
. They also tell of how the Buddha's son,
Rahula, joined his father as a bhikkhu when the Buddha visited his old home, Kapilavastu. Over time, other Shakyans joined the order as bhikkhus, such as Buddha's cousin
Ananda,
Anuruddha
Anuruddha ( pi, AnuruddhÄ) was one of the ten principal disciples and a cousin of Gautama Buddha.
Early years
Anuruddha was the son of Amitodana and brother to Mahanama and princess Rohini (Buddha's disciple). Since Amitodana was the broth ...
,
Upali the barber, the Buddha's half-brother
Nanda
Nanda may refer to:
Indian history and religion
* Nanda Empire, ruled by the Nanda dynasty, an Indian royal dynasty ruling Magadha in the 4th century BCE
** Mahapadma Nanda, first Emperor of the Nanda Empire
** Dhana Nanda (died c. 321 BCE), last ...
and
Devadatta. Meanwhile, the Buddha's father Suddhodana heard his son's teaching, converted to Buddhism and became a
stream-enterer.
The early texts also mention an important lay disciple, the merchant
AnÄthapiṇá¸ika, who became a strong lay supporter of the Buddha early on. He is said to have gifted
Jeta's grove (''Jetavana'') to the sangha at great expense (the Theravada Vinaya speaks of thousands of gold coins).
Formation of the bhikkhunī order
![Mahapajapati](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Mahapajapati.jpg)
The formation of a parallel order of female monastics (
bhikkhunÄ«) was another important part of the growth of the Buddha's community. As noted by AnÄlayo's comparative study of this topic, there are various versions of this event depicted in the different early Buddhist texts.
According to all the major versions surveyed by AnÄlayo,
MahÄprajÄpatÄ« GautamÄ«, Buddha's step-mother, is initially turned down by the Buddha after requesting ordination for her and some other women. MahÄprajÄpatÄ« and her followers then shave their hair, don robes and begin following the Buddha on his travels. The Buddha is eventually convinced by Ä€nanda to grant ordination to MahÄprajÄpatÄ« on her acceptance of
eight conditions called gurudharmas which focus on the relationship between the new order of nuns and the monks.
According to AnÄlayo, the only argument common to all the versions that Ananda uses to convince the Buddha is that women have the same ability to reach all stages of awakening. AnÄlayo also notes that some modern scholars have questioned the authenticity of the eight gurudharmas in their present form due to various inconsistencies. He holds that the historicity of the current lists of eight is doubtful, but that they may have been based on earlier injunctions by the Buddha. AnÄlayo also notes that various passages indicate that the reason for the Buddha's hesitation to ordain women was the danger that the life of a wandering sramana posed for women that were not under the protection of their male family members (such as dangers of sexual assault and abduction). Due to this, the gurudharma injunctions may have been a way to place "the newly founded order of nuns in a relationship to its male counterparts that resembles as much as possible the protection a laywoman could expect from her male relatives."
Later years
![Indian Museum Sculpture - Ajatasattu worships the Buddha %289217704485%29](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Indian_Museum_Sculpture_-_Ajatasattu_worships_the_Buddha_%289217704485%29.jpg)
According to J.S. Strong, after the first 20 years of his teaching career, the Buddha seems to have slowly settled in Sravasti, the capital of the Kingdom of Kosala, spending most of his later years in this city.
As the sangha grew in size, the need for a standardized set of monastic rules arose and the Buddha seems to have developed a set of regulations for the sangha. These are preserved in various texts called "
Pratimoksa" which were recited by the community every fortnight. The Pratimoksa includes general ethical precepts, as well as rules regarding the essentials of monastic life, such as bowls and robes.
In his later years, the Buddha's fame grew and he was invited to important royal events, such as the inauguration of the new council hall of the Shakyans (as seen in MN 53) and the inauguration of a new palace by Prince Bodhi (as depicted in MN 85). The early texts also speak of how during the Buddha's old age, the kingdom of Magadha was usurped by a new king,
Ajatashatru, who overthrew his father
Bimbisara. According to the ''Samaññaphala Sutta,'' the new king spoke with different ascetic teachers and eventually took refuge in the Buddha. However, Jain sources also claim his allegiance, and it is likely he supported various religious groups, not just the Buddha's sangha exclusively.
As the Buddha continued to travel and teach, he also came into contact with
members of other Å›rÄmana sects. There is evidence from the early texts that the Buddha encountered some of these figures and critiqued their doctrines. The ''Samaññaphala Sutta'' identifies six such sects.
The early texts also depict the elderly Buddha as suffering from back pain. Several texts depict him delegating teachings to his chief disciples since his body now needed more rest. However, the Buddha continued teaching well into his old age.
One of the most troubling events during the Buddha's old age was
Devadatta's schism. Early sources speak of how the Buddha's cousin, Devadatta, attempted to take over leadership of the order and then left the sangha with several Buddhist monks and formed a rival sect. This sect is said to have also been supported by King Ajatashatru. The Pali texts also depict Devadatta as plotting to kill the Buddha, but these plans all fail. They also depict the Buddha as sending his two chief disciples (Sariputta and Moggallana) to this schismatic community in order to convince the monks who left with Devadatta to return.
All the major early Buddhist Vinaya texts depict Devadatta as a divisive figure who attempted to split the Buddhist community, but they disagree on what issues he disagreed with the Buddha on. The
Sthavira texts generally focus on "five points" which are seen as excessive ascetic practices, while the
MahÄsaá¹…ghika Vinaya speaks of a more comprehensive disagreement, which has Devadatta alter the discourses as well as monastic discipline.
At around the same time of Devadatta's schism, there was also war between Ajatashatru's Kingdom of Magadha, and Kosala, led by an elderly king Pasenadi. Ajatashatru seems to have been victorious, a turn of events the Buddha is reported to have regretted.
Last days and ''parinirvana''
![040 Ananda worships Buddha (25595318747)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/040_Ananda_worships_Buddha_%2825595318747%29.jpg)
The main narrative of the Buddha's last days, death and the events following his death is contained in the ''
Mahaparinibbana Sutta'' (DN 16) and its various parallels in Sanskrit, Chinese, and Tibetan. According to AnÄlayo, these include the Chinese Dirgha Agama 2, "Sanskrit fragments of the ''Mahaparinirvanasutra"'', and "three discourses preserved as individual translations in Chinese".
The ''Mahaparinibbana sutta'' depicts the Buddha's last year as a time of war. It begins with Ajatashatru's decision to make war on the
Vajjika League
The Vajjika (Pali, PÄli: ) or Vrijika (Sanskrit: ) League, Confederacy, or Sangha, also called simply Vajji (Pali, PÄli: ) or Vriji (Sanskrit: ), was an ancient Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan tribal league which existed during the later Iron ...
, leading him to send a minister to ask the Buddha for advice. The Buddha responds by saying that the Vajjikas can be expected to prosper as long as they do seven things, and he then applies these seven principles to the Buddhist Sangha, showing that he is concerned about its future welfare. The Buddha says that the Sangha will prosper as long as they "hold regular and frequent assemblies, meet in harmony, do not change the rules of training, honour their superiors who were ordained before them, do not fall prey to worldly desires, remain devoted to forest hermitages, and preserve their personal mindfulness." He then gives further lists of important virtues to be upheld by the Sangha.
The early texts also depict how the Buddha's two chief disciples, Sariputta and Moggallana, died just before the Buddha's death. The ''Mahaparinibbana'' depicts the Buddha as experiencing illness during the last months of his life but initially recovering. It also depicts him as stating that he cannot promote anyone to be his successor. When Ānanda requested this, the ''Mahaparinibbana'' records his response as follows:
After travelling and teaching some more, the Buddha ate his last meal, which he had received as an offering from a blacksmith named
Cunda. Falling violently ill, Buddha instructed his attendant Ānanda to convince Cunda that the meal eaten at his place had nothing to do with his death and that his meal would be a source of the greatest merit as it provided the last meal for a Buddha. Bhikkhu Mettanando and
Oskar von Hinüber
Oskar von Hinüber (born 18 February 1939 in Hanover) is a German Indologist. He joined the German Navy after leaving high school, and holds the rank of Commander as a reservist. From 1960 to 1966 he studied at University of Tübingen, University ...
argue that the Buddha died of
mesenteric
The mesentery is an organ that attaches the intestines to the posterior abdominal wall in humans and is formed by the double fold of peritoneum. It helps in storing fat and allowing blood vessels, lymphatics, and nerves to supply the intestines ...
infarction
Infarction is tissue death (necrosis) due to inadequate blood supply to the affected area. It may be caused by artery blockages, rupture, mechanical compression, or vasoconstriction. The resulting lesion is referred to as an infarct
(from the ...
, a symptom of old age, rather than food poisoning.
The precise contents of the Buddha's final meal are not clear, due to variant scriptural traditions and ambiguity over the translation of certain significant terms. The
Theravada
''TheravÄda'' () ( si, ථේරවà·à¶¯à¶º, my, ထေရá€á€«á€’, th, เถรวาท, km, ážáŸážšážœáž¶áž‘, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
tradition generally believes that the Buddha was offered some kind of pork, while the
Mahayana
''MahÄyÄna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. MahÄyÄna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...
tradition believes that the Buddha consumed some sort of truffle or other mushroom. These may reflect the different traditional views on
Buddhist vegetarianism
Buddhist vegetarianism is the practice of vegetarianism by significant portions of Mahayana Buddhist monks and nuns (as well as laypersons) and some Buddhists of other sects. In Buddhism, the views on vegetarianism vary between different schoo ...
and the precepts for monks and nuns. Modern scholars also disagree on this topic, arguing both for pig's flesh or some kind of plant or mushroom that pigs like to eat. Whatever the case, none of the sources which mention the last meal attribute the Buddha's sickness to the meal itself.
As per the ''Mahaparinibbana sutta,'' after the meal with Cunda, the Buddha and his companions continued travelling until he was too weak to continue and had to stop at
Kushinagar, where Ānanda had a resting place prepared in a grove of Sala trees. After announcing to the sangha at large that he would soon be passing away to final Nirvana, the Buddha ordained one last novice into the order personally, his name was Subhadda. He then repeated his final instructions to the sangha, which was that the Dhamma and Vinaya was to be their teacher after his death. Then he asked if anyone had any doubts about the teaching, but nobody did. The Buddha's final words are reported to have been: "All
''saá¹…khÄras'' decay. Strive for the goal with diligence (''
appamÄda
ApramÄda (Sanskrit; Pali: ''appamÄda''; Tibetan Wylie: ''bag yod pa'') is a Buddhist term translated as "conscientious" or "concern". It is defined as taking great care concerning what should be adopted and what should be avoided.Guenther (1975 ...
'')" (Pali: 'vayadhammÄ saá¹…khÄrÄ appamÄdena sampÄdethÄ').
He then entered his final meditation and died, reaching what is known as ''parinirvana'' (final nirvana, the end of rebirth and suffering achieved after the death of the body). The ''Mahaparinibbana'' reports that in his final meditation he entered the four dhyanas consecutively, then the four
immaterial attainments and finally the meditative dwelling known as ''nirodha-samÄpatti,'' before returning to the fourth dhyana right at the moment of death.
Posthumous events
According to the ''Mahaparinibbana sutta,'' the Mallians of Kushinagar spent the days following the Buddha's death honouring his body with flowers, music and scents. The sangha waited until the eminent elder
MahÄkassapa arrived to pay his respects before cremating the body.
The Buddha's body was then cremated and the remains, including his bones, were kept as
relic
In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...
s and they were distributed among various north Indian kingdoms like Magadha, Shakya and
Koliya. These relics were placed in monuments or mounds called
stupa
A stupa ( sa, सà¥à¤¤à¥‚प, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''Å›arÄ«ra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circumamb ...
s, a common funerary practice at the time. Centuries later they would be exhumed and enshrined by
Ashoka into many new stupas around the
Mauryan realm. Many supernatural legends surround the history of alleged relics as they accompanied the spread of Buddhism and gave legitimacy to rulers.
According to various Buddhist sources, the
First Buddhist Council
__NOTOC__
The First Buddhist council was a gathering of senior monks of the Buddhist order convened just after Gautama Buddha's death, which according to Buddhist tradition was c. 483 BCE, though most modern scholars place it around 400 BCE. T ...
was held shortly after the Buddha's death to collect, recite and memorize the teachings. MahÄkassapa was chosen by the sangha to be the chairman of the council. However, the historicity of the traditional accounts of the first council is disputed by modern scholars.
Teachings and views
Core teachings
A number of teachings and practices are deemed essential to Buddhism, including: the
samyojana
In Buddhism, a mental fetter, chain or bond (PÄli: ''samyojana'', Sanskrit: संयोजना, ''saṃyojana'') shackles a sentient being to sasÄra, the cycle of lives with dukkha. By cutting through all fetters, one attains nibbÄna (Pa ...
(fetters, chains or bounds), that is, the
sankharas ("formations"), the
kleshas (uwholesome mental states), including the
three poisons, and the
Äsava
Āsava is a Pali term (Sanskrit: Āsrava) that is used in Buddhist scripture, philosophy, and psychology, meaning "influx, canker." It refers to the mental defilements of sensual pleasures, craving for existence, and ignorance, which perpetuate ...
s ("influx, canker"), that perpetuate
sasÄra, the repeated cycle of becoming; the
six sense bases
6 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
6 or six may also refer to:
* AD 6, the sixth year of the AD era
* 6 BC, the sixth year before the AD era
* The month of June
Science
* Carbon, the element with atomic number 6
* 6 Hebe, an asteroid
People
...
and the
five aggregates
(Sanskrit) or (PÄḷi) means "heaps, aggregates, collections, groupings". In Buddhism, it refers to the five aggregates of clinging (), the five material and mental factors that take part in the rise of craving and clinging. They are also ...
, which describe the proces from sense contact to consciousness which lead to this bondage to sasÄra;
dependent origination
A dependant is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included in this definition. In some jurisdictions, supporting a dependant may enabl ...
, which describes this proces, and it's reversal, in detail; and the
Middle Way
The Middle Way ( pi, ; sa, ) as well as "teaching the Dharma by the middle" (''majjhena dhammaṃ deseti'') are common Buddhist terms used to refer to two major aspects of the Dharma, that is, the teaching of the Buddha.; my, အလယ်ဠ...
, with the
Four Noble Truths
In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (Sanskrit: ; pi, cattÄri ariyasaccÄni; "The four Arya satyas") are "the truths of the Noble Ones", the truths or realities for the "spiritually worthy ones". and the
Noble Eightfold Path
The Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.
The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: ri ...
, which prescribes how this bondage can be reversed.
According to N. Ross Reat, the Theravada Pali texts and the
Mahasamghika school's Salistamba Sutra">''ÅšÄlistamba SÅ«tra'' share
these basic teachings and practices.
Bhikkhu Analayo concludes that the Theravada ''
Majjhima Nikaya'' and
Majjhima NikÄya">Majjhima Nikaya'' and Sarvastivada ''Madhyama Agama">Sarvastivada.html" ;"title="Majjhima NikÄya">Majjhima Nikaya'' and Sarvastivada">Majjhima NikÄya">Majjhima Nikaya'' and
''Madhyama Agama'' contain mostly the same major doctrines. Likewise,
Richard Salomon has written that the doctrines found in the GandhÄran Buddhist texts">Gandharan Manuscripts are "consistent with non-Mahayana Buddhism, which survives today in the Theravada school of Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, but which in ancient times was represented by eighteen separate schools."
Samsara
All beings have deeply entrenched
samyojana
In Buddhism, a mental fetter, chain or bond (PÄli: ''samyojana'', Sanskrit: संयोजना, ''saṃyojana'') shackles a sentient being to sasÄra, the cycle of lives with dukkha. By cutting through all fetters, one attains nibbÄna (Pa ...
(fetters, chains or bounds), that is, the
sankharas ("formations"),
kleshas (uwholesome mental states), including the
three poisons, and
Äsava
Āsava is a Pali term (Sanskrit: Āsrava) that is used in Buddhist scripture, philosophy, and psychology, meaning "influx, canker." It refers to the mental defilements of sensual pleasures, craving for existence, and ignorance, which perpetuate ...
s ("influx, canker"), that perpetuate
sasÄra, the repeated cycle of becoming and
rebirth. According to the Pali suttas, the Buddha stated that "this saṃsÄra is without discoverable beginning. A first point is not discerned of beings roaming and wandering on hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving." In the ''Dutiyalokadhammasutta sutta'' (AN 8:6) the Buddha explains how "eight worldly winds" "keep the world turning around
..Gain and loss, fame and disrepute, praise and blame, pleasure and pain." He then explains how the difference between a noble (''arya'') person and an uninstructed worldling is that a noble person reflects on and understands the impermanence of these conditions.
This cycle of becoming is characterized by ''
dukkha'', commonly referred to as "suffering," ''dukkha'' is more aptly rendered as "unsatisfactoriness" or "unease." It is the unsatisfactoriness and unease that comes with a life dictated by automatic responses and habituated selfishness, and the unsatifacories of expecting enduring happiness from things which are impermanent, unstable and thus unreliable. The ultimate noble goal should be liberation from this cycle.
''Samsara'' is dictated by
karma
Karma (; sa, करà¥à¤®}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...
, which is an impersonal natural law, similar to how certain seeds produce certain plants and fruits..''Karma'' is not the only cause for one's conditions, as the Buddha listed various physical and environmental causes alongside karma. The Buddha's teaching of karma differed to that of the Jains and Brahmins, in that on his view, karma is primarily mental intention (as opposed to mainly physical action or ritual acts). The Buddha is reported to have said "By karma I mean intention." Richard Gombrich summarizes the Buddha's view of karma as follows: "all thoughts, words, and deeds derive their moral value, positive or negative, from the intention behind them."
The six sense bases and the five aggregates
The
Äyatana
''Ä€yatana'' (PÄli; Sanskrit: आयतन) is a Buddhist term that has been translated as "sense base", "sense-media" or "sense sphere". In Buddhism, there are six ''internal'' sense bases (Pali: ''ajjhattikÄni ÄyatanÄni''; also known as ...
(six sense bases) and the
five skandhas
(Sanskrit) or (PÄḷi) means "heaps, aggregates, collections, groupings". In Buddhism, it refers to the five aggregates of clinging (), the five material and mental factors that take part in the rise of craving and clinging. They are also ...
(aggregates) describe how sensory contact leads to attachment and dukkha. The six sense bases are ear and sound, nose and odour, tongue and taste, body and touch, and mind and thoughts. Together they create the input feom which we create our world or reality, "the all." Thi process takes place through the five skandhas, "aggregates," "groups," "heaps," five groups of physical and mental processes, anmely form (or material image, impression) (), sensations (or feelings, received from form) (), perceptions (), mental activity or formations (), consciousness ().
They form part of other Buddhist teachings and lists, such as dependent origination, and explain how sensory input ultimately leads to bondage to samsara by the mental defilements.
Dependent Origination
![Buddha teaching Dharma, on lion throne](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Buddha_teaching_Dharma%2C_on_lion_throne.jpg)
In the early texts, the process of the arising of dukkha is explicated through the teaching of Dependent Origination">dependent origination
A dependant is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included in this definition. In some jurisdictions, supporting a dependant may enabl ...
, which says that everything that exists or occurs is dependent on conditioning factors. The most basic formulation of dependent origination is given in the early texts as: 'It being thus, this comes about' (Pali: ''evam sati idam hoti''). This can be taken to mean that certain phenomena only arise when there are other phenomena present, thus their arising is "dependent" on other phenomena.
The philosopher Mark Siderits has outlined the basic idea of the Buddha's teaching of Dependent Origination of dukkha as follows:
In numerous early texts, this basic principle is expanded with a list of phenomena that are said to be conditionally dependent, as a result of later elaborations, including Vedic cosmogenies as the basis for the first four links.
According to Boisvert, nidana 3-10 correlate with the five skandhas. According to Richard Gombrich, the twelve-fold list is a combination of two previous lists, the second list beginning with ''tanha'', "thirst," the cause of suffering as described in the second noble truth". According to Gombrich, the two lists were combined, resulting in contradictions in its reverse version.
= Anatta
=
The Buddha saw his analysis of dependent origination as a "Middle Way" between "eternalism" (''sassatavada'', the idea that some essence exists eternally) and "annihilationism" (''ucchedavada'', the idea that we go completely out of existence at death). in this view, persons are just a causal series of impermanent psycho-physical elements, which are ''anatta'', without an independent or permanent self. The Buddha instead held that all things in the world of our experience are transient and that there is no unchanging part to a person. According to Richard Gombrich, the Buddha's position is simply that "everything is process".
The
Buddha's arguments against an unchanging self rely on the scheme of the five skandhas, as can be seen in the Pali ''
Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta
The '' Sutta'' (Pali) or ' (Sanskrit), is traditionally recorded as the second discourse delivered by Gautama Buddha. The title translates to the "Not-Self Characteristic Discourse", but is also known as the ''Pañcavaggiya Sutta'' (Pali) or ' ...
'' (and its parallels in Gandhari and Chinese)''.'' In the early texts the Buddha teaches that all five aggregates, including consciousness (''
viññana'', which was held by Brahmins to be eternal), arise due to dependent origination. Since they are all impermanent, one cannot regard any of the psycho-physical processes as an unchanging self. Even mental processes such as
consciousness
Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...
and will (''
cetana'') are seen as being dependently originated and impermanent and thus do not qualify as a self (''atman'').
The Buddha saw the belief in a self as arising from our grasping at and identifying with the various changing phenomena, as well as from ignorance about how things really are. Furthermore, the Buddha held that we experience suffering because we hold on to erroneous self views. As
Rupert Gethin
Rupert Mark Lovell Gethin (born 1957, in Edinburgh) is Professor of Buddhist Studies in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies and codirector of the Centre for Buddhist Studies at the University of Bristol, and (since 2003) president of ...
explains, for the Buddha, a person is
Due to this view (termed ), the Buddha's teaching was opposed to all soul theories of his time, including the Jain theory of a ''"
jiva
''Jiva'' ( sa, जीव, IAST: ) is a living being or any entity imbued with a life force in Hinduism and Jīva (Jainism), Jainism. The word itself originates from the Sanskrit verb-root ''jīv'', which translates as 'to breathe' or 'to live'. ...
"'' ("life monad") and the Brahmanical theories of
atman Atman or Ātman may refer to:
Film
* ''Ä€tman'' (1975 film), a Japanese experimental short film directed by Toshio Matsumoto
* ''Atman'' (1997 film), a documentary film directed by Pirjo Honkasalo
People
* Pavel Atman (born 1987), Russian hand ...
(Pali: ''atta'') and
purusha. All of these theories held that there was an eternal unchanging
essence to a person, which was separate from all changing experiences, and which transmigrated from life to life. The Buddha's
anti-essentialist view still includes an understanding of continuity through rebirth, it is just the rebirth of a process (karma), not an essence like the atman.
The path to liberation
The Buddha taught a path (''marga'') of training to undo the
samyojana
In Buddhism, a mental fetter, chain or bond (PÄli: ''samyojana'', Sanskrit: संयोजना, ''saṃyojana'') shackles a sentient being to sasÄra, the cycle of lives with dukkha. By cutting through all fetters, one attains nibbÄna (Pa ...
,
kleshas and
Äsava
Āsava is a Pali term (Sanskrit: Āsrava) that is used in Buddhist scripture, philosophy, and psychology, meaning "influx, canker." It refers to the mental defilements of sensual pleasures, craving for existence, and ignorance, which perpetuate ...
s and attain ''
vimutti'' (liberation). This path taught by the Buddha is depicted in the early texts (most famously in the Pali ''
Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta'' and its numerous parallel texts) as a "
Middle Way
The Middle Way ( pi, ; sa, ) as well as "teaching the Dharma by the middle" (''majjhena dhammaṃ deseti'') are common Buddhist terms used to refer to two major aspects of the Dharma, that is, the teaching of the Buddha.; my, အလယ်ဠ...
" between sensual indulgence on one hand and mortification of the body on the other.
A common presentation of the core structure of Buddha's teaching found in the early texts is that of the
Four Noble Truths
In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (Sanskrit: ; pi, cattÄri ariyasaccÄni; "The four Arya satyas") are "the truths of the Noble Ones", the truths or realities for the "spiritually worthy ones". , which refers to the
Noble Eightfold Path
The Noble Eightfold Path (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.
The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: ri ...
. According to Gethin, another common summary of the path to awakening wisely used in the early texts is "abandoning the
hindrances, practice of the four establishments of mindfulness and development of
the awakening factors."
According to Rupert Gethin, in the Nikayas and Agamas, the Buddha's path is mainly presented in a cumulative and gradual "step by step" process, such as that outlined in the ''
Samaññaphala Sutta
The Samaññaphala Sutta, "The Fruit of Contemplative Life," is the second discourse (Pali, ''sutta''; Skt., ''sutra'') of the Digha Nikaya.
In terms of narrative, this discourse tells the story of King AjÄtasattu, son and successor of King Bi ...
''. Other early texts like the ''Upanisa sutta'' (SN 12.23), present the path as reversions of the process of Dependent Origination.
''
BhÄvanÄ
''BhÄvanÄ'' (Pali;Rhys Davids & Stede (1921-25), p. 503, entry for "BhÄvanÄ," retrieved 9 December 2008 from "U. Chicago" a Sanskrit: à¤à¤¾à¤µà¤¨à¤¾, also ''bhÄvanÄ''Monier-Williams (1899), p. 755, see "BhÄvana" and "BhÄvanÄ", retriev ...
'', cultivation of wholesome states, is central to the Buddha's path. Common practices to this goal, which are shared by most of these early presentations of the path, include ''
sila'' (ethical training), restraint of the senses (''indriyasamvara''), ''
sati'' (mindfulness) and ''
Sati (Buddhism)">sati'' (mindfulness) and ''sampajañña'' (clear awareness), and the practice of ''Dhyana in Buddhism">dhyana
Dhyana may refer to:
Meditative practices in Indian religions
* Dhyana in Buddhism (PÄli: ''jhÄna'')
* Dhyana in Hinduism
* Jain DhyÄna, see Jain meditation
Other
*''Dhyana'', a work by British composer John Tavener (1944-2013)
* ''Dhyana'' ...
'', the cumulative development of wholesome states leading to a "state of perfect Upekkha">equanimity
Equanimity (Latin: ''æquanimitas'', having an even mind; ''aequus'' even; ''animus'' mind/soul) is a state of inner peace, psychological stability and composure which is undisturbed by experience of or exposure to emotions, pain, or other phenom ...
and awareness (''upekkhÄ-sati-parisuddhi'')." Dhyana is preceded and supported by various aspects of the path such as sense restraint and mindfulness, which is elaborated in the ''satipatthana''-scheme, as taught in the Pali ''Satipatthana Sutta'' and the sixteen elements of ''Anapanasati'', as taught in the ''Anapanasati Sutta''.
In various texts, the Buddha is depicted as having studied under two named teachers,
. According to Alexander Wynne, these were yogis who taught doctrines and practices similar to those in the
. According to
, the "meditation without breath and reduced intake of food" which the Buddha practiced before his awakening are forms of asceticism which are similar to Jain practices.
According to Richard Gombrich, the Buddha's teachings on
''. Likewise, ''
'', the idea that we are trapped in cycles of rebirth and that we should seek liberation from them through non-harming (''
'') and spiritual practices, pre-dates the Buddha and was likely taught in early Jainism. According to
'' may also reflect Upanishadic or other influences . The Buddhist practice called
may have also originated from a Brahmanic term; but its usage may have been common in the sramana traditions.
One method to obtain information on the oldest core of Buddhism is to compare the oldest versions of the
. The reliability of these sources, and the possibility of drawing out a core of oldest teachings, is a matter of dispute. According to
, there are three positions held by modern scholars of Buddhism with regard to the authenticity of the teachings contained in the Nikayas:
# "Stress on the fundamental homogeneity and substantial authenticity of at least a considerable part of the Nikayic materials."
# "Scepticism with regard to the possibility of retrieving the doctrine of earliest Buddhism."
# "Cautious optimism in this respect."
Scholars such as
hold that these Early Buddhist Texts contain material that could possibly be traced to the Buddha.
argues that since the content of the earliest texts "presents such originality, intelligence, grandeur and—most relevantly—coherence...it is hard to see it as a composite work." Thus he concludes they are "the work of one genius."
was formulated by anyone other than the Buddha and his immediate followers." According to Alexander Wynne, "the internal evidence of the early Buddhist literature proves its historical authenticity."
Other scholars of Buddhist studies have disagreed with the mostly positive view that the early Buddhist texts reflect the teachings of the historical Buddha, arguing that some teachings contained in the early texts are the authentic teachings of the Buddha, but not others. According to Tilmann Vetter, inconsistencies remain, and other methods must be applied to resolve those inconsistencies. According to Tilmann Vetter, the earliest core of the Buddhist teachings is the meditative practice of ''dhyÄna'', but "liberating insight" became an essential feature of the Buddhist tradition only at a later date. He posits that the Fourth Noble Truths, the Eightfold path and Dependent Origination, which are commonly seen as essential to Buddhism, are later formulations which form part of the explanatory framework of this "liberating insight".
similarly argues that the mention of the four noble truths as constituting "liberating insight", which is attained after mastering the four ''dhyÄnas'', is a later addition.
also argues that the four truths may not have been formulated in earliest Buddhism, and did not serve in earliest Buddhism as a description of "liberating insight".
argued that the attempts of European scholars to reconstruct the original teachings of the Buddha were "all mere guesswork."
The early Buddhist texts depict the Buddha as promoting the life of a homeless and
"''sramana''", or mendicant, as the ideal way of life for the practice of the path. He taught that mendicants or "beggars" (
) were supposed to give up all possessions and to own just a begging bowl and three robes. As part of the Buddha's monastic discipline, they were also supposed to rely on the wider lay community for the basic necessities (mainly food, clothing, and lodging).
The Buddha's teachings on monastic discipline were preserved in the various
collections of the different early schools.
Buddhist monastics, which included both monks and nuns, were supposed to beg for their food, were not allowed to store up food or eat after noon and they were not allowed to use gold, silver or any valuables.
tradition, the Brahmins, did not occupy a dominant position in the area in which the Buddha preached his message." Nevertheless, the Buddha was acquainted with Brahmanism, and in the early Buddhist Texts, the Buddha references Brahmanical devices. For example, in
as the foremost meter. In general, the Buddha critiques the
'') texts. The Buddha, on the other hand, did not accept that these texts had any divine authority or value.
The Buddha also did not see the Brahmanical rites and practices as useful for spiritual advancement. For example, in the
does not lead to purity, only "truth and morality" lead to purity. He especially critiqued
as taught in Vedas.
The Buddha contrasted his teachings, which were taught openly to all people, with that of the Brahmins', who kept their
s secret.
The Buddha also critiqued the Brahmins' claims of superior birth and the idea that different castes and bloodlines were inherently pure or impure, noble or ignoble.
In the ''Vasettha sutta ''the Buddha argues that the main difference among humans is not birth but their actions and occupations. According to the Buddha, one is a "Brahmin" (i.e. divine, like
) only to the extent that one has cultivated virtue. Because of this the early texts report that he proclaimed: "Not by birth one is a Brahman, not by birth one is a non-Brahman; - by moral action one is a Brahman"
can be good or bad and gives a sociological explanation for how they arose, against the Brahmanical idea that they are divinely ordained. According to
of society. The Buddha's teaching then is a single universal moral law, one
valid for everybody, which is opposed to the Brahmanic ethic founded on "one's own duty" (''svadharma'') which depends on caste.
Because of this, all castes including untouchables were welcome in the Buddhist order and when someone joined, they renounced all caste affiliation.
The early texts depict the Buddha as giving a deflationary account of the importance of politics to human life. Politics is inevitable and is probably even necessary and helpful, but it is also a tremendous waste of time and effort, as well as being a prime temptation to allow ego to run rampant. Buddhist political theory denies that people have a moral duty to engage in politics except to a very minimal degree (pay the taxes, obey the laws, maybe vote in the elections), and it actively portrays engagement in politics and the pursuit of enlightenment as being conflicting paths in life.
In the ''
'', the Buddha teaches a history of how monarchy arose which according to Matthew J. Moore is "closely analogous to a social contract." The ''Aggañña Sutta'' also provides a social explanation of how different classes arose, in contrast to the Vedic views on social caste.
Other early texts like the ''Cakkavatti-SÄ«hanÄda Sutta'' and the ''MahÄsudassana Sutta'' focus on the figure of the righteous wheel turning leader (
). This ideal leader is one who promotes Dharma through his governance. He can only achieve his status through moral purity and must promote morality and Dharma to maintain his position. According to the ''Cakkavatti-SÄ«hanÄda Sutta'', the key duties of a Cakkavatti are: "establish guard, ward, and protection according to Dhamma for your own household, your troops, your nobles, and vassals, for Brahmins and householders, town and country folk, ascetics and Brahmins, for beasts and birds. let no crime prevail in your kingdom, and to those who are in need, give property."
The sutta explains the injunction to give to the needy by telling how a line of wheel-turning monarchs falls because they fail to give to the needy, and thus the kingdom falls into infighting as poverty increases, which then leads to stealing and violence.
In the ''MahÄparinibbÄna Sutta,'' the Buddha outlines several principles that he promoted among the Vajjika tribal federation, which had a quasi-republican form of government. He taught them to "hold regular and frequent assemblies", live in harmony and maintain their traditions. The Buddha then goes on to promote a similar kind of republican style of government among the Buddhist Sangha, where all monks had equal rights to attend open meetings and there would be no single leader, since The Buddha also chose not to appoint one.
form of government, while others disagree with this position.
, the Buddha as depicted in the Pali suttas does not exclusively teach a world transcending goal, but also teaches laypersons how to achieve worldly
(''sukha'').
According to Bodhi, the "most comprehensive" of the suttas that focus on how to live as a layperson is the ''
'' (DN 31). This sutta outlines how a layperson behaves towards six basic social relationships: "parents and children, teacher and pupils, husband and wife, friend and friend, employer and workers, lay follower and religious guides." This Pali text also has parallels in Chinese and in Sanskrit fragments.
In another sutta (''
8.54) the Buddha teaches two types of happiness. First, there is the happiness visible in this very life. The Buddha states that four things lead to this happiness: "The accomplishment of persistent effort, the accomplishment of protection, good friendship, and balanced living." Similarly, in several other suttas, the Buddha teaches on how to improve family relationships, particularly on the importance of filial love and gratitude as well as marital well-being.
Regarding the happiness of the next life, the Buddha (in the ''
, generosity, and wisdom (knowledge of the arising and passing of things).
According to the Buddha of the suttas then, achieving a good rebirth is based on cultivating wholesome or skillful (''kusala'') karma, which leads to a good result, and avoiding unwholesome (''akusala'') karma. A common list of good karmas taught by the Buddha is the list of ten courses of action (''
'') as outlined in MN 41 ''Saleyyaka Sutta'' (and its Chinese parallel in SÄ€ 1042).
Good karma is also termed
, and the Buddha outlines three bases of meritorious actions: giving, moral discipline and meditation (as seen in AN 8:36).
Early sources depict the Buddha's as similar to other Buddhist monks. Various discourses describe how he "cut off his hair and beard" when renouncing the world. Likewise, Digha Nikaya 3 has a Brahmin describe the Buddha as a shaved or bald (''mundaka'') man. Digha Nikaya 2 also describes how king Ajatashatru is unable to tell which of the monks is the Buddha when approaching the sangha and must ask his minister to point him out. Likewise, in MN 140, a mendicant who sees himself as a follower of the Buddha meets the Buddha in person but is unable to recognize him.
The Buddha is also described as being handsome and with a clear complexion (Digha I:115; Anguttara I:181), at least in his youth. In old age, however, he is described as having a stooped body, with slack and wrinkled limbs.
Various Buddhist texts attribute to the Buddha a series of extraordinary physical characteristics, known as "the
" (Skt. ''mahÄpuruá¹£a laká¹£aṇa'').
According to AnÄlayo, when they first appear in the Buddhist texts, these physical marks were initially held to be imperceptible to the ordinary person, and required special training to detect. Later though, they are depicted as being visible by regular people and as inspiring faith in the Buddha.
These characteristics are described in the
's ' (D, I:142).
emerged after the lifetime of the Buddha, between 500–200 BCE and c. 300 CE, under the pressure of the success of Buddhism and Jainism. In response to the success of Buddhism, Gautama also came to be regarded as the 9th
.
Many Hindus claim that Buddha was Hindu and cite a belief that the Buddha is the ninth avatar of Vishnu in support. The adoption of the Buddha as an incarnation began at approximately the same time as Hinduism began to predominate and Buddhism to decline in India, the co-option into a list of avatars seen to be an aspect of Hindu efforts to decisively weaken Buddhist power and appeal in India.
.
'' school (heterodox, literally "It is not so") in contrast to the six orthodox schools of Hinduism.
, which references a fig tree – a symbol that does not feature prominently in the lives of any of the other prophets mentioned in the Qur'an. It has meanwhile been suggested that the name ''Al-Kifl'' could be a reference to
, the home of Siddartha Gautama as a boy.
in the ninth century. Such idols had been sold in Buddhist temples next to a mosque in
, but he does not further discuss the role of Buddha. According to the works on Buddhism by
(973–after 1050), views regarding the exact identity of Buddha were diverse. Accordingly, some regarded him as the divine incarnate, others as an apostle of the angels or as an
and others as an apostle of God sent to the human race. By the 12th century,
, described as an ideal human.
", although he does not mention it explicitly.
The Buddha is also regarded as a
sect.
is based on the Buddha. The name comes from the Sanskrit ''
'' via Arabic ''Būdhasaf'' and Georgian ''Iodasaph''. The only story in which St. Josaphat appears, ''Barlaam and Josaphat'', is based on the life of the Buddha. Josaphat was included in earlier editions of the Roman Martyrology (feast-day 27 November)—though not in the Roman Missal—and in the Eastern Orthodox Church liturgical calendar (26 August).
.
and symbolic. During this early aniconic period, the Buddha is depicted by other objects or symbols, such as an empty throne, a riderless horse, footprints, a
. Since aniconism precludes single devotional figures, most representations are of
. These continued to be very important after the Buddha's person could be shown, alongside larger statues. The art at Sanchi also depicts
, narratives of the Buddha in his past lives.
Other styles of Indian Buddhist art depict the Buddha in human form, either standing, sitting crossed legged (often in the
) or lying down on one side. Iconic representations of the Buddha became particularly popular and widespread after the first century CE. Some of these depictions, particularly those of
. The subsequently influenced the art of
images, as well as those of Southeast Asian Theravada Buddhism.
; Films
* ''Buddha Dev'' (''Life of Lord Buddha''), a 1923 Indian silent film by
in the titular role.
based on Arnold's epic poem with Rai also portraying the Buddha.
'' (大ä»é–‹çœ¼ or Daibutsu Kaigen), a 1952 Japanese feature film representing the life of Buddha.
* ''
.
, an adaptation Hesse's novel. It stars
as Prince Siddhartha.
'', or Prawat Phra Phuttajao, a 2007 Thai animated feature film about the life of Gautama Buddha, based on the
. Based on Sadguru Sivananda Murthy's book ''Gautama Buddha'', it stars Sunil Sharma as the Buddha.
'', a 2013 Sinhalese epic biographical film based on the life of Lord Buddha.
* ''
'' with Abhishek Urade in the titular role.
; Television
* ''Buddha'', a 1996 Indian series which aired on
. It stars
as the Buddha.