*LORD BUDDHA

Key ideas: Buddhism, Buddha, Seeking after Truth

There was a river, on either bank of which there was a village. The people of both the villages used the water of the river for their fields. Once the rain was scarce and there was very little water in the river; and the villagers on either side accused each other of using too much of it.

The quarrel became acute. The people of both the villages took their bows and arrows and prepared for a fight, but a Mahatma arrived on the scene and appealed to them, "Friends, is water more precious than human blood? Should differences be settled by fighting or compromise? The rain will come in due course. Why sow the seeds of bitterness? Why are you prepared to shed blood unnecessarily over a matter which can be settled with love and peace and wisdom and selflessness?"

Both the excited parties were pacified by the words of the Mahatma. They laid down their arms and came to a peaceful settlement. The Mahatma was Lord Buddha.

The real name of Lord Buddha was Siddarth. As Buddha belonged to the Gautama lineage, he was also called Gautama. His father's name was Shuddhodan and his mother was called Gautama. Shuddhodan was the ruler of Kapilavastu, which is situated at the foot of the Himalayas in Nepal. The people of the Shakya tribe lived there. Theirs was a democratic state and as such they had no ruler, but a chief - though his position was like that of a ruler. A son was born in his family after a long time and, as the wish of the royal family for a child was fulfilled, they named their son Siddarth.

At the birth of Siddarth, astrologers predicted that he would be either a great king or a great saint. The king was farsighted and, therefore, arranged things in such a way that Siddarth might not see the miseries of life which might lead him to give up the world.

When he reached the right age, Siddarth was married to a princess called Yashodhara. Though the king built palaces with beautiful gardens for them, the prince did finally see the miseries of the world. Once he saw a wrinkled old man with a humped back who could hardly hobble along with the help of a stick. At another time he saw someone suffering the agonies of a bad disease. Next he saw some people carrying a dead body to the burning place. All this made him realise that life was full of miseries such as old age, disease and death. He wondered if there was any escape from them.

While he was thinking of renouncing the world and becoming a sadhu, Yashodhara gave birth to a son. Siddarth exclaimed, "Rahul", which means bondage. The child was a new bondage to keep him tied to a worldly life and so he was named Rahul.

Those who have the well-being of the world at heart cannot be tied down by worldly pleasures. Siddarth decided that he should not be a slave to pleasure. One night he woke up and, looking through the window, saw starts twinkling in the sky. They seemed to be inviting him and saying, "How long will you be tied down by illusions while the world is waiting for you? If you sleep, how will you find out the cure for worldly unhappiness? Wake up, Siddarth!" And leaving behind all pleasures and illusions and with firm determination, Siddarth left the palace in search of Truth. It seemed as if Nature was singing in the dark peaceful night, expecting the Light - True Knowledge.

Siddarth went to a forest to meditate. His handsome body became very weak because of his severe penance and was reduced to a skeleton. In this manner, he meditated for six years. Once, when he fainted and collapsed, a shepherdess called Sujata gave him some milk to drink. When he regained consciousness, he realised that True Knowledge could be gained neither from worldly pleasures nor by making one's body undergo great suffering. He decided to avoid both these extremes and to find out the middle way. He started taking regular meals. His weak body soon regained its strength and he restarted meditation.

One day while meditating under a pipal tree, all of a sudden he felt that he saw a light. It was the light of True Knowledge, which he explained to the ignorant people and became the Buddha - the Enlightened One. It was after that, that he came to be known as Gautama Buddha - and he preached to the people for the rest of his life.

Buddha offered the masses a religious law easy to understand and follow. He preached not in Sanskrit but in Pali, the language of the people, who came in thousands to hear him. It was as if they had found their saviour. Rich and poor and people from all sections of society became his followers. Even his father, wife and son became his disciples.

He spent the rest of his life preaching and attained Nirvana at the age of eighty, at Kushinara. Today Buddhism is followed in many parts of Asia.

From: Religion in the Multi-Faith School

Ed. W. Owen Cole