Gautam Buddha

Gautam Buddha (560 BC — 480 BC), or Buddha in short, ie the enlightened one, was founder of a religion named Buddhism after him. The actual dates of Buddha's birth and death are disputed, however, it is said that he lived in the 6th Century BC. His childhood name was Siddhartha. He was the son of Sakya Chief of Kapilvastu, now in Nepal. He was born in a Hindu family and also sometimes referred to as Sakyamuni.

The sorrows and sufferings of the world tormented his heart, and therefore he abandoned his princely home, his wife and the newly born son and wandered as hermit. He got enlightenment under a peepal tree in Gaya (India) and after that he came to be known as Buddha or the Enlightened One. Buddhism, the religion and the philosophical system later evolved into a great culture throughout much of southern and eastern Asia. He founded it in the 5th century BC. He is sometimes regarded as the ninth incarnation of Vishnu.

The place of his birth was a grove known as Lumbini, near the city of Kapilavastu, at the foot of Mount Palpa in the Himalayan ranges now in Nepal. Buddha, whose original name was Siddhartha Gautam, was of an intensely contemplative nature.

He was the son of Suddhodhan a king of the Sakya clan ruling at Kapil Vastu, who did everything in his power to tempt him from a religious life, from which, however, in his contemplation of the vanity of existence, nothing could detain him. He retired into solitude at the age of 30, as Sakyamuni, i. e. solitary of the Sakyas, his tribe. Siddhartha consulted religious books, could get no good out of them, till, by-and-by, he abstracted himself more and more from everything external, when at the end of ten years, as he sat brooding under the Bo-tree alone with the universe, soul with soul, the light of truth rose full-orbed upon him, and he called himself henceforth and gave himself out as Buddha, i. e. the Enlightened one. Now he said to himself, "I know it all," as Mahomet in his way did after him, and became a preacher to others of what had proved salvation to himself, which he continued to do for 40 years, leaving behind him disciples, who went forth without sword, like Christ's, to preach what they, like Christ's, believed was a gospel to every creature.

The tree under which he got enlightenment is now known as Bodhi Tree situated in Gaya in the state of Bihar in India. He established Sangha, the Buddhist order.

He was contemporary of Lord Mahavir.

Wisdom & Quotes

• This is Eightfold Path of the Aryan : Right view, right aim, right speech, right action, right living, right effort, right mindfulness, right contemplation.
• All composite things decay. Strive diligently.

-reputed last words

• Victory breeds hatred,

for the conquered sleep in sorrow;
above victory of defeat
the calm man dwells in peace.
-Dhammapada

• There are two ends not to be served by a wanderer. What are those two? The pursuit of desires and of the pleasure which springs from desires, which is base, common, leading to rebirth, ignoble and unprofitable; and the pursuit of pain and hardship, which is grievous, ignoble and unprofitable.

The Middle Way of the Tathagata (He who has thus attained) avoids both these ends; it is enlightened, it brings clear vision, it makes for wisdom, and leads to peace, insight, full wisdom and Nirvana. What is his Middle Way? ... It is the Noble Eightfold Path.

• And this is the Noble Truth of Sorrow. Birth is sorrow, age is sorrow, disease is sorrow, death is sorrow, contact with the unpleasant is sorrow, separation from the pleasant is sorrow, every wish unfulfilled is sorrow - in short all the five components of individuality are sorrow.

And this is the Noble Truth of the Arising of Sorrow. It arises from thirst, which leads to rebirth, which brings delight and passion, and seeks pleasure now here, now there - the thirst for sensual pleasure, the thirst for continued life, the thirst for power.
And this is the Noble Truth of the Stopping of Sorrow. It is the complete stopping of the thirst, so that no passion remains, leaving it, being emancipated from it, being released from it, giving no place to it.
And this is the Noble Truth of the Way which leads to the stopping of sorrow. It is the noble Eightfold Path - Right views, Right resolve, Right speech, Right conduct , Right livelihood, Right effort, Right recollection and Right Meditation.
- Dhammachakkapavattan Sutta, contained in Sayutta Nikaya

• I take upon myself ... the deeds of all beings, even of those in the hells, in other worlds, in the realms of punishment. ... I take their suffering upon me, ... I bear it, I do not draw from it, I do not tremble at it, ... I have no fear of it, ... I do not lose heart, ... I must bear the burden of all beings, for I have vowed to save all things living, to bring them safe through the forest of birth, age, disease, death and rebirth. I think not of my own salvation, but strive to bestow on all beings the royalty of supreme wisdom. So I take upon myself all the sorrows of all beings. I resolve to bear every torment in every purgatory of the universe. For it is better that I alone suffer than the multitude of living being. I give myself in exchange. I redeem the universe from the forest of purgatory. From the womb of flesh, from the realm of death. I agree to suffer as a ransom for all beings, for the sake of all beings. Truly I will not abandon them. For I have resolved to gain supreme wisdom for the sake of all that lives, to save the world.

- Vajradhvaja Sutra, quoted Shikshasamuchchaya

• May every living being, weak or strong, large or small, seen or unseen, near or far, born or yet unborn - may every living thin be full of joy.

May none deceive another, or think ill of him in any way whatever, or in anger or ill-will desire evil for another.
Just as a mother, as long as she lives, cares for her only child, so should a man feel all-embracing love to all living beings.
He should feel boundless love for all the world, above, below and across, unrestrained, without enmity. Standing, wailing, sitting or lying down, ... he should be firm in the mindfulness of love. For this is what men call the Sublime Mood.
- Sutta Nipata

• A man buries a treasure in a deep pit, thinking; 'It will be useful in time of need, or if the king is displeased with me, or if I am robbed, or fall into debt, or if good is scarce, or bad luck befalls me.'

But all this treasure may not profit the owner at all, for he may forget where he hid it, or goblins may steal it, or his enemies or even his kinsmen may take it when he is not on his guard.
But by charity, goodness, restraint and self-control man and woman alike can store up a well-hidden treasure - a treasure which cannot be given to others, and which robbers cannot steal. A wise man should do good - that is the treasure which will not leave him.
- Khuddaka Patha

• Brethren, you have no mother or father to care for you. If you do not care for one another who else will do so? Brethren, he who would care for me should care for the sick.

-Vinaya Pitaka/Mahavagga

• Husband should respect their wives, and comply as far as possible with their requests. They should not commit adultery. They should give their wives full charge of the home, and supply them with fine clothes and jewellery as far as their means permit. Wives should be thorough in their duties, gentle and kind to the whole household, chaste, and careful in housekeeping, and should carry out their work with skill and enthusiasm.

A man should be generous to his friends, speak kindly of them, act in their interest in every way possible, treat them as his equals, and keep his word to them. They in turn should watch over his interests and property, take care of him when he is "off his guard" ( that is intoxicated, infatuated, or otherwise liable to commit rash and careless actions), stand by him and help him in time of trouble, and respect other members of his family.
Employers should treat their servants and workplace decently. They should not be given tasks beyond their strength. They should receive adequate food and wages, be cared for in time of sickness and infirmity, and be given regular holidays and bonuses in times of prosperity. They should rise early and go to bed late in the service of their master, be content with their just wages, work thoroughly, and maintain their master's reputation.
-Sermon to Sigala

• Do not believe what your teacher tells you merely out of respect for the teacher. But whatsoever, after due examination and analysis, you find to be conducive to the good, the benefit, the welfare of all beings - that doctrine believe and cling to, and take it as your guide.
• Our theories of the eternal are as valuable as are those which a chick which has not broken its way through its shell might form the outside world.
• If a man foolishly does me wrong, I will return to him the protection of my ungrudging love; the more evil comes from him, the more good shall go from me.

-The Sutra of Forty-two Sections

• Look at this wagon. Is it a wheel or a spoke? ... It is a composite and so is a man.

-The Sutra of the "Five Heaps"

• Walk on!

-Last words to his disciples

• The mind is everything; what you think, you become.
• Those indeed are conquerors who, as I have now, have conquered the intoxications ( the mental intoxications arising from ignorance, sensuality, or craving after future life). Evil dispositions have ceased in me; therefore it is I that am conqueror!

- attributed

• You cannot travel on the path before you have become the Path itself.
• Believe nothing, O monks, merely because you have been told it... or because it is traditional, or because you yourselves have imagined it. Do not believe what your teacher tells you merely out of respect for the teacher. But whatsoever, after due examination and analysis, you find to be conducive to the good, the benefit, the welfare of all beings - that doctrine believe and cling to, and take it as your guide.

-attributed

Simonides