It was over 2500 years ago that a prince of Nepal, Siddhartha Gautama, sat beneath a fig tree at the foothills of the Himalayas and altered the course of human history. The movement that arose from his spiritual awakening would later become known as Buddhism, a global philosophy that actively shapes the lives of hundreds of millions across the world.
Born in Lumbini in the 6th century BCE, Prince Siddhartha was the son of King Suddhodana of the Sakya clan. His birth has been steeped in myth and symbolism, which later became the basis of reverence for Buddhists around the globe: his mother, Queen Mahāmāyā, also known as Māyādevī, is said to have dreamed of a white elephant carrying a white lotus in its trunk entering her side. Brahmins of the king’s court interpreted this sign to mean that the queen would give birth to a Chakravartin (a king amongst kings), or a fully enlightened Buddha.
Upon emerging from the womb, it was said that Prince Siddhartha took seven steps, a lotus flower blooming with each, and made a proclamation that has been preserved in the Pali canon, translating in general to: “Foremost am I in the world, Eldest am I in the world, Supreme am I in the world. This is my last birth; now there is no more becoming (rebirth).”
Beyond these allegorical flourishes, however, lies the tale of a man who was deeply attuned to the sufferings of this world. He was brought up in sheer opulence, groomed to be king and shielded from all manner of hardship in order to instil in him the joys of the palace and deter him from walking the path of Buddha, as was foretold by the Brahmins. Nevertheless, upon venturing outside the gates of the palace one day, the young prince encountered what the texts call the “four Signs’: an old man, a sick man, a corpse and an ascetic. Shaken to the core by the ramifications of life, these revelations sparked a question in him that resonated through the ages: Is there a way to transcend suffering?
By 29 years of age, Prince Siddhartha abandoned his royal life, his wife, his newborn son and his crown to be a wandering seeker in a moment that would later be celebrated as the ‘Great Renunciation’. For six years, Siddhartha sought wisdom from the best spiritual teachers in India. He mastered meditation and pushed his body to the very edge of death in pursuing severe asceticism, and yet… truth eluded him. It was beneath the Bodhi Tree of Bodh Gaya then that he vowed not to rise until he understood the true nature of suffering. After seven weeks, he finally achieved enlightenment – an awakening not to another world, but to the profound reality of this one. Thus, he became the Buddha, or the ‘Awakened One’.
What did the Buddha discover in his meditations? The most simple answer can be found with the ‘Four Noble Truths’ at the heart of Buddhism, which indicate that suffering is just inevitable but understandable and, most importantly, transformable.
- Dukkha: Life is marked by suffering, dissatisfaction, and impermanence.
- Samudaya: Suffering arises from cravings, attachments, and ignorance.
- Nirodha: There is a cessation to suffering.
- Magga: The path to this cessation is the Eightfold Path, which is a guide to moral living, mindfulness and wisdom.
This approach was a method, rather than a dogma, and was experimental, testable and open to all…regardless of caste, gender or social background. In the highly stratified India of the day, this notion was especially radical.
Buddhism soon spread across Asia and formed a vital part of the cultural as well as the spiritual fabric of many Commonwealth nations, such as India, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and the United Kingdom, among others. In a world flooded with stress, disconnection, and economical as well as ecological crises, the Buddha’s insights into suffering, mindfulness, compassion, and impermanence become pillars of insight into both personal and collective transformation.
The story of Siddhartha Gautama resounds through the ages not simply because it speaks of a prince who became a monk, but because it is about the human capacity to awaken… This journey began with one man asking, “Why do we suffer, and how can we be free?”
