The Life of Buddha
Early Buddhism
From Buddha's birth to the spread of his religion.
It all began with a young prince named Siddhartha Gautama.
Buddha was born as Siddhartha Gautama, and was raised in a palace full of only luxuries and pleasure. His mother had a prophetic dream before his birth that he would be a great political or religious leader, and he was born beneath a tree under the full moon. His father kept him in a palace so he would never become impassioned to join religion.
He left the palace, however, to discover human suffering in the form of a sick man, an old man, a dead man, and an ascetic. Realizing that he could not sit and do nothing in a world with suffering, Buddha went into the wilderness to meditate and find out how to end all suffering.
Buddha reached enlightenment and spread his teachings to people all over, leading to Buddhism's spread throughout India and eventually the world. He would explain his teachings in a sermon at Deer Park.
Did you know?
Buddha's 4 Noble Truths, preached at Deer Park:
All life is suffering.
Suffering is caused by desire.
The only way to end suffering is to end desire.
The way to end desire is to follow the eight-fold path.
After his enlightenment, Buddha's ideas spread to the East, especially to China, Southeast Asia, and Tibet. It would eventually gain followers worldwide, but to this day the highest density of followers are in these areas.
Theravada Buddhism is the more conservative sect, more popular is Southeast Asia, which emphasizes silent meditation to reach nirvana. Teachings are in Buddha's original language, Pali.
Mahayana Buddhism is more popular in China, Sri Lanka, and Tibet, emphasizing mantras, Bodhisattva teachings, and teachings in Sanskrit as opposed to Pali.
Popular Buddhist symbols include the Dharma Wheel, the Lotus Flower, the endless Mandala Knot, the Conch Shell, and other items associated with Buddha's life or representative of values like purity, struggle for enlightenment, or other positive ideals. The Lotus, above, represents purity and detachment from the world, both of which are necessary to reach Nirvana.