Buddha's Life and How He

¶ … Buddha's life and how he attained the ultimate enlightenment. Siddh-rtha Gautama is considered to be the Supreme Buddha (often called simply "the Buddha," or Buddha Shakyamuni) who created the Buddhist religion. His life story is an interesting blend of wealth and privilege combined with great compassion and religious awareness. He threw away all the rich trappings of his life to attain enlightenment and serve others, and his life shows the power of belief and spiritualism.

Buddha was born a prince to parents who were king and queen of Lumbini, which is located today in Nepal. One biographer notes, "The Buddha was born the son of a king, and so grew up with wealth, pleasure, and the prospect of power, all goods commonly desired by human beings" (Carrithers 2). It seemed the Buddha had everything he could possibly desire, but he still was not content. Even after his parents arranged a marriage for him, he felt as if there was something missing from his life.

He married and even had a son, but still he wanted to do more than rule his kingdom and raise a family. Because he saw suffering in his father's kingdom and wanted to do something about it, he decided to leave his home and seek enlightenment and understanding so he could help end the suffering of the people of the world. His family rebelled, and attempted to keep him from leaving, but their arguments only made his determination stronger.

He renounced his former life and became a monk, attempting to find what he sought in many different ways. Another author notes, "This renunciation is followed by attempts to find the answer to the problem of suffering, attempts that include study and religious practice under the direction of several different teachers at different times, some of whom recommend severe asceticism, including starvation almost to death" (Griffiths 89). Still, nothing worked. He understood more of the world and its problems, but he still did not possess true enlightenment.

He studied with many wise men, and began to develop his own ideas about spirituality and enlightenment. Later, these would become the foundations of Buddhism, and he would teach them to many young monks in order to spread the new religion far and wide. Finally, he sat down underneath a tree and resolved to stay there until he received ultimate enlightenment.

Author Griffiths continues, "Then, shortly after becoming Buddha, Gautama sets in motion the wheel of doctrine (dharmacakra) by preaching his first sermon, and spends the rest of his life teaching others what he had discovered when he became Buddha" (Griffiths 89). How exactly did this enlightenment occur? There are many different legends and stories about how Buddha actually became fully enlightened and a prophet for Buddhism.

One story has the event occurring in mid-spring, and taking only one night for the Buddha to find the answers to his final unanswered questions (Griffiths 89). Another has the evil Devaputra Mara conjuring up all sorts of demons and distractions to attempt to disturb his concentration and break his determination not to move until he attained enlightenment. The demon even sent beautiful women to tempt the Buddha, but nothing would sway him from his determination to find the ultimate meaning of life (Editors).

Therefore, the truth is that historians do not know exactly how Buddha actually attained enlightenment. They know the event occurred, and Buddha left the tree and began his teachings, but the actual event has survived history in many different forms. Perhaps the how and why of his enlightenment is not that important, but it is interesting to note how many different versions there are of the tale. Clearly, it is an important event in the history of Buddhism.

That so many versions of the tale exist is a testament to Buddha's own importance to the religion and its roots. While there can be many Buddhas in Buddhism, there is only one Supreme Buddha so far, and his enlightenment helped others move on their own paths toward peace and fulfillment. Ultimately, the Buddha understood that true enlightenment carried a responsibility.

He felt he now understood the human condition and could lead others to salvation, and he had attained release from the human condition so he was qualified to help others find their own enlightenment and inner peace (Carrithers 53). This is what he felt when he attained enlightenment, and why he felt the need to share his knowledge with others.

In fact, the word "Buddha" actually means "someone who has woken up," and so, there can be many Buddhas in the Buddhist religion, because anyone is capable of the same spiritual enlightenment the Buddha attained on that night so many thousands of years ago (Hallisey 294). Therefore, someday there could be another Supreme Buddha who finds his own enlightenment under a tree in Nepal, and when.