Factual details about Prince Gautama Siddhartha of Lumbini, Nepal, changing into Lord Buddha are almost everywhere. But it is mostly the inside stories which help in shaping someone’s world.
The activity going on at the very subconscious level. The story of Lord Buddha, as written about by historians on the site Icy Heroes, talks about great realizations, transformation, and great balance.
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What happened when Gautama Siddhartha encountered three greater facts about human life?
All three truth, whether it was a diseased person, old age, or corpse, was pointing towards the death or end of life. Gautama Siddhartha was a protected young one living under a shell made of privileges until that time when he finally stepped out of his palace. He remained in a state of shock because he couldn’t make sense of the greatest truth of life all at once. The revelation of death, suffering, and loss put him in a great dilemma.
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Why Gautama Siddhartha couldn’t gulp down reality?
It is popularly believed that when Gautama Siddhartha was born, one astrologer made a prediction that Siddhartha would become an ascetic.
King Sudodana became so obsessed with the idea of changing destiny that he provided all the services to Siddhartha at his footsteps. Siddhartha remained unaware of human suffering and life struggles till adulthood. Due to this, Gautama Siddhartha couldn’t gulp down the reality about death, disease, despair, and loss.
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Why Gautama Siddhartha left his palace?
Until that encounter on the streets of Kapilavastu, the definition of life was something else for Gautama Siddhartha. He was a privileged prince living in his la la land.
That very scene kept coming in his mind, and his attachments were making it more miserable. He was afraid of losing them one day. He started questioning his reality and his luxuries started bothering him.
He was reminded of one ascetic he came across during his visit to Kapilavastu who wander around in search of wisdom. And he was determined that answers to his questions lay in the outside world. So, Gautama Siddhartha dressed up like an ascetic and left his palace.
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Where Gautama Siddhartha took refuge as an ascetic?
In the journey to becoming a sage, Gautama Siddhartha already took the first step of leaving all his attachments behind. Buddha took refuge in a forest and learned various meditation techniques from Alara Kalama and Udraka Ramaputra.
Soon, Siddhartha left his teachers to practice asceticism with five other companions. After the hard practice of asceticism for six years, Gautama Siddhartha decided to finally abandon it. He left his companions behind and headed alone towards a village.
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How was Gautama Siddhartha transformed into Lord Buddha?
After reaching the village, Siddhartha gave up on the idea of living on a single grain of rice. He meditated for a week under a bodhi tree.
After coming out of his meditation, Gautama Siddhartha was finally enlighted. He became soul-conscious and learned the very art of balance. Gradually he gained enough confidence to spread this knowledge.
With the grace of God, Gautama Siddhartha kept earning disciples and was given the term Lord Buddha. Buddha kept doing his religious duty until his last breath and became a world-famous sage known for Buddhism.
Conclusion
The teachings of Buddha are more relevant in the first century. So many of us practice meditation for peace of mind. The journey to self-discovery should go on until you feel enlightened is the lesson extracted from Buddha’s life. Today, the Dalai Lama remains a stellar example of what Buddhism stands for.
