The Life of Shakyamuni Buddha

Shakyamuni, the name by which we call the Indian Buddha, is a combination of two words: Shakya, the name of Shakyamunis ancestral clan, and muni, the Sanskrit word for sage. However, his correct title is, Shakyamuni, World-Honored One. World-Honored One" is an honorific title indicating that Shakyamuni was a Buddha. Shakyamuni, the sage born of the Shakya clan, is commonly referred to as a Buddha an enlightened one, or one who is awakened to the true nature of all phenomena. Buddhism refers to the body of teachings that Shakyamuni the Buddha expounded throughout his life. Prior to Shakyamunis Appearance The Indus civilization evolved in the Indus River valley in ancient India from about 3,000 to 2,000 BC. A number of indigenous peoples contributed to the establishment of the Indus valley civilization, including the Dravidians, the Indus and the Munda. However, in about 1500 BC, Aryans out of central Asia invaded the Indus valley and conquered these original inhabitants, which eventually led to marked discrimination by the Aryan freemen against the subjugated aborigines. The Aryan conquerors established a unique society in the Ganges River valley based on a four-class system. The Aryans themselves comprised the three upper classes, which included the Brahmans, who were priests; the Kshatriya, which included the royals and the military; and the Vaisya, or the commoner class. The indigenous peoples were relegated to the outcast Shudra or vassal class, which served the other three. This bloodline-based classification, known as the caste system, became more and more specialized over time, and still defines Indian society to this day. In the area of religious beliefs, the Aryans revered the forces of nature as deities, and compiled four collections of scripture: the Rig-Veda, the Sama-Veda, the Atharva-Veda and the Yajur-Veda, which consisted of hymns, rituals and incantations. Many commentaries on the four Vedas were also written, among which, the Brahmana in particular, established complex rules on the carrying out of Vedic rituals and sacrifices. The expert knowledge required for mastery of the Brahmana strengthened the powers of the Brahman priesthood and ultimately gave rise to a religion under their sole control, i.e., Brahmanism. The Brahmans later compiled a collection of secret mysteries in writings called the Upanishads, which set forth a philosophy on gaining freedom from the otherwise never-ending cycle of birth and death, based on the content of Vedic hymns and rituals. At the time of Shakyamunis birth, there were also six free-thinking philosophers, known as the six non-Buddhist teachers, who rejected established Brahmanism and developed their own schools of thought. Ajita Kesakambala espoused the idea that life exists only insofar as there is a physical body to support it. Purana Kassapa argued against any positive or negative relationship between cause and effect. Pakudha Kacchayana believed that seven

essential elements comprise human life, i.e., earth, wind, water, fire, suffering, pleasure and the soul. Makkhali Gosala reasoned that peoples lives are pre-determined and are therefore unaffected by any form of religious practice. Sanjaya Belatthiputta, a skeptic, denied any possibility of knowing whether or not life continues after death. Nigantha Nataputta, the founder of Jainism, asserted that man can only free himself from suffering through asceticism and by refraining from taking life. By scorning the truth of cause and effect, these religions and schools and thought denied reality, which rendered them powerless to relieve peoples suffering or positively effect society. Under the influence of these inferior religions and philosophies, the sixteen major kingdoms and countless minor principalities in India at that time were constantly at odds with each other, which increasingly destabilized Indian society. Shakyamunis Advent Birth Shakyamuni, son of King Shuddhodana and Queen Maya, was born on April 8, some time around 1000 BC, in Kapilavastu, the capital of the Shakya clans kingdom of Kosala. The child was given the name Siddhartha at birth. In keeping with ancient custom, Queen Maya set out for her birthplace when the time to deliver her child drew near. However, the crown prince was born along the way in the Lumbini Gardens, and Queen Maya died seven days after delivery due to unforeseen postpartum complications. The task of raising Siddhartha therefore fell to the queens younger sister, Mahaprajapati.

Siddhartha Renounces Secular Life

During his youth, Prince Siddhartha received intellectual and physical training in preparation for his eventual succession to the throne. Separation anxiety caused by the death of his birth mother more than likely weighed heavily on his mind, but in any event, from an early age, Siddhartha spent much of his time lost in thought, and he was often troubled by such mysteries as the impermanence of life. At age sixteen, Siddhartha married a girl named Yashodhara, who gave him a son, Rahula. Having taken care of his responsibility to produce an heir, Siddhartha felt free to act upon his long-cherished desire to take the tonsure, and on December eighth of his nineteenth year, the prince stole out of the palace in the dead of night to pursue the path to spiritual awakening. Reasons for Siddharthas Renunciation of Secular Life Shakyamuni had secretly left Kapilavastu Palace on several occasions to catch a glimpse of life outside the palace. On each of these excursions, he passed through one of the gates that looked out onto the four directions and witnessed incidents that profoundly disturbed him.

At the east gate, he saw a person hunched over with age, and at the south gate, he observed another who was wasting away from disease. At the west gate, he witnessed the cremation of someone who had recently died. These observations awakened the youth to the impermanence of life and the fact that everyone who is born must suffer the sorrows of aging, sickness and death. Then, when Siddhartha left the palace through the east gate, he was confronted by the sight of a lone ascetic who had renounced the secular world. It is said that this encounter with one sincerely seeking the path to freedom from the sufferings of life and death inspired the prince to seek that path for himself.