The epitome of wisdom and peace : Gautama Buddha

When there was suffering everywhere, people were becoming weak and unhappy due to surrendering themselves to the worldly pleasures, there was a royal prince who was noticing it all. It is believed that this prince, who was an epitome of clairvoyance and wisdom, was born to his Mother Mayadevi and Father King Shuddhodhana, which the queen got to know when she saw a white elephant entering her womb in the dreams. The prince was born and named as Siddhartha Gautama.

When was Buddha born?

The question when was Buddha born, will have two answers- one in terms of his biological birth and second, of his state of enlightenment. Buddha was born as Siddhartha in 624 BC in a royal dynasty. But when he stepped out in the world and saw the real sufferings of the people, death, separation and their poor conditions, he was no longer willing to live a life of pleasures and comfort and felt an urge to relieve all these people from their sufferings. He realized that a fully enlightened state of mind which is known as ‘Buddha’ is the only way to do what he wanted and he took solitude in the forest and meditated till he got enlightenment. It was at this point that the actual ‘Buddha’ was born. Owing to his name, is known as Gautama Buddha.

Where was Buddha born?

It has been a question of slight disagreement as to where was Buddha born. As per most of the scriptures about Gautama Buddha, he is believed to have been born in Eastern India and also live there. More specifically, many people say he was given birth to by Queen Mayadevi in a place called Lumbini and continued being there even after enlightenment, till he achieved Nirvana.

Lumbini:

This place is currently a Buddhist pilgrimage, owing to the birth, enlightenment and nirvana attained by Gautama Buddha here. It is located in the Rupandehi district of Nepal. It is one of the most visited pilgrimage places. Along with temples for Buddha, there is also a Mayadevi temple in this place which is also revered equally by people. This place is a sight in itself, owing to its natural beauty and the history of Gautam Buddha’s birth and enlightenment.

Another story associated with this place is that Queen mayadevi took a ritualistic dip in a pond some time before Gautama Buddha was born and it was the same pond where Buddha took his first bath. This pond, called as Puskarini (Holy pond) is also a site of importance to the people of the place. Lumbini was granted the status of being a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997.