Summary of Buddha’s Teachings

• The Buddhavamsa mentioned total 29 Buddhas of which 27 preceded Gautam Buddha and Maitreya is future Buddha to come. The current Kalpa has five Buddhas viz. Kakusandha, Koṇāgamana, Kassapa, Gautama and Maitreya.

Buddha’s Life

• Gautam Buddha was born as Siddhartha. His father Shuddodhana was a leader of Shakya clan which was a republic with capital at Kapilvastu. His mother Mahamaya was prices of another such principality called Devadaha. His mother died soon after his birth and he was raised by Prajapati Gautami.
• He was born in Lumbini in modern-day Nepal, around the year 563 BC and raised in Kapilavastu. The main evidence that Buddha was born in Lumbini, Nepal is the Ashoka Pillar which is still at Lumbini.
• Buddha’s Birth is celebrated as Vesaka in some countries while in India, it is celebrated as Buddha Poornima, which falls in month of Vaishaka / April or May.
• He was married to Yashodhara at the age of 16 who gave birth to his son Rahula. He left house at age of 29 years after encountering with human sufferings and due to the truth that human life is momentary and one has to suffer a lot. The objective of leaving home was to overcome the sufferings due to old age, illness and death. This leaving home is called the Great Departure or Mahaabhinashkramana.
• While wandering as ascetic he subjected himself to austerity. But austerity did not bring him desired results. He studied under two hermits Allara and Udaka to achieve knowledge, but that knowledge also did not satisfy him. He did several experiments for five years. Meanwhile, he concluded that neither the path of austerity nor the extreme luxury is correct way. Finally, he started moving away from ascetics and imbibed himself into meditation.
• At the age of 35 years, while meditating under a Pipal tree on the bank of river Niranjana at Gaya, he came across the desired truth. He now became Shakyamuni Buddha or the Buddha of Shakya Clan.
• His first followers were two merchants Tapussa and Bhallika. With other followers he gave his first sermon dealing with Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path at Deer Park in Sarnath near Varanasi. This first sermon was called Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta. The four noble truths and Noble Eightfold Path became the core pillars of Buddhist teaching.
• Buddha and his teaching (Dhamma) along with the first union of his five disciples (Sanhga) formed the three gems (Triratna) of Buddhism.
• For rest of his life, Buddha travelled to many places and spread the Dhamma. He spent most of his monastic life in Sravasti. His parinirvāṇa happened at Kuśinagara at the age of 80 years.

Symbols associated with Buddha’s Life

• Buddha’s birth : Lotus and Bull
• The Great Departure (Mahabhinishkramana) : Horse
• Enlightenment : Bodhee tree {Peepal}
• First sermon (Dhammachakraparivartana) : Wheel
• Death (Parinirvana) : Stupa

Buddha’s Teachings

Four Noble Truths

1. Dukkha : World is full of sorrow and everything from birth to death brings sorrows
2. Dukkha Samudaya (Cause of sorrow): Desire is the cause of sorrow
3. Dukkha Nirodha (Prevention of sorrow): Triumph over desires leads to prevention of sorrow.
4. Dukkha Nirodha Gamini Patipada Magga or The path of Prevention of Sorrow: Man can avoid Dukkha by avoiding extremes of life and following middle path or Madhyam Patipada. The life of moderation and self control along with pursuance of 8 fold path is essential to prevent the Dukkha.

Eight Fold Path or Astangika marg

• The eight fold path was recommended to eliminate the human misery. It comprises of three basic divisions of wisdom (Pragya Skanda), ethical conduct (Sheel Skanda) and meditation (Samadhi Skanda).

Two Most Important Questions focused by Buddha

• Gautama Buddha is known to have concentrated on two most important questions about existence. These were (1) How can we minimize suffering-both our own and that of others? and (2) How can we attain inner peace?

Buddha’s analogy to a Great Physician

In the Buddhist tradition, the Buddha is often compared to a great physician, and his teachings are compared to medicine. The teachings on the four noble truths in particular are related to a medical diagnosis, as follows:

• Dukkha: identifying the illness and the nature of the illness (the diagnosis)
• Dukkha Samudaya: identifying the causes of the illness (the etiology)
• Dukkha Nirodha: identifying a cure for the illness (the prognosis)
• Magga: recommending a treatment for the illness that can bring about a cure (the prescription)