Life of Buddha

(Part One) 9. The Four Sights: Death

After Prince Siddhartha returned from seeing the sick man, the King
noticed that he became extremely depressed. Seeing his son so
upset made the King feel sad that he couldnt do anything to help.
Siddhartha decided to explore the city of his palace with Channa
when they came across a crowd of mourning people who carried a
lifeless man before lighting him on fire. Shocked, Siddhartha asked
Channa why the man would allow the people to burn him up.
Channa told that the man was dead, which made Siddhartha sadder
than he initially was. Siddhartha just couldnt come to terms with
the fact that every living thing will eventually die. He believed that
no one in the world deserved something as terrible as death.
Channa said that death was inevitable and that there was no way to
stop it from happening, but Siddhartha was determined to change
that. When he went home, Siddhartha fell into deep thought. It
sounded farfetched, but Siddhartha wanted to help the whole world
and find a way to stop death from ever existing. What this story tells
us about Prince Siddhartha is that he was a man of compassion and
sensitivity. Seeing others in suffering makes him very disheartened,
because all he wants to do is take away their pain and fix the
problem at hand.

Class Essay (Buddhism)

Outline the historical and cultural context in which Buddhism began.
Buddhism is an ancient religion that originated from India in the sixth
century BCE in an Indian society that was systematically organised into
tribes. Buddhism was formed during a time of societal diversity as different
beliefs were followed before the first Buddhist. Buddhism can be seen as
having taken a bit of each varying belief that was believed in by Indian
society to create a belief that focuses of self-enlightenment and simplicity.
Before Buddhism, society was split into different social classes, based on
birthright and occupation, as well as being a religiously split group. Some
people followed and believed in Vedas, an ancient book that explained the
teachings of Hindu priests. Others believed in Upanishads, a text that
centrally focused more so on the connection between ones soul and the
universe. Indias society was also split into three groupings; these were the
knights, priests, and skilled workers. Outside of these groups were outcasts,
people who did not follow any sort of religious ruling or way of life.
Hinduism prior to Buddhism influenced people in Indias belief in karma, athome worship, and discipline of the body and mind. There was also a belief
in the philosophical perspective on the universe; whether it was made up of
only matter, or it was mainly a spiritual existence. The half that did not
follow primarily Hindu tradition, as people would seek spiritual moksha.
Moksha is the act on one spiritually disconnecting themselves from the
inevitable circle of life and death; it is believed to be a release by some to
seek inner peace.
The Enlightened One was born of the name Siddhartha Gautama, in
560BCE to his parents of a decent social class. From birth legends have
told tales of his young life, some claiming that a white elephant passed
through his mothers side during his birth. Others speak of his impeccable
intelligence as a child, which we can understand as a sign to the work
that he would do later in life. His future was predicted early in life to be
one of either religious leadership or ruling of man. His father decided to
raise him as his heir, as he at the time was a great ruler also. He is
rumoured to have been a very knowledgeable and insightful child, and
his growing awareness of humanity was not deniable. His goal later in life
was to seek out an end to human suffering, so after leaving his family of
a wife and child, he set off to figure out a way to end it. He tried
philosophy, asceticism, meditation, fasting, and sleep deprivation. When
it all became too much, he allowed a milkmaid to offer him a drink, to
which his followers left him for, since he had failed them. However,
Sakyamuni decided to react to this by meditating until he either found a
solution, or died. It is under a very special tree that he discovered his four
central beliefs, or realizations. From this pivotal point, those who admired

his teaching and showings of compassion followed his future teachings

and lessons.
His teachings spread throughout India rapidly as soon after his
enlightenment he became a supreme guide for them in a sense. His
belief that all people, no matter what race, gender, sexuality, age, etc.,
could reach enlightenment was the founding material to the Buddhist
religion that we know of today. His core teachings of The Four Noble
Truths, originating from what he learnt whilst reaching enlightenment,
remain as the core fundaments that Buddhism is built on currently.
Buddhism therefore, can be identified as a highly spiritual religion that
diverts itself from other religions, which can be seen in the context that
its history and teachings are set it. Given the fact that someone created it
in a faith-split society while growing up surrounded by this diversity, it
can be understood that Buddhism ties different perspectives of ancient
Indian religion together in one harmonious unit.