The Story of Gautam Buddha

Buddha was the son of Maharnaya and Suddhodana, King of Kapilavastu, a Kingdom on the borders of present day Nepal. Maharnaya stopped at the beautiful Sal grove of Lumbini while she was on her way to her father's home in Devadaha. She walked from tree to tree, and saw a bough rather high up and rich in blossoms. As she tried to reach for the bough, the latter bent down to the Queen, and at that moment Buddha was born. The child was named Siddhartha, and was also called Gautama to trace his decent from an ancestor by that name. While he was still young, Siddhartha was worried with the mystery of pain that seemed to persist in all forms of life. His father got him married to Yasodhara, the beautiful daughter of a nobleman. But marriage only brought Siddhartha one more bond to be broken. Sometime later, when the prince toured the city he saw a diseased person, an old man, a corpse being carried for cremation, and finally a mendicant who had renounced the world. He wished to understand if there was a way to overcome suffering and death, but the solution eluded him. In the end he decided to run away from the luxury of the palace. One night he saw his wife fast asleep with her arms round her son Rahula, and he quietly left with his trusted charioteer, Chanda. Gautam began his search for truth. He tried and then gave up fasting and asceticism, which only hurt his health without helping his soul. At last, while meditating under a peepal tree, he saw the light. Siddhartha or Gautama was now Buddha, the Enlightened one. Buddha then started teaching the common people in the language they understood.