Who is buddha?

Answer 1

Buddha, Gautama
The religion known as Buddhism is based in part upon the life and experiences of an Indian prince, Siddhartha Gautama. The earliest accounts we have of him can be found in the Pali Canon, but this was created some 200 years after Gautama was supposed to have lived and it only represents one of several schools of thought which had already begun to develop around Buddhist teachings. As a result, it is difficult to know what in it can be treated as historically reliable and accurate.

As a result, it is difficult say who he was or what he did with any great reliability - indeed, it is difficult to be sure that he really existed as a single person or if he is a character created from several different historical personages. It is possible, however, that a number of stories, legends and myths grew up around a single religious figure who started a philosophical and social revolution in India some time in the 5th or 6th century BCE. Because Buddhism is a more philosophical religion, however, the historicity of Gautama is not ultimately relevant - even if Gautma never existed, that would not negatively impact Buddhism's fundamental ethical and metaphysical doctrines.

According to tradition, Gautama was an Indian prince who wanted for nothing and was kept protected in his palace where he began to question the meaning of life. He decided to go outside the palace to learn more, and shortly after he began his trip he encountered for the first time in his life people who were poor, sick, and suffering. As a result, he chose to renounce all that he had in an effort to discover why people suffered and, if possible, how that suffering might be alleviated.

He wandered a great deal, trying to find religious sages who might help him, but he always ended up largely disappointed. After travelling for several years, it is believed that he finally attained enlightenment one evening while sitting under a tree, where he decisively conquered temptation and desire. As a result, he acquired a number of followers / companions with whom he traveled all over, spreading his message of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.

The name Buddha was not his name, but is instead a title - one given to anyone who has attained enlightenment. According to tradition, a Buddha has obtained supreme wisdom and a perfect understanding of all reality. In some schools of Buddhism at least, anyone can in theory become a Buddha - it is not a position reserved for only a few.

Answer 2

Siddhartha Gautama Buddha was the son of a wealthy Indian lord. He lived a life of luxery and was also renowned as a great warrior and general. However, when he went out in the city one day an saw an old man, a sick man, a dead man, and a monk, he realized that there was suffering in the world, and tried to find a way to end it. He traveled to many ascetic gurus and practiced their ways, but found them unsuitable. So he sat down under the Bodhi tree and meditated until he became enlightened. He reffered to himself as the Tathagata. Buddha then traveled for many years, until in in his eighties he died from eating a poisonous mushroom that had been mistakenly fed to him by his poor host. His last words, in response to the question "why did you eat it?", were "This man received me with such kindness and love, more than any other. It was worth it." He taught others how to find enlightenment during his travels, and there are many stories concerning this. If you would like to know of these or any of our teachings, feel free to contact me.

Stories I know by heart:
The Blind Man
The Murderer
The Questions of Ananda
The Giving of the Lotus to Mahakashyapa
The Visit of the Angry Village
The Young Noble Monk
Buddha's Death

"Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love, this is the eternal rule"
- Buddha -

Answer 3

In Buddhism, a Buddha is any being who has become fully awakened (enlightened), has permanently overcome greed, hate, and ignorance, and has achieved complete liberation from suffering. Enlightenment (or Nirvana) is the highest form of happiness. It only applies to the first one who has achieved this without prior knowledge of buddhism. When all knowledge of buddhism is lost and one becomes enlightened then we have a true buddha. The name Buddha today is commonly used to refer to Siddhartha Gautama, the historical founder of Buddhism. Buddha literally means "awakened" or "that which has become aware". It is the past participle of the Sanskrit root budh, i.e. "to awaken", "to know", or "to become aware". The word Buddha is simply a title that means 'The Awakened One'.

The teachings of the Buddha are called the Dharma. The Dharma teaches that all suffering arises from attachments, particularly attachments to worldly desires. Nirvana is achieved by recognizing how these attachments cause us suffering, and no longer being ignorant to them.

Answer 4

Everyone is Buddha.