Ether

Curious "The" Buddha Facts

86 posts in this topic

There are, there where and there will be many Buddhas. Because Buddha is a title, same as Christ. 

Don't take accounts of history in a literal sense, never.

 

<3

Edited by Quanty

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12 hours ago, Ether said:

But what about after he had awakened?

The Buddha's daily routine was divided into five parts:

the morning session

the afternoon session

the first watch

the middle watch

the last watch

The Morning Session (4.00 a.m. to 12.00 noon)

The Buddha would get up at 4.00 a.m. and as soon as he had had a wash would sit down to meditate for an hour. From 5.00 to 6.00 a.m. he would look around the world with his mental eye to see if anybody needed help. At 6.00 a.m. he would put on his robe and either go out and help the needy or beg for food.

When on alms round the Buddha would go from house to house, eyes fixed to the ground, receiving in silence any food that was put into his bowl. Sometimes he would go begging with his disciples, who would walk behind him in single file. Often people would invite him to their houses for lunch and he would give a discourse to them and his followers.

The Afternoon Session (12.00 noon to 6.00 p.m.)

In the afternoon the monks would usually go to the Buddha to ask questions and be taught and advised. The Buddha would then retire to his room and look around the world with his mental eye to see if anyone was looking for his help. He would then go and meet people who were waiting for him. He would teach to them in such a way that everybody felt that the Buddha was teaching to each one of them separately, "giving joy to the wise, promoting the intelligence of the average people and dispelling the darkness of the dull-witted". 

The First Watch (6.00 p.m. to 10.00 p.m.) 

During this time the followers would come again to the Buddha to either listen or ask questions to clarify their doubts. 

The Middle Watch (10.00 p.m. to 2.00 a.m.) 

During this period the devas(celestial beings) would seize the opportunity to go to see the Buddha and learn the truth of life. The Buddha, on answering their questions, would complete the middle watch of the night. 

The Last Watch ( 2.00 a.m. to 4.00 a.m.) 

For the first hour the Buddha would walk up and down meditating and freeing himself from the discomfort of sitting all day. He then would sleep for an hour. Thus we can see the Buddha was busy the whole day. In fact he only slept one hour each day during this 45 years of teaching. During the early hours of the day he saw the whole universe, blessed it with his boundless love and brought happiness to millions. 

More information on http://buddhistpage.com/buddhas-daily-routine/

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@Prabhaker Oh, thank you. But if he had awakened, why would he still meditate'

How do you know so much about Buddha, did you study his life?

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14 minutes ago, Ether said:

But if he had awakened, why would he still meditate'

I think to set an example before others, disciples follow lifestyle of their master.

17 minutes ago, Ether said:

How do you know so much about Buddha, did you study his life?

I live in India , life of Buddha is taught even in school textbooks. Anyone who is interested in spirituality, reads about Buddha and many other spiritual teachers. 

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18 hours ago, Prabhaker said:

 

I live in India , life of Buddha is taught even in school textbooks. Anyone who is interested in spirituality, reads about Buddha and many other spiritual teachers. 

Wow. So Buddha had a huge impact on your culture? Is enlightenment a common topic there? Is it a goal most people have?

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1 hour ago, Ether said:

Wow. So Buddha had a huge impact on your culture? Is enlightenment a common topic there? Is it a goal most people have?

Buddhism and Jainism promoted non-violence in India, foreign invaders attacked India without much resistance. After Islamic invasions and then British occupation, Indian culture is almost destroyed. Common Indian is as materialistic as rest of the world is. Still, millions of Indians talk about spirituality and thousands have devoted their life for seeking truth.

Edited by Prabhaker

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2 hours ago, Ether said:

How many thousands?

No statistics is available. There are dozens of famous spiritual teachers in India, each have several thousand devoted followers. There are several hundred spiritual gurus all over India, who are not famous, each have many followers.

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@Prabhaker At what age did Buddha started to suffer? Was his suffering intense?

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12 hours ago, Ether said:

At what age did Buddha started to suffer?

Buddha's father made all arrangements so that he can't encounter any suffering of life. Till he was twenty- nine, any old , sick, dead person was not seen by Buddha.

The king did everything he could think of to ensure his son Prince Siddhartha would grow up prepared for a life following in his own footsteps and become a king. He ordered a high wall to be built around the palace, including its parks and gardens, but the prince was not happy living like a prisoner. One day he told his father, "I must go out of the palace gate and see how other people live."

"Very well, my son," said the king, "you shall go outside the palace wall to see how people live in my city. But first I must prepare things, so that all would be good and proper for my noble son's visit."

The king ordered the people of the city to prepare for his son's visit by making the streets and homes beautiful and welcoming him as he passed them by. When the people had decorated the city the king said, "Now you can go, my dear son, and see the city as you please."

As the young prince was going through the streets all of a sudden, from a small old hut beside the road, out came an old man with long silver-grey hair, wearing very old, torn and dirty rags. The skin of his face was dried and wrinkled. His sunken eyes were dim and he was almost blind. There were no teeth in his mouth. He stood up, trembling all over, almost bent over double and clutching at a shaking stick with two bent and skinny hands to save himself from falling.

The old beggar dragged himself along the street, paying no attention to all the happy people around him. He was speaking very feebly, begging people around him to give him food, as he would die that very day if he could find nothing to eat. When the prince saw the old man, he didn't know what he was looking at. It was the first time in his life that he had seen an old man of this type.

"What is that, Channa?" he asked his driver. "That really cannot be a man! Why is he all bent? What is he trembling for? Why is his hair silver-grey, not black like mine? What is wrong with his eyes? Where are his teeth? Is this how some people are born? Tell me, oh good Channa, what does this mean?"

Channa told the prince that it was an old man and he was not born like that. "When young he was like us and now, due to his old age he has become this way." Channa told the prince to forget this man. But the prince was not satisfied. "Everyone in the world, if he lives long enough, becomes like this man. It cannot be stopped," said Channa.

The prince ordered Channa to drive back home at once, as he was very sad and wanted to think carefully about that terrible thing called old age.

That night there was a grand royal feast for the prince, but he was not interested or happy at all during the dinner and dance. He was thinking all the time, "Some day you will all grow old and frail and bent — every one of you, even the prettiest."

He could not sleep when night came. He was in bed thinking that one day, everyone would grow old, grey, wrinkled, toothless and ugly like the old beggar. He wanted to know if anyone had found a way to stop this horrible thing — old age.

The king, when he heard this story, was very sad and worried that his son would leave the palace. He told his attendants to put on more dances and dinners.

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@Prabhaker Thank you. So he was 29 when he first encountered suffering, and he left the palace at 29. How much time it did took for him to leave (weeks, months)?

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12 hours ago, Ether said:

How much time it did took for him to leave (weeks, months)?

The five wise men who were at Prince Siddhartha's naming ceremony not only predicted the great future of the new prince, but had given the king a warning. "When your son sees a sick man, an old man, a dead body and a monk, he will want to leave the palace and become a monk himself,"

He was 29 when he first encountered suffering. After few days he left the palace.

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@Prabhaker Damn. So was the suffering so deep, that he had to leave that early?

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6 minutes ago, Ether said:

So was the suffering so deep, that he had to leave that early?

There are millions people who are suffering deeply and they know story of Buddha, but they don't become spiritual. There are many who try to become spiritual but they fail to grow into a meditator. Buddha was tremendously intelligent.

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1 hour ago, Prabhaker said:

There are millions people who are suffering deeply and they know story of Buddha, but they don't become spiritual. There are many who try to become spiritual but they fail to grow into a meditator. Buddha was tremendously intelligent.

Well, he didnt really control his inteligence, so.

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1 hour ago, Ether said:

Well, he didnt really control his inteligence, so

He was really intelligent. A man who had nothing in the world, made emperors jealous. He found the real treasure. 

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25 minutes ago, Ether said:

Yeah, we can all do it.

We all have potential but if a tree produces thousands of seeds , only few seeds become a fully fledged tree. 

Krishna in Geeta has said,

"Among thousands of people, perhaps one strives for success. Among those successful strivers, perhaps only one knows me in essence."

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