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He was a prince, loved by his parents, and surrounded by luxury.
And what did he do?
He left the palace and his life to find out why people suffer. And after he did, he taught others how to find the way out of suffering for themselves.
No wonder, that more than 2000 years after his death, he is still remembered, all over the world. His birth, death and enlightenment were all on the same full moon day. This year,2003,it falls on May 16th; although some people celebrate it in June and others in April.
He was Siddhartha, prince of the Shakya clan in northern India [now in southern Nepal]. His family name was Gautama. When he realised why there is suffering in the world, he was called the Buddha which means the Enlightened One. He is also called Gautama Buddha, or Shakya Muni. Muni means 'silent'in Sanskrit and is used to refer to a sage.
He was born in India- in a part that is now in Nepal- but now he is known all over the world!
Prince Siddharth studied the usual subjects for princely classes: the arts and sciences, languages and archery for sport. It seemed to all come naturally to him; almost as if he already knew it all. But to please his father, he attended all his classes.
He was respectful to his teachers, and to all life. Though he was very skillful at archery, he didn't kill any living being.
