In order to teach sentient beings in Jambudvīpa, the White-Haired Bodhisattva descended from the inner court of Tushita to the human world. He rode a white elephant and entered his mother’s womb in the dead of night…

In the Lumbini Garden, where flowers were in full bloom, Queen Suddhodana, who was six months pregnant, was resting under a tree. The breeze was blowing, birds were chirping, and the surroundings were peaceful. At this quiet and serene moment, Sakyamuni Buddha was born safely from the right hand of Queen Maya. The newborn prince flew in the air, taking seven steps to the east, south, west, and north respectively. Beautiful seven-treasure lotus flowers bloomed with his steps. The Buddha pointed to the sky with one hand and the earth with the other and said, “I am the only one who is supreme in heaven and on earth.” The gods Sakyamuni and Brahma bowed to the holy image, and the goddesses of heaven scattered flowers to celebrate. The southern continent of Jambudvīpa was bright, and auspicious signs appeared between heaven and earth.

When the entire Sakya clan was immersed in the joy of the new life, Lady Maya passed away on the seventh day after the birth of the prince. The young prince Siddhartha was then raised and cared for by his aunt Mahapajapati.
King Suddhodana took great care of this son born in his later years. Not only did he provide all material needs, but he also hired experts and scholars from all walks of life to teach Siddhartha various knowledge and techniques such as literature, medicine, philosophy, arithmetic, martial arts, and military tactics. The young prince was gifted and intelligent. In just a few years, he not only mastered various subjects, but also had good martial arts. Many arrogant lunatics were deeply impressed by the prince. His reputation spread far and wide, and even countries such as Angka and Magadha knew that there was an outstanding prince in Kapilavastu. The prince, who was well versed in skillful means, could follow all worldly affairs. When he was seventeen years old, Nayasodhara became his queen, and six years later he gave birth to his only son, Rahula.

Despite his wealth and splendor, Siddhartha did not indulge in pleasure; on the contrary, he had a more subtle observation and thinking about life than most people. During several trips, he saw the killing of the weak by the strong, the hard-working farmers, the patients wailing in pain, the elderly with difficulty walking, the corpses with pus and blood… These scenes made the prince deeply feel the pain of birth, aging, illness and death, and deeply thought about the possibility of solving the pain. On another trip, Siddhartha met a majestic monk at the north gate. The prince was very happy and the idea of giving up the world to practice Taoism came to his mind.

Although King Suddhodana tried to suppress the prince’s desire to become a monk, he could not change his will. As time went by, the prince’s determination to leave the world became more and more resolute. Finally, one dark night, he left the royal city and went deep into the forest. Siddhartha cut off his hair and beard, put on a cassock, and made a vow: “If I do not attain the fruit of Bodhi and save all living beings from the sea of life and death, I will not return to the royal city.” From then on, the prince in brocade clothes became a solitary ascetic.

Prince Siddhartha, who had just become a monk, began a hard life of asceticism by the Niranjana River. During the severe asceticism, he ate only one grain of hemp and one grain of wheat a day, and practiced meditation wholeheartedly day and night. After six years, his body became thin and weak, and his consciousness became increasingly blurred. The prince deeply realized that asceticism was not the way to liberation. So he got up, bathed, and walked out of the ascetic forest.

After receiving the milk offering from the shepherdess, the prince gradually recovered his strength and came to Bodhgaya. Under a bodhi tree, he made a great vow: “If I do not attain the supreme enlightenment, I would rather die than get up.” Prince Siddhartha sat cross-legged and entered a deep meditation. During this time, countless troubles and demons kept disturbing him, and the demon army and demons came out in full force. After 49 days of fighting, at the moment of meeting the morning stars, Siddhartha realized the source of his heart, suddenly realized all truths, and achieved the supreme enlightenment. The prince was enlightened, escaped the cycle of life and death, and became the Buddha who attained liberation and nirvana.

After several days of meditation, the Buddha crossed the Ganges River and came to Deer Park to preach to the five monks, including Kondanna, who had practiced with him. The Buddha first turned the Dharma wheel and preached the “Four Noble Truths” and “Eightfold Path” to the five monks – four truths that can lead to enlightenment, and eight practical methods of practice. In Deer Park, the Buddha turned the Dharma wheel three times, and the five monks were enlightened and became the first ordained Sangha.

After converting the five monks, Sakyamuni Buddha began to preach the Dharma near Deer Park and along the banks of the Varaka River. Not long after, Yasa, the son of a wealthy merchant in Varanasi, came to seek the Dharma. Although he was born in a wealthy family, he had a great aversion to the worldly dust and dust, so he devoutly prayed to the Buddha for the way to liberation. The Buddha compassionately accepted him, and Yasa became the sixth disciple of the Buddha. When Yasa’s father, Kurika, came to Deer Park, Yasa had already become a dignified monk. Seeing this, the elder Kurika was infinitely happy and vowed to convert himself; later, Yasa’s mother also converted to Buddhism under the Buddha. They became the first upasaka and upasika in Buddhism respectively. Inspired by the wisdom of the Buddha, Yasa’s friends also came to seek the Dharma. Fifty people were ordained at the same time and became the Buddhist Sangha. Under the Buddha’s teachings, all the disciples were excited and achieved the fruition.

In order to make the teachings spread widely and allow more sentient beings to gain the benefits of liberation, the Buddha asked his disciples not to stay in one place and to spread the teachings to all directions. The first teaching activity of the Sangha was launched. Sakya himself also set out alone to Gaya Mountain. Passing the Nilean River, the Buddha came to the place where Uruvilva Kasyapa practiced asceticism. Uruvilva Kasyapa was over 100 years old and was a very prestigious leader of the Zoroastrianism. Sakyamuni Buddha preached the ultimate wonderful Dharma to him and showed incredible supernatural powers. Uruvilva Kasyapa was deeply enlightened and led 500 disciples to convert to Buddhism. After that, he also persuaded his two younger brothers who also believed in Zoroastrianism. Nakasyapa and Gaya Kasyapa also brought 250 believers to convert successively. These are the famous three Kasyapas. At this time, the Sangha of the religious group had a scale of more than 1,000 people, and the spread of the teachings was also faster.

During the process of spreading Buddhism, it was repeatedly obstructed by the “Six Paths of External Teachers”. The so-called “Six Paths of External Teachers” were six influential sects at the time, and Sariputra and Maudgalyayana were famous scholars of the Sophist School. The scholars of this school were arrogant and thought they had the most excellent teachings in the world, and no one could match them. However, when they heard the truth that “all phenomena are impermanent, they are born and die, and when birth and death are extinguished, nirvana is happiness” preached by the Buddha, they were deeply convinced and each led 250 disciples to convert. Sariputra and Maudgalyayana practiced diligently and later became the “wisest” and “most powerful” disciples in the Buddha’s Sangha.

Sakyamuni Buddha once promised King Bimbisara that if he could attain the supreme Bodhi, he would go to save him. For this reason, the Buddha came to Magadha and preached the holy Dharma of “impermanence of all things, no self in all dharmas, and nirvana and tranquility” to the king and people of Rajgir. King Bimbisara and the audience were deeply moved and converted to the Buddha’s teachings. Magadha became the first country to believe in Buddhism nationwide. In order to express gratitude for the Buddha’s teachings, King Bimbisara built the “Bamboo Grove Vihara” so that the Buddha could live and preach. The first Buddhist temple was thus formed.

The Buddha preached in the Bamboo Grove Monastery, and the outstanding Brahmin elder Mahakasyapa often went to listen to the teachings. After several visits, Mahakasyapa was deeply moved by the perfect wisdom of Sakyamuni Buddha, so he asked to be ordained. He followed the teachings and strictly adhered to the asceticism of non-attachment and few desires. He was called “the first of the ascetics” and became the leader of the ten great disciples. Later, when the Buddha picked up a flower at Lingshan, Mahakasyapa understood its meaning alone and became the founder of the Chinese Zen Buddhism.

Sudatta was a famous philanthropist in Savatthi, known as Anathapindika. On this day, he came to Rajgir. Originally a Brahmin, he was filled with joy when he saw the Buddha’s dignified appearance and perfect teachings, and begged Sakyamuni Buddha to come to Savatthi to preach. After receiving the Buddha’s compassionate promise, Sudatta rushed back to his country to find a quiet and solemn place for the Buddha to preach. His sincerity moved Prince Jeta, and the two of them jointly established the “Jetanagarbha”. The Buddha lived in the Jetavana Monastery for a long time, preaching for 24 years, and saved countless sentient beings; even the proud and self-reliant King Prasenajit was moved by the Buddha’s teachings and became a loyal disciple to protect the Dharma.
Savatthi was actually not far from Kapilavastu, and the news of Sakyamuni Buddha’s preaching in the Jetavana Monastery soon spread back to his homeland. At the invitation of his father, the Buddha returned to his hometown after many years. When Sakyamuni Buddha preached in Kapilavastu, both the royal family and the common people went to listen. His father King Suddhodana and his wife Yasodhara were deeply inspired. His son Rahula even became a monk with his mother’s approval and became the first novice monk in the Sangha. His half brother Nanda also converted to Buddhism under the Buddha.

Although Sakyamuni Buddha stayed only briefly in Kapilavastu, the teachings he preached inspired many royal children. The Buddha’s four cousins, Ananda, Devadatta, Aniruddha, and Kampila, successively joined the Sangha. Sakyamuni’s teachings were equal regardless of caste. Upali, a pariah who cut the hair of the four princes at the time, also received the Buddha’s approval and became a monk. Born in the slave class, Revata strictly followed the precepts and was known as the “first in observing the precepts”, becoming one of the ten great disciples of the Buddha. After King Suddhodana passed away, Mahapajapati, the aunt who raised the Buddha, led five hundred Sakya women to request ordination and became the first bhikkhuni in the Sangha. Soon after, the Buddha’s wife Yasodhara also joined the bhikkhuni sangha.

Since attaining enlightenment, Sakyamuni Buddha has lectured more than 30,000 times in more than 40 years, saving countless sentient beings. At the age of 80, he still traveled north to spread the Dharma with his frail body. The Buddha set out from Rajgir, spent the rainy season in Vaishali, and arrived at Kusinagara with illness. In the Saha Grove outside Kusinagara, the exhausted Buddha lay on his right side under the twin trees, surrounded by his disciples and the guardian gods and dragons. He accepted the final offerings from the Kusinagara craftsman Cunda, and accepted Subhadra as his last disciple; and left his disciples to follow the precepts as a teacher and to abide by the four mindfulnesses. After the Buddha passed away peacefully, the body was cremated. The cremated Buddha relics were brought back by eight countries including Magadha, and pagodas were built for worship.

In order to pass on the Buddha’s teachings forever, on the 90th day after the Buddha’s death, 500 great Arhats, led by Mahakasyapa, gathered at Vulture Peak outside Rajgir and completed the first collection of Buddhist scriptures. After several collections, compilations and translations, the Dharma spread to countries around the world, and the profound and complete truth became a precious raft to save sentient beings from the sea of suffering of life and death.

The Buddha has attained the Three Enlightenments and possessed all virtues. He has been compassionate and saving the world throughout his life and will always be admired by people.