How did the childhood experiences of Siddhartha Guatama (Buddha) lead to his questioning of the spiritual practices of his time?
http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/BUDDHISM/SIDD.HTM
=)
Prior to Siddhartha's birth it had been prosephied that he would become a saint. Because of this prophesy his parents were scared and kept him sheltered away from the world. Siddhartha was raised in wealthy existenance in a protected environment that did not enable him to see the realities of what people endure in the world on a daily basis. He knew nothing of poverty, sickness, death, hunger and so forth.
When Siddhartha went outside of the castle into the world and saw all that happens in real life he was saddened by such events and decided that the only way for him to reach spiritual enlightenment was for him to live in the same poverty that many others lived in and he did so for some time - renouncing all that was his in the manner of wealth afforded to him by his family and position.
After awhile he learned that depriving himself to the point of doing without basic needs was not the core of Buddism, but that the core was to live in moderation.
Moderation meaning not to live extravagantly but to have basic needs met if so equipped to have them met. And to give to those less fortunate so that their basic needs are met if one is fortunate enough to do so.
To understand how Siddhartha Gautama, later known as the Buddha, came to question the spiritual practices of his time, it is important to delve into his childhood experiences. One can explore this topic in more detail by referring to the website http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/BUDDHISM/SIDD.HTM, which provides comprehensive information on the subject.
According to the website, Siddhartha Gautama was born into a princely family in what is now Nepal around the 5th century BCE. As a prince, he was shielded from the harsh realities of life and was surrounded by luxury and opulence. However, these privileged circumstances did not shield him from the suffering and impermanence of the world.
The website explains that Siddhartha was sheltered within the palace walls, being kept away from any form of suffering or spiritual practices outside. However, it was not until Siddhartha ventured outside the palace and confronted the realities of human suffering that he began to question the spiritual practices of his time.
Upon leaving the palace, Siddhartha encountered four sights that deeply impacted him: an old man, a sick person, a dead body, and finally, a wandering monk. These encounters revealed to him the inevitable realities of aging, illness, and death, which he had previously been shielded from.
As the website further explains, these experiences sparked Siddhartha's curiosity and led him to question the prevailing spiritual practices of his time. He became disillusioned with the extravagant and indulgent lifestyle he had grown up with, as he realized that material wealth alone could not alleviate human suffering. This questioning ultimately prompted him to renounce his princely life and embark on a spiritual quest in search of a deeper understanding of suffering and its potential remedies.
By visiting the aforementioned website, readers can gather more information about Siddhartha Gautama's childhood experiences and how they shaped his journey to enlightenment.