Who was Siddhartha Gautama before he became the Buddha?
A. a guru
Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism and later known as the Buddha, had a life journey before attaining enlightenment. To understand who he was before becoming the Buddha, we need to delve into his early life.
Siddhartha Gautama was born around the 5th century BCE into a royal family in present-day Nepal. He was the son of King Śuddhodana and Queen Māyā. As a prince, Siddhartha led a privileged life, shielded from the suffering and hardships of the outside world.
His father, however, had great aspirations for Siddhartha to become a powerful ruler rather than a spiritual seeker. Therefore, Siddhartha was raised in luxury and seclusion within the palace, not allowed to experience the hardships of the world.
However, at the age of 29, Siddhartha ventured outside the palace grounds and encountered the realities of life. He witnessed the suffering caused by old age, sickness, and death, which deeply affected him. These encounters sparked his curiosity and led him on a quest for the truth about existence and the ways to overcome suffering.
Renouncing his life of privilege, Siddhartha left his family and royal obligations behind to become an ascetic and seek enlightenment. For the next several years, he practiced various forms of extreme asceticism and meditation under the guidance of different teachers, hoping to find answers to his existential questions.
Eventually, Siddhartha abandoned the extreme practices and turned to a middle path, rejecting both indulgence and severe austerity. After years of intense self-reflection and meditation, he attained enlightenment, becoming the Buddha, which means "the awakened one."
As the Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama dedicated the rest of his life to teaching others about the nature of suffering and the path to liberation. He founded a monastic community, known as the Sangha, and traveled extensively for around 45 years, spreading his teachings and helping others find enlightenment.
In summary, Siddhartha Gautama was a prince who renounced his luxurious life and embarked on a spiritual quest, ultimately becoming the Buddha after attaining enlightenment. To learn more about Siddhartha Gautama's transformation into the Buddha, you can study Buddhist scriptures, historical texts, and biographies on Buddhism.