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==The Buddha's life==

==The Buddha's life==

The prime sources of information regarding Siddhārtha Gautama's life are the [[Buddhist texts]]. The Buddha and his monks spent four months each year discussing and rehearsing his teachings, and after his death his monks set about preserving them. A council was held shortly after his death, and another was held a century later. At these councils the monks attempted to establish and authenticate the extant accounts of the life and teachings of the Buddha following systematic rules. They divided the teachings into distinct but overlapping bodies of material, and assigned specific monks to preserve each one. The teaching was thus preserved orally for three centuries after the Buddha's death when they were finally recorded on palm-leaf scrolls that were arranged in three baskets ([[Pali]]: ''[[tipitaka|ti-pitaka]]''). By this point, the monks had added or altered some material themselves, in particular magnifying the figure of the Buddha.<ref>{{harvnb|Carrithers|1990|p=13}}</ref>

The prime sources of information regarding Siddhārtha Gautama's life are the [[Buddhist texts]]. The Buddha and his monks spent four months each year discussing and rehearsing his teachings, and after his death his monks set about preserving them. A council was held shortly after his death, and another was held a century later. At these councils the monks attempted to establish and authenticate the extant accounts of the life and teachings of the Buddha following systematic rules. They divided the teachings into distinct but overlapping bodies of material, and assigned specific monks to preserve each one. The teaching was thus preserved orally for three centuries after the Buddha's death when they were finally recorded on palm-leaf scrolls that were arranged in three baskets ([[Pali]]: ''[[tipitaka|ti-pitaka]]''). By this point, the monks had added or altered some material themselves, in particular magnifying the figure of the Buddha.

The ancient Indians were not concerned with chronologies, being far more focused on philosophy. The Buddhist texts reflect this tendency, and we have a much clearer picture of what the Buddha thought than of the dates of the events in his life. These texts contain descriptions of the culture and daily life of ancient India which can be corroborated from the [[Jain]] scriptures, and make the Buddha's time the earliest period in Indian history for which substantial accounts exist.<ref>{{harvnb|Carrithers|1990|p=15}}</ref> The following is a summary of what is found in these texts.

The ancient Indians were not concerned with chronologies, being far more focused on philosophy. The Buddhist texts reflect this tendency, and we have a much clearer picture of what the Buddha thought than of the dates of the events in his life. These texts contain descriptions of the culture and daily life of ancient India which can be corroborated from the [[Jain]] scriptures, and make the Buddha's time the earliest period in Indian history for which substantial accounts exist.<ref>{{harvnb|Carrithers|1990|p=15}}</ref> The following is a summary of what is found in these texts.

Siddhartha was born in [[Lumbini]][http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/lumbini.htm] and raised in the small kingdom or principality of [[Kapilavastu]]. His father was King [[Suddhodana]]{{Fact|date=December 2007}}, the chief of the Shakya nation, one of several ancient tribes in the growing state of [[Kosala]]; Gautama was the [[family name]]. As was the Shakya tradition, when his mother Queen Maya fell pregnant, she returned to her father's kingdom to give birth, but after leaving [[Kapilvastu]], she gave birth along the way at [[Lumbini]] in a garden beneath a [[sal]] tree.

Siddhartha was born in [[Lumbini]][http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/lumbini.htm] and raised in the small kingdom or principality of [[Kapilavastu]]. His father was King [[Suddhodana]]{{Fact|date=December 2007}}, the chief of the Shakya nation, one of several ancient tribes in the growing state of [[Kosala]]; Gautama was the [[family name]]. As was the Shakya tradition, when his mother Queen Maya fell pregnant, she returned to her father's kingdom to give birth, but after leaving [[Kapilvastu]], she gave birth along the way at [[Lumbini]] in a garden beneath a [[sal]] tree.

The day of the Buddha's birth is widely celebrated in [[Theravada]] countries as [[Vesak]].<ref>{{cite book|author= Turpie, D|date=2001|title=Wesak And The Re-Creation of Buddhist Tradition|location=[[Montreal]], [[Quebec]]|publisher=[[McGill University]]|page=3|url=http://www.mrsp.mcgill.ca/reports/pdfs/Wesak.pdf}}</ref> Various sources hold that the Buddha's mother died at his birth, a few days or seven days later. The infant was given the name Siddhartha (Pāli: Siddhattha), meaning “he who achieves his aim”. During the birth celebrations, the hermit [[Clairvoyance|seer]] [[Asita]] journeyed from his mountain abode and announced that the child would either become a great king ([[chakravartin]]) or a great [[Holiness|holy man]].{{Fact|date=December 2007}} This occurred after Siddhartha placed his feet in Asita's hair and Asita examined the birthmarks. Suddhodarna held a naming ceremony on the fifth day, and invited eight [[brahmin]] scholars to read the future. All gave a dual prediction that the baby would either become a great king or a great holy man.{{Fact|date=December 2007}} [[Kaundinya]] (Pali: Kondanna), the youngest, and later to be the first [[Arhat|arahant]], was the only one who unequivocally predicted that Siddhartha would become a [[Buddhahood|Buddha]].<ref>{{harvnb|Mahathera|1988|pp=11–12}}</ref>

The day of the Buddha's birth is widely celebrated in [[Theravada]] countries as [[Vesak]].[http://www.mrsp.mcgill.ca/reports/pdfs/Wesak.pdf] Various sources hold that the Buddha's mother died at his birth, a few days or seven days later. The infant was given the name Siddhartha (Pāli: Siddhattha), meaning “he who achieves his aim”. During the birth celebrations, the hermit [[Clairvoyance|seer]] [[Asita]] journeyed from his mountain abode and announced that the child would either become a great king ([[chakravartin]]) or a great [[Holiness|holy man]].{{Fact|date=December 2007}} This occurred after Siddhartha placed his feet in Asita's hair and Asita examined the birthmarks. Suddhodarna held a naming ceremony on the fifth day, and invited eight [[brahmin]] scholars to read the future. All gave a dual prediction that the baby would either become a great king or a great holy man.{{Fact|date=December 2007}} [[Kaundinya]] (Pali: Kondanna), the youngest, and later to be the first [[Arhat|arahant]], was the only one who unequivocally predicted that Siddhartha would become a [[Buddhahood|Buddha]].

While later tradition and legend characterized Śuddhodana as a [[hereditary]] [[monarch]], the [[Kinship and descent|descendant]] of the Solar Dynasty of [[Ikshvaku|{{IAST|Ikṣvāku}}]] (Pāli: Okkāka), many scholars believe that Śuddhodana was the elected chief of a tribal confederacy.

While later tradition and legend characterized Śuddhodana as a [[hereditary]] [[monarch]], the [[Kinship and descent|descendant]] of the Solar Dynasty of [[Ikshvaku|{{IAST|Ikṣvāku}}]] (Pāli: Okkāka), many scholars believe that Śuddhodana was the elected chief of a tribal confederacy.