Indian history records a Great Battle under a ‘Bo-tree’ in Gaya, Bihar province in Eastern India, by the Prince Siddhārtha, son of King Suddhōdana. It was a battle against the Greed, Hatred, Ignorance, but not a battle like today, with capitalists, communists, the poor and the rich, religious, racists, or at least for lands, on this huge planet. Throughout history, many battles and wars have been recorded, including those led by Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, and Ashoka (Chandhāshoka), as well as World War I and World War II, and various riots within countries. Before these battles, it is mentioned, there was a massacre 2,500 years ago against the relatives of Lord Buddha, the Sakya clan. Accordingly, the King Widūdhabha has massacred all relatives of Lord Buddha, due to a Karma in a previous life. But after this cruel action, the King and his army had taken a rest at a riverbank for a little while, where they suddenly fell asleep. A little later, like a tsunami, a wave from the river has taken them to the river, by activating their instant Karma.
Karma is crucial; it’s everywhere. It would provide proof through the story of Julius Caesar. At the end of the video, the subtitle mentions it. “After Caesar’s death, Rome was plunged into 15 years of civil war. Caesar’s killers haven’t survived for more than three years. None of them died of natural causes. Cassius fell by the same danger that he had directed against Caesar. Brutus took his own life. In the same way as his uncle Cato. Portia lost her mind over Brutus death. She killed herself by swallowing not coal. Marcus Antonius and Cleopatra fell in love when Augustus, Caesar’s successor, tried to capture her; she committed suicide. The son of Caesar and Cleopatra was murdered at Augustus’ command. Calpurnia never married again.”
According to the life of Prince Siddhārtha, his father wanted to see his son become the King of all India, so he did not hesitate to provide all the facilities to the prince. In order to do that, King Suddhōdana built three palaces known as Ramya, Suramya, and Subha for each season, for the young Prince who was sixteen years old at that time. At a young age, Prince Siddhārtha could understand things that others could not. Likewise, Isaac Newton, Pythagoras, Charles Darwin, Galileo Galilei, and Albert Einstein could see and understand special things in this world with a sharp perspective.
As four things: old men, sick people, a dead body, and ordained hermits have been prohibited by the King in his Kingdom, Siddhārtha could not get a chance to see an elderly person until he reached the age of 29. Therefore, having seen an elderly person for the first time, he realized something that normal people could not understand: that everyone, including him, would be like this man. And not only that, in his life, he hasn’t seen a sick person, a dead person, or an ordained hermit until age 29.
These Four Great Sights compelled Prince Siddhārtha to renounce worldly pleasures and end suffering once and for all. The ‘Cankī Sutra’ has illustrated this moment of renunciation very clearly, as Prince Siddhārtha’s family wept. After six years of meditation practice, the hermit Siddhārtha realized the profound ‘Four Noble Truths’ and attained noble Enlightenment.
Following his Enlightenment, the Buddha clearly taught the Dharma, beginning with his first sermon, ‘Dhamma Chakkha Pavattana Sutra’, to His peer group, five ascetics. As highlighted in the ‘Satipattāna Sutra, which refers to psychological therapy, this Dharma is for all human beings to gain mental relief and clarity.
After six years of meditation practice, the hermit Siddhārtha realized the profound ‘Four Noble Truths’ and attained noble Enlightenment.
“This is the only way, Bhikkhu, for the purification of beings, for the overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, for the disappearance of pain and grief, for the reaching the Noble Path, for the realization of Nibbāna…” (The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, by Venerable U. Sīlānanda, Wisdom Publication, Boston.) This Dhamma illustrates how to maintain a calm mind, achieve serenity and clarity, and live a good life in this world, before reaching the so-called Heaven or Nirvana. By practicing these methods, one could pacify the defilements (Klesha): anger, hatred, jealousy, and revenge, as well as all cravings and aversions, and keep away from all these battles in the world. It is illustrated in Dhammapada as:
“Yō sahassam˙ sahassena, san˙gāme mānuse jine, ekam˙ ca jeyya attānam˙ , save san˙gāme juttamo.” It means: ‘If a man were to conquer in battle a thousand times a thousand men, and another conquer one, himself, he indeed is the greatest of conquerors.’ – (93, p. Sahassavagga, The Dhammapada, S. Radhakrishnan, Oxford University Press, London, New York, Toronto.)
Another important event is the Lord Buddha’s visit to Sri Lanka on Vesak Poya day during his eighth year after Enlightenment on the invitation of King Mani Akkhika of the Naga tribe.
The Buddha had visited Kelaniya and delivered a sermon to the people of the Nāga tribe. The Buddha preached the Dharma to the Nāga people, explaining how human beings’ lives change without their consent, and advised them to follow the Dharma. “Dear Sir/Madam, the life of a young age is like a blossomed, beautiful lotus flower, lasting a while. Life is very short, like a dewdrop. All the resources are due to be destroyed like a sea wave. The mind is always suffering from sorrow. Dear Sir/Madam, by accumulating good karma, one can access heavenly resources. However, they are also temporary and will eventually come to an end. Therefore, self-realization is more important than the pursuit of divine resources. It is essential to engage in good deeds to be liberated from the cycle of Sansāra.”
God Sumana Saman was present on this occasion and invited the Buddha to visit Samanala Kanda. Upon arrival, the Buddha placed his footprint on the stone slab at the invitation of God Sumana. From that day onwards, Samanala Kanda was known as ‘Sri Pada,’ and thousands of people visit this site annually. On this same journey, the Buddha visited Deeghavāpi, the Sri Mahā Bodhiya, Magul Mahā Seya, and Sheila Chaitya in Anuradhapura before returning to Jēthavanārāmaya in Sevat Nuwara in India.
“The Buddha’s teaching is a way of life, not a way of talking. We are what we love and care for. Some modern existentialists affirm that man is a self-creating, self-maintaining, self-fashioning will. Every moment, the course of our lives is being decided. The raw material out of which life is made takes its form and is shaped by our thoughts and deeds. As it does so, the unknown future becomes the irrevocable past. … Our freedom can operate only within limits.” – Sir Edwin Arnold. (from the same Dhammapada).
Ven Diyapattugama Revatha Thero
(B.A., M.A., M.Phil.)
Expert Psychological Counselor and
Meditation Instructor
Siriwardhanarama Buddha Dhamma College
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