The Buddha and His Message

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The Buddha and His Message 1) What were the four sights that drove Siddartha in his religious quest? Explain them. Siddhartha encountered four sights that ultimately sent him on his religious quest. Young Siddhartha was kept inside the palace for most of his royal life, tucked away from the truths of reality. One day, Siddhartha goes wandering outside his palace with his charioteer and witnesses something foreign to him. Siddhartha sees an elderly homeless man. The curious Siddhartha asked his charioteer many questions as he interprets the characteristics of age and aging. He learns about aging and that no one is eternally young and that everybody ages no matter what. The next thing Siddhartha encounters is a man afflicted with pain. The charioteer describes this to Siddhartha as an illness and its unpredictability. He realizes that everyone suffers from illness and is in some sort of bodily pain. Following these two sightings, Siddhartha then witnessed a funeral. He noticed that the physical body was lifeless and life has thus ended. Siddhartha witnessed death, and realized that it is the fate of all living things. Finally, Siddhartha saw someone who had given up everything they had in order to search for their inner self, an Aesthetic. After witnessing such terrible truths, Siddhartha was inspired by the Aesthetic and decided to leave the palace to embark on a religious quest. On his small expedition outside the palace gates, Siddhartha learned that “all humanity is vulnerable to ageing, sickness and death”. Siddhartha left his royal life, wealth, and family to become the Buddha that until today is respected and followed. 2) Explain the four Noble Truths (Do not just list) 1. Suffering exists The first Noble Truth is surmising that life consists of suffering and unhappiness. This suffering is called dukkha. The world is imperfect and mortal.

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