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The story of the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama begins with the understanding that the precise dates of the Buddha’s life are uncertain. ... This is significant, as residing in such a place means that the evolutionary process of re-birth (samsara) has guaranteed that you will become a Buddha in the next life. Siddhartha is believed to have acquired this position from previous encounters with past Buddha. In one encounter Gautama is in a particular life cycle as Sumedha who meets with a past Buddha named Dipamkara. ... Sumedha is overcome with the site of Dipamkara and lays down before him so that Dipamkara does not get dirty crossing a mucky section in the road and announces that he too will one day like to become such a Buddha. “Hearing him utter this resolution, and recognizing his determination, Dipamkara responds by publicly making a prediction that, innumerable aeons later, Sumedha will indeed become the Buddha Gautama” (Strong, 28). ... Being that Dipamkara has predicted the excellence of such a Buddha, Gautama’s birth and life are riddled with phenomenon. ... it signals the defeat of Mara and the Buddha’s awakening. ...
The history of the Buddha is meant to be an archetype to the story of all Buddha of the past, present, future and generally those that choose to follow the Buddhist path. ... Within this history we are enlightened by various aspects that help to illustrate the nature of a Buddha and the cosmos in which Buddhism resides. ... The teaching of the Buddha emphasizes that such searching is not hopeless, as ultimately a Buddha is one who has conquered such a cycle of rebirth.
Approximate Word count = 1231
Approximate Pages = 4.9
(250 words per page double spaced)
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