The Word Buddha Means "One Who Is Awake"

In Buddhism, Buddha (/ˈbuːdə, ˈbʊdə/), "awakened one," is a title for someone who is awake, and has attained Nirvana and Buddhahood. The title is most commonly used for Gautama Buddha (also known as Buddha Shakyamuni), the founder of Buddhism, who is often simply known as "the Buddha".

History records that Buddha was born as a prince in an ancient kingdom of northern India, in present-day Nepal. His name was Siddhartha Gautama. He spent his early life in luxury, completely shielded from the world by his father who wanted to protect him.

Although as a youth he lived in beautiful palaces, as he grew older the Buddha encountered what we must all face — the inevitable sorrows of life. He saw the loss of all things we hold dear, and the aging, sickness, and death that come to every human being, and it shook him to the very core.

Seeing this, he chose to renounce his royal title, and leave his palace to become a seeker of truth, searching for the end of human sorrow, searching for freedom in the face of the ceaseless round of birth and death.

For some years the Buddha practiced as an austere yogi in the forests of India. In time, he realized that his extreme asceticism had brought him no more freedom than his previous indulgence in worldly pleasures.

Instead, he saw that human freedom must come from practicing a life of inner and outer balance, and he called this discovery the Middle Path.

Having seen this, the Buddha seated himself under a bodhi tree and vowed to find liberation in the face of the forces that bring suffering to humankind. He felt himself assailed by these forces — the fear, attachment, greed, hatred, delusion, temptation, and doubt.

The Buddha sat in the midst of these forces with his heart open and his mind clear until he could see to the depths of human consciousness, until he discovered a place of peace at the center of it all. This was his Enlightenment, the discovery of Nirvana, the freeing of his heart from entanglement in all the conditions of the world.

The realization of truth that he touched that night was so profound, that his teachings about it have continued to inspire and enlighten people all over the world to this day. It is estimated that over the centuries, about one quarter of the human race have followed the Buddha's way.

From the Buddha's Enlightenment, two great powers were awakened in him: Transcendent Wisdom and Universal Compassion. Setting in motion the Wheel Of Dharma (begin teaching), the Buddha wandered first to Deer Park in Benares, and gave instructions to the yogis who had practiced with him in the forest.

After this, for 45 years he brought the teachings of wisdom and compassion to all who would listen. These teachings, which the Buddha called the Dharma, or The Way, The Truth, are an invitation, and a map to follow the path of enlightenment. They are an invitation to all who hear them to discover their own Buddha-nature, the freedom, wisdom, joy, and a great heart of compassion that is possible for every human being.

For 2,500 years the practices and teachings of Buddhism have offered a systematic way to see clearly, live wisely, and get tangible results. They have offered a way to discover liberation within our own bodies and minds, in this very life, and in the midst of this very world.

May there be peace in the entire Universe