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in the north of ancient India where
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Nepal is today a figure emerged more
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than 2,500 years ago one who would defy
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conventional understanding of wealth
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power and happiness his name was sidarth
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aama but he became known throughout the
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world by the name of Buddha his tale
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starts when the noblemen sudana King of
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the shakya clan and his wife were
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attempting to have a male heir to
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succeed him but were encountering
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obstacles in a Dream Queen Maya was
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visited by a large white elephant with
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six ivories the Kingdom's priests
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indicated that this was a very hopeful
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sign that The Sovereign was finally
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pregnant and that her son was destined
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to be a powerful leader the queen gave
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birth to her son during a journey to the
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beautiful lumini garden where she held
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on to the branches of a beautiful tree
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and brought her son into the world the
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infant was extremely beautiful beautiful
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and a glowing Aura seemed to surround
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him proving that he was certainly a
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special child a wise Sage known as aitt
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was summoned to meet the baby and he
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burst into tears when he saw the child
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when he was asked to explain why he was
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weeping he said that it was because the
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prince was meant to attain the true
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Liberation that the sage had been
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seeking all his life however the guru
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would be dead by the time sidartha
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reached his Destiny and so he would not
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have the opportunity to find the answers
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he had been looking for a also explained
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to the king that the child would not be
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the heir he so desired to take his place
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on the throne when his time came he
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would leave the palace in search of the
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truth the small Prince sartha gatama was
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raised entirely away from the outside
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world as his father feared that the call
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of Destiny would take his son away from
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his kingdom when sedara gatama came of
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age he was offered several young
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princesses to choose as his wife he
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decided on yasodara who was known for
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her beauty and virtue the king gifted
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the couple three magnificent palaces one
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perfect for the summer another ready for
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the Rainy monsoon season and a Winter
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Palace they were known as the Palaces of
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the three Pleasures where the couple had
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all the material Goods they needed for a
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joyful life the couple were blessed with
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the birth of a healthy child named
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rahula and the King was overjoyed as his
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succession seemed
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assured the king finally allowed his son
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to step outside the walls of his Palace
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to see the kingdom that he would rule in
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the future but the prince's route was
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carefully selected so that he would not
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encounter the world's
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misery however although he was in touch
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with the beauties of the world sidara
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came across as a man who was suffering
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from a serious illness which he had
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never seen before it pained him to think
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that people dear to him could also be
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subject to such
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ailments he had never come across old
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people either so elderly that almost all
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of their strength had deserted them he
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began to reflect on the finitude of life
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and the inevitability of death sidartha
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gutama was anguished as he could not
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understand how people could cope with
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the possibility of death which was
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always lurking around the corner then he
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met a homeless man who looked poor but
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had an unshakable Spirit brimming with
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confidence and peace the prince went to
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the AIC man and was told that he had
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renounced his life of comfort to free
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his Spirit from the suffering of the
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world Upon returning to the Palace
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Prince sartha kept thinking about the
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aic's words and suddenly his Destiny was
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revealed to him he had to give up all
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that life of luxury and pleasure and
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embark on a spiritual quest in the
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Silence of the night s artha gatama
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hiding from his father fled to start his
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mission of self-
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[Music]
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knowledge Prince sartha gatama had
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abandoned his luxurious way of life and
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started his journey of
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[Music]
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[Music]
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traded in his silk robes for simple
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garments just like those of the people
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who lived in the forest he was now alone
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away from all the agulation of his
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wealthy Court sidartha gatama had
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relinquished everything that bound him
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to his old way of life and set out
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across the world looking for those who
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could help him achieve his goal sidartha
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gatama learned the art of meditation
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from the master Alara Kama and perfected
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the technique of the realm of
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nothingness where the Buddha's mind
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could detach itself from Material
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awareness and perceive only the infinite
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however even though he considered this
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lesson valuable sidartha still thought
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it was not the answer he was looking for
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to find
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Enlightenment he then began to meditate
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with the master udaka raputa who taught
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him new meditation techniques that
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improved his
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self-reflection the young gatama
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appreciated the lessons but noted that
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whilst useful they were not enough
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sidartha Quatama then set off for the
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king of magada where aics gathered to
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practice together like sidhartha they
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had renounced the Comforts of life and
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lived simply when they observed the
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Newcomer's commitment and the way he
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gave himself to his daily practices the
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atics were certain that sartha gatama
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was the one to find
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Enlightenment along with the atics
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sidhartha learned to transcend the
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suffering that his body felt due to pain
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and hunger he came to fully Master his
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body and senses and nothing could
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disturb him he hardly ate anything
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anymore and so he became thinner and
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weaker this period of Buddha's life
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became known as the six-year fast but
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sidhartha noticed that his weakness was
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doing him more harm than good it was
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keeping him from the path of wholeness
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as even his reasoning was hampered he
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would put an end to his fast by
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accepting an offering from from a
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peasant Woman as a result he was
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despised by the aics who thought he had
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given up on following the path they
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deemed righteous following the great
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fast satara gatama pondered and realized
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that all kinds of extremes are not
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beneficial and that he should choose the
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middle path avoiding both Indulgence and
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utter austerity sartha went on to
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believe that it was important to find
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balance both in spiritual practice and
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in life in general
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after years of wandering and learning
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sidartha stumbled across a beautiful fig
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tree it became known as The Bod tree and
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sidartha gatama said that he would sit
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under its shade and would only stand up
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once he had found Enlightenment he made
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a cushion out of grass and foliage then
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sat down with his face turned to the
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east he took up his meditation and the
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spirits of the world rejoiced but the
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demons would not permit that ordinary
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mortal to break the chains that bound
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him to the material world Mara the demon
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of desire and deceit emerged to divert
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sartha from his goal he tried to tempt
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sidartha in every way Mara brought forth
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visions of beautiful women and attempted
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to distract sartha with violent scenes
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but neither the fear nor the desire
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elicited by Mara could distract sidartha
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guatam then Mara dared sartha to find
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someone who could bear witness in his
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favor attesting to his right to
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Enlightenment that was when sidartha
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touched the ground with his hand
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signaling that the Earth itself was his
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witness then on a full moon night
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sidartha gatama overcame ignorance and
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suffering after recalling his past lives
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understanding the cycle of birth and
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death that happens according to Karma
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and ultimately grasping the four noble
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truths which are the path to ending
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suffering at sunrise sidarthur Guama at
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last attained Enlightenment becoming
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Buddha the enlightened one he would
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arise from his meditation fully awake
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Buddha had fully understood the nature
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of reality the root cause of suffering
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and the path to Liberation he remained
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under the tree for another 7 weeks
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absorbing and contemplating the
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profundity of his
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experience after attaining Nirvana
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Buddha chose to share his knowledge with
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the world and began to wander around
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spreading his
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[Music]
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teachings after sartha gatama had
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reached Enlightenment now as Buddha he
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established the goal of helping others
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through his teachings so that they could
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find their way out of suffering Buddha
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knew that most people were not prepared
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to receive such knowledge and pass it on
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he looked for those who were better
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suited to accept his teachings and then
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recalled his fellow aics they initially
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met him with suspicion believing that he
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had given up his mission when he stopped
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fasting however they soon realized that
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the man standing in front of them was no
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longer the same he exuded a peaceful
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energy filled with love and compassion
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the main subject of Buddhist teachings
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was the four Great truths which have
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become one of the key themes in the
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practice of
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Buddhism the first is Dua the truth of
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suffering it asserts that life is
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inherently dissatisfying and painful
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this does not mean that life is only
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suffering but rather that all
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conditional aspects of existence have an
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unsatisfactory nature this encompasses
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The Suffering From Pain sickness and
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death but also refers to the more subtle
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suffering of impermanence and the
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inherent unfulfillment of existence the
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second truth is the samudaya the origin
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of suffering this identifies the cause
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of suffering as desire or attachment the
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Buddha taught that suffering comes from
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our unquenchable craving for pleasure
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existence and
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non-existence this yearning is rooted in
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ignorance it is when there is a
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misunderstanding or ignorance about the
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true nature of reality especially its
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impermanent nature the third truth is
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neroda the cessation of suffering it
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declares that suffering can be stopped
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that is achieved through Nirvana which
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is a state of ultimate and complete
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Liberation from suffering Nirvana is not
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a place but rather a state of being or
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accomplishment that is beyond the
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constraints of conditioned existence it
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represents the end of attachment hatred
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and
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ignorance the fourth and final truth is
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Maga the way to the cessation of
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suffering it presents the means for
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ending suffering this method is the
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Noble eight-fold Path which consists of
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Right View right resolve right speech
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right conduct right livelihood right
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effort right mindfulness and right
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samade these truths became core
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foundations in Buddhist Doctrine helped
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by his disciples Buddhist teachings were
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followed by more and more people after
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many Journeys Buddha eventually returned
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to his homeland and was reunited with
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his old father and his son rahula who
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became a Buddhist monk after reaching
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the age of 80 Buddha declared that it
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was time to prepare to leave this world
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and reach final Nirvana he lay down
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between two flowering trees gave his
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last instructions and began a deep
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meditation entering Nirvana for the last
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time Buddha's body was cremated and his
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relics dispersed and placed in sacred
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monuments which became a place of
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veneration Buddhism spread throughout
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the world especially in China Japan and
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Korea several Buddhist schools and
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traditions have practice sprang up but
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all of them followed the foundations and
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lessons taught by Buddha who revealed to
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the world the path for those seeking
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[Music]
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enlightenment
