Lumbini

LIFE OF BUDDHA

Buddha light of Asia.Son of King Suddhodana and Queen Mayadevi.A very popular place, known as birth place of Lord Buddha-Lumbini. It lies in the Rupendehi district of Lumbini Zone of western Nepal.One night, Queen maya devi dreamt that white elephant entered her right side.And indicated on that very night she had conceived a child. Ten months later Siddhartha was born.As, Siddhartha grew up he mastered all the traditional arts and sciences.The prince would take every opportunity to convey spiritual meanings and to encourage others to follow spiritual paths.Sometime he would go to his father's kingdom. During his visit he saw many old people, sick people and once he saw a corpse.After seeing these, he had a deep impression on his mind. And realized that all the living beings have to experience the suffering of birth, sickness,aging and death.When king heard this, he was disturbed. He wished for his son to be great king.At the age of sixteen Prince Siddhartha married beautiful princess-Yasodhara.She gave birth to a son named Rahul.They enjoyed their days in palace and never thought about life outside the palace.Siddhartha then spent 29 years as a prince in Kapilvastu.Despite his father's effort to hide him from the sick, aged and suffering. He left the palace to meet his subjects.Siddhartha than made his way to a place near Bodh Gaya.He vowed never to arise until he had found the truth.During the night Mara, the evil one tried to tempt him away from his virtuous path.First he sent his beautiful daughters to lure Gautam. Next he sent bolt of lightening, wind and heavy rain.Last he sent his demonic armies with weapons and flaming rocks.One by one Siddhartha defeated the armies with his virtue.Siddhartha then continued with his meditation-when he attended the vajra-like concentration. With this concentration, which is the very last mind of a limited being he removed the final veils of ignorance from his mind and in the next moment became a Buddha, a fully enlightened being.

UNESCO lists Lumbini, Nepal, as a world heritage site