The Life of Lord Buddha

Pranams at the lotus feet of Lord Buddha!

Chapter – 6

It was believed that Lumbini/Nepal, is the birthplace of Siddhartha, he was brought up in Kapilavasthu located in Uttar  Pradesh.  He was born in the Hindu Kshatriya family and King of Sankhya clan Shudhdhodhana.   The Queen Mayadevi conceived with Siddhartha, on that night she had a dream in that a white elephant with a lotus flower on her right side.  On the next day, King Shudhdhodhana called for a meeting of scholars and  royal astrologers to know more about the dream of Queen Mayadevi.  The royal astrologers interpreted the dream as a highly auspicious one, he will have a son with incredible virtues, will power, might, courage, and he will remain incomparable.  After ten months, when Maya Devi was fully pregnant with the child expressed her wish to be with her father’s Kingdom Devadhaha for the delivery of the child.  She received permission from King Shudhdhodhana and conducted a journey to the Kingdom of Devadhaha in a grand chariot accompanied by several maidservants and kings men.  They have crossed several miles through the lush green land, riverside and beautiful lands of the forest of Lumbini.  They have traveled half of their journey to Kingdom Devadhaha, Queen Mayadevi ordered the counselor to stop for a while to relax.  She advised King’s men to take rest in the shade; it has been half of the day’s journey by foot for them.  The counselor advised “ Your Highness, if you want to take rest, please be seated under the Salavruksha.”

Queen Mayadevi moved near the Salavruksha, suddenly she felt throbbing pain on the back, felt the urgency to give birth to the child.  The entire group was frightened, the maidservant rushed all over the place to give help to their Majesty,  nature showed its sign of the birth of a divine child, a pleasant breeze filled in the air.  The child born walked through the path filled with lotus flower revealing his identity as the supreme one; soon it assumed the form of an infant.  Queen Mayadevi returned to Kapilavasthu with the newborn,  the chief of the Sakhyan royal family paid a visit to King Sudhdhodhana to greet the divine child.

An assembly of the meeting with the Sankhyan royal family chief with the family of King Sudhdhodhana was arranged, to listen to the predictions about the future of the child.  The chief of the Sakhyan Royal family instructed the King to place the child on the cradle so that he can calculate his predictions about the child.  He thoroughly examined the child from head to toe, he was baffled to witness all the characteristics on the newborn of the divine being which are mentioned in the sacred texts.  He has not seen such a marvelous creation all his life,  suddenly he rose from the seat and prostrated before the child.  The King Sudhdhodhana was mystified to see Asita/Chief of Sakhya clan, head bow down before the child, he began to speak “ I have thoroughly examined all the characteristics of the newborn if he chooses to be in the royal family he would become one of great Emperor of the world.  If he chooses to leave the Palace and lead a saintly life, he would become an enlightened soul, Buddha.”  Asita was deeply disappointed that he had grown too old to witness the growth of the miraculous child and his pastimes.