( Sidhartha didn't just give up being rich, but also, renounced being head of an army as a prince, which shows his non-violence.)īuddhist worship at home or at a temple. long ears from the weight of his princely earrings-now missing because he renounced his worldly life.curled hair (the curls are actually snails that kindly covered his head-shaved because he renounced the worldly life- to protect him from the sun as he sat meditating.) The are a symbol that he was a very holy man.a round mark on his forehead, which is his third eye - a symbol to show that he could see things ordinary people cannot see.

a bump on on the top of his head - a symbol that he had special talents.For example the Buddha is often shown with: Any of these symbols can be used on statues. There are 32 symbols in Buddhism which show that the Buddha was a special person. Statues of Buddha include lots of symbols. He searched for a way to escape the inevitability of death, old age and pain first by studying with religious men. Siddharta's travels showed him much more of the the suffering of the world. Siddharta had also seen a monk, and he decided this was a sign that he should leave his protected royal life and live as a homeless Holy Man. Why did Siddhartha Gautama stop being a prince and become a Holy Man? He learned that sickness, age, and death were the inevitable fate of human beings - a fate no-one could avoid. One day, after growing-up, marrying and having a child, Siddhartha went outside the royal palace and saw, each for the first time, an old man, a sick man, and a corpse. He was born into a royal family and for many years lived with in the palace walls away from the sufferings of life sufferings such as sickness, age, and death. He was born around the year 580 BCE in the village of Lumbini in Nepal. Siddharta Gautama is known as the Buddha. By doing so he was led from the pain of suffering and rebirth towards the path of Enlightenment and became known as the Buddha or 'awakened one'. Siddhartha Gautama found the path to Enlightenment. Why is Siddhartha Gautama so important to Buddhists? He was called the Buddha and lived in the 4th or 5th century B.C.

The Buddhist tradition is founded on and inspired by the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama. Buddhists do not believe in a personal creator God. How is Buddhism different from other religions?īuddhism is different from many other faiths because it is not centred on the relationship between humanity and God. Theravada, Mahayana, Tibetan, Chinese and Japanese groups including Soto and Zen A key concept of Buddhism is Nirvana, the most enlightened, and blissful state that one can achieve. It is a religion about suffering and the need to get rid of it. The religion is 2,500 years old and is followed by 350 million Buddhists worldwide.īuddhism is the main religion in many Asian countries. Buddhism began in northeastern India and is based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama.

Buddhism symbol wheel of life