Focus: GS I- History
Why in News?
Prime Minister attended the 2566th Buddha Jayanti Celebration at International Convention Center and Meditation Hall at Lumbini, Nepal.
About Gautama Buddha:
- He was born in Lumbini, near the Indo-Nepal border, as Siddhartha Gautama to a royal family in around 563 BCE.
- His ancestors belonged to the Sakya clan, which governed from Lumbini’s Kapilvastu.
- At the age of 29, Gautama left home and abandoned his affluent lifestyle in favour of asceticism, or intense self-discipline. Gautam gained Bodhi (enlightenment) under a pipal tree in Bodhgaya, Bihar, after 49 days of meditation.
- Buddha preached his first sermon in Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh, near Varanasi. Dharma Chakra Pravartana is the name given to this occurrence (turning of the wheel of law).
- He died at the age of 80 in 483 BCE at Kushinagara, Uttar Pradesh. The event is known as Mahaparinibban or Mahaparinirvana.
- He is believed to be the eighth of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu (Dashavatar).
