Buddha

Traditional biographies of Gautama generally include numerous miracles, omens, and supernatural events. The character of the Buddha in these traditional biographies is often that of a fully transcendent (Skt. lokottara) and perfected being who is unencumbered by the mundane world. In the Mahāvastu, over the course of many lives, Gautama is said to have developed supramundane abilities including: a painless birth conceived without intercourse; no need for sleep, food, medicine, or bathing, although engaging in such "in conformity with the world"; omniscience, and the ability to "suppress karma." Nevertheless, some of the more ordinary details of his life have been gathered from these traditional sources. In modern times there has been an attempt to form a secular understanding of Siddhārtha Gautama's life by omitting the traditional supernatural elements of his early biographies.
The ancient Nepalese were generally unconcerned with chronologies, being more focused on philosophy. Buddhist texts reflect this tendency, providing a clearer picture of what Gautama may have taught than of the dates of the events in his life. These texts contain descriptions of the culture and daily life of ancient Nepal which can be corroborated from the Jain scriptures, and make the Buddha's time the earliest period in Nepalese history for which significant accounts exist. Karen Armstrong writes that although there is very little information that can be considered historically sound, we can be reasonably confident that Siddhārtha Gautama did exist as a historical figure. Michael Carrithers goes a bit further by stating that the most general outline of "birth, maturity, renunciation, search, awakening and liberation, teaching, death" must be true.

Traditional biographies of Buddha

The primary sources for the life of Siddhārtha Gautama are in a variety of different and sometimes conflicting traditional biographies. These include the Buddhacarita, Lalitavistara Sutra, Mahavastu. Of these, the Buddhacarita is the earliest full biography, an epic poem written by the poet Asvaghosa and dating around the beginning of the 2nd century CE. The Lalitavistara Sūtra is the next oldest biography, a Mahayana/ Sarvastivada biography dating to the 3rd century CE. The Mahāvastu from the Mahāsāṃghika Lokottaravāda sect is another major biography, composed incrementally until perhaps the 4th century CE. Lastly, the Nidānakathā is from the Theravāda sect in Sri Lanka, composed in the 5th century CE by Buddhaghoṣa. From canonical sources, the Jātaka tales, Mahāpadāna Sutta (DN 14), and the Acchariyaabbhuta Sutta (MN 123) include selective accounts that may be older, but are not full biographies. It shows only the tradition. The Jātaka tales retell previous lives of Gautama as a bodhisattva, and the first collection of these can be dated among the earliest Buddhist texts. The Mahāpadāna Sutta and Acchariyaabbhuta Sutta both recount miraculous events surrounding Gautama's birth, such as the bodhisattva's descent from Tuṣita Heaven into his mother's womb.

Buddha

Siddhārtha Gautama was a spirtual teacher from ancient Nepal who founded Buddhism. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha (P. sammāsambuddha) of our age, "Buddha" meaning "awakened one" or "the enlightened one. The time of his birth and death are uncertain: most early 20th-century historians dated his lifetime as 563 BCE to 483 BCE, but more recent opinion dates his death to between 486 and 483 BCE or, according to some, between 411 and 400 BCE. Based on archeological evidences and inscriptions, Buddha was born in Lumbini, Nepal which is a UNESCO world heritage site. He later taught primarily throughout regions of eastern India such as Magadha  and Khosala.

Gautama, also known as Sakyamuni ("Sage of the Shakyas"), is the primary figure in Buddhism, and accounts of his life, discourses, and monastics are believed by Buddhists to have been summarized after his death and memorized by his followers. He travelled various place in the world and teach. Various collections of teachings attributed to him were passed down by oral tradition first committed to writing about 400 years later.

Four Noble Truths

Four Noble Truths

( It is surmised by  Google)

I.                   Life is filled with suffering due to our desires to want things to be different.

II.                Self-centered craving causes the of suffering of imbalance.

III.              In order to bring an end to suffering one must bring an end to self-centered craving.

IV.              The way to cease craving is to follow the Eight Fold Path.
1. Right View
See things as they truly are without delusions or distortions for all things change. Develop wisdom by knowing how things work, knowing oneself and others.
2. Right Intention
Wholehearted resolution and dedication to overcoming the dislocation of self-entered craving through the development of loving kindness, empathy and compassion.

3. Right Speech
Abstinence from lies and deceptions, backbiting, idle babble and abusive speech. Cultivate honesty and truthfulness; practice speech that is kind and benevolent. Let your words reflect your desire to help, not harm others.
4.Right Action
Practiceself-less conduct that reflects the highest statement of the life you want to live. Express conduct that is peaceful, honest and pure showing compassion for all beings.
5. Right Livelihood
Avoidance of work that causes suffering to others or that makes a decent, virtuous life impossible. Do not engage in any occupation that opposes or distracts one from the path. Love and serve our world through your work.
6. Right Effort
Seek to make the balance between the exertion of following the spiritual path and a moderate life that is not over-zealous. Work to develop more wholesome mind states, while gently striving to go deeper and live more fully.
7. Right Mindfulness
Through constant vigilance in thought, speech and action seek to rid the mind of self-centered thoughts that separate and replace them with those that bind all beings together. Be aware of your thoughts, emotions, body and world as they exist in the present moment. Your thoughts create your reality.
8. Right Concentration

The Buddha's Four Noble Truths: A Logical Basis For Philosophy

The Buddha Shakyamuni was born in the 6th century BC in Lumbini the historical place in Nepal. During his 80 year lifetime, he systematically developed a pragmatic, empirically based philosophy which he claimed would lead its followers towards an enlightened existence.   Buddhism is commonly called a religion; however, it differs from the usual definition of a religion in that it has no deities, does not promote worship of demigods, and is based on logical reasoning and observation rather than spiritual faith.   At the heart of Buddhist philosophy is the Buddha's enumeration of Four Noble Truths:   Dukkha (suffering), Samudaya (origin of suffering), Nirodha (cessation of suffering), and Magga (path to cessation of suffering).   The Buddha's Four Noble Truths are based on archetypal traits that were elucidated through careful empirical observance and intensive introspection.   These Four Noble Truths form a logically coherent set ofaxioms upon which the whole of Buddhism is based, and provide a solid foundation for a philosophy which is applicable several millennia after its formulation.

"What we call a 'being,' or an 'individual,' or 'I,' according to Buddhist philosophy, is only a combination of ever-changing physical and mental forces or energies...." - Walpola Rahula.

In order to fully understand the Four Noble Truths, it is necessary to investigate the Buddhist view of the individual and its makeup.   In some respects, the manner in which Buddhism deals with the mind/body problem is much more advanced than most religious views, and closer to science's understanding of the mind and body.   Rather than postulating the existence of an eternal soul with no physical manifestation, the Buddha taught that the person is really a
collection of five skandhas or aggregates.   These include rupa (matter), vedana (sensations), sanna (perceptions), samkhara (mental formations), and vijnana (consciousness).