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The Historicity of the Buddha

The Buddha is recognized as a historical figure. He was born in India in the 6th century BC and lived there until his passing away at the age of 80. The British archaeologist H. Oldenberg, in his book The Life of Buddha, states that the Buddha’s passing away occurred around 480 BC. Renowned epigraphist Dr. Wickremasinghe suggests the year 483 BC (Epigraphia Zeylanica, Vol. 1). Another British archaeologist, Dr. Fleet, also accepts this year.

About 240 years after the Buddha’s passing, Emperor Asoka visited Lumbini, the birthplace of Prince Siddhartha (later the Buddha), and erected a stone pillar with an inscription stating: “After twenty years of his coronation, King Piyadasi, beloved of the gods, visited this place in person to worship here, where the Buddha, the Sage of the Sakyans, was born.”

The inscription is written in Brāhmī characters belonging to the 3rd century BC. The German archaeologist Alois Anton Führer discovered this Asoka pillar in 1895. Today it still stands in Lumbini, Nepal. Recent excavations by Professor Robin Alexander of Durham University (UK) confirm that Prince Siddhartha was born in the 6th century BC.

In 1898, Sir Alexander Cunningham discovered an ancient stone reliquary at Piprāhwā in India, traditionally identified as ancient Kapilavatthu, the capital of King Suddhodhana, Siddhartha’s father. The Brāhmī inscription on the casket reads: “Relics of the Buddha, the Blessed One, of the Sakyans, reverently enshrined.” Radiocarbon tests confirmed that the relics belonged to the Buddha’s period. These are known as the Kapilavatthu Relics.

Thus, the Buddha was a historical figure. In contrast, gods or Brahmās are 10 mythological beings without historical evidence. Stories related to them were created to praise or symbolize their roles. The Buddha was deeply sensitive to the realities of life, particularly the dissatisfying nature of human existence. He lived as a human being and passed away as one. His body was cremated. The Buddha never claimed the ability to save people from misfortune; instead, he said that the Tathāgata (the one who has realized the truth) is merely a teacher. One must follow and practise the teachings to attain liberation.

He was the only religious teacher who declared that he was no more than a human being. Archaeological excavations at Jetavanārāma in Sāvatthi, India, show evidence that he had a normal physical appearance. Later Mahāyāna traditions embellished his image with the 32 marks of a Great Man and various miraculous powers.

The Buddha’s Search for Truth

Prince Siddhartha realized the unsatisfactory nature of life through the experiences of ageing, disease, mental suffering, and finally death realities symbolized in the story of the Four Sights: an old man, a sick man, a corpse, and a serene ascetic. The first three sights revealed the universal suffering of humanity; the fourth inspired him to seek liberation.

The term dukkha does not mean pessimism; rather, it means “unsatisfactoriness,” the fact that life cannot bring lasting fulfillment.

At the age of 29, he renounced the palace and practised severe asceticism. During his life, he had experienced two extremes: indulgence in luxury and self mortification, but neither led to the truth. He abandoned traditional religious rituals and followed his own path—the Middle Way, avoiding both extremes.

One evening, seated beneath a Bodhi tree (Ficus religiosa) on the bank of the Neranjanā River at Buddha-Gaya (modern Bihar), he entered deep meditation and attained Enlightenment, the Supreme Bliss. Thereafter, he became known as The Buddha. He attained Enlightenment at the age of 35.

For 45 years, he travelled throughout northern India, teaching the truth of life and the world to all people without distinction of caste or class. His teachings consisted of two essential aspects:Vijjā (knowledge) and Cāraṇa (practice), both of which must be developed to become an ideal Buddhist.

His disciples included people from all social backgrounds from the abandoned child Sopāka to his own son Rāhula. At the age of 80, the Buddha passed away (attained Parinibbāna) at Kusinārā in modern Uttar Pradesh. He was born as a human, lived as an exemplary human, and passed away as an ordinary human. He was the founder of Buddhism and the only religious teacher who never claimed divine origin or inspiration. He emphasized the importance of human effort, behaviour, and intelligence.

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