Investigating Buddhism

Investigating Buddhism
Student’s Name
Institution of Affiliation
Investigating Buddhism
According to White (2016), the person referred to as Buddha was a prince called Siddhartha Gautama. At a tender age, it was prophesized that he would turn out to be a great religious figure or a great king (White, 2016). The prophecy came to pass when Siddhartha escaped from his luxurious life. He had to deal with confrontations with the world by suffering (four sights), followed by years of self-deprivation, which ultimately led to his insight and the contemporary day lessons of the Buddha. In this essay, the four sights experienced by the young Siddhartha Gautama, when he left the palace are described. Then, a reflection on the significance of the sights follows. The third is a thought on why the four sights caused the prince to seek religious retorts, and lastly, what this reflection means for divine progression.
The chronicles surrounding the life of Siddhartha include four sights that questioned old age, disease, death and in his final vision, he saw a Buddhist monk who was meditating. His father wanted to shelter him from these elements and went for the extreme measures to guard against old age, spiritual renunciations, and demise. Nevertheless, this action did not stop the interventions by the gods. The Hindu myth’s devas were inquisitive about the prince as a religious leader and took the approach of the four prohibited effects. The Prince’s first encounter was with an older man who was on the verge of demise.

The second was a man with a disfiguring illness. Thirdly, he met a funeral parade of a decomposing corpse, and lastly, he saw a sacred monk, who presented a tranquility of a renunciation life. The first three elements signify suffering, whereas the last one offers a way out.
The story of Prince Siddhartha is not important as a biography or a piece of history, it is significant due to its spiritual relevance. It is about the impulse to embark on the work that is true of human consciousness, which is to be more cognizant. Reflecting on the four sights, the first three observations indicate the existential circumstances, whereas the fourth one represents the antidote to the lack of satisfaction. Sickness and death represent something that is inevitable in life; not everyone can attain old age, and commence a spiritual life is a choice that only a few people can make.
The Prince’s story teaches people that power, wealth and children are not a source of security. Furthermore, they cannot save people from the cruel nature of sickness and demise, they only make it unbearable because individuals lose so much in the end (Loseke, 2016). People do not want to age or fall sick, and more often than not, individuals get what they do not wish for. They develop a sense of awareness of the suffering and insecurity, or the suffering of lack, meaning the ambiguous uneasiness that motivates them to go out and search for something better.
The Four Sights resemble the beginning of Siddhartha’s rebirth story, one that leads him to seek religious answers. This is a pivotal time in his life because if there was no drive to pursue this path, he would have remained in the palace and Buddhist faith would not be in existence. He had the drive to seek religious answers. The prince felt motivated to try and eradicate other’s pain, thus the decision to seek religious answers. The sights inspired him to see the level of the inconsequentiality of the ordinary life and sensual preferences, meaning that he left the denial of the state of living that was brought about by his comfortable style in life, to search for answers and to become open-minded.
Reflections such as those of Prince Siddhartha are meaningful for spiritual growth. The vision, inspiration, and faith to seek a spiritual life are perhaps less forthright and less clear. Spiritual life, meaning a life devoted principally to consciousness, beyond obliviousness, desire, fear, and detestation. It leads to a deliberate, and conscious evolution that has no security, whose expansion is in a blossoming empathy (Johnstone, 2015). It leads people to advance beyond self-attachment and to achieve this, people need to be motivated by a revelation of a greater life, or higher personality, a vision of a more extensive self.
People are inspired by different things at different times in life, especially inspirations that result in spiritual progress. Furthermore, divine nourishment comes from self-realization of a higher purpose. The reflections such as those of the prince are important, especially if people want to seek the path to realizing a spiritual calling. Through the thoughts, people are able to grow and develop in faith.
In conclusion, religiousness is imminently concrete because it provides discipline for the body and the mind, on how to treat oneself and others. It shows people how to love others and shows them how to be wise. Furthermore, it is compatible with other religious perspectives and does not seek to repudiate other philosophical and spiritual views. Many years have passed since the young Siddhartha Gautama experienced the four sights. However, the sanctity he breathed into the world is vital, especially for those seeking a higher purpose.
References
Johnstone, R. L. (2015). Religion in Society: A Sociology of Religion. Rutledge.
Loseke, D. (2016). Seeing the Light: Qualitative Research, Culture, and Cognition.
White, R. (2016). The Spiritual Guide: Four Steps on the Path of Enlightenment. Wipf and Stock Publishers.