SIDDHARTHA & DHAMMPADA

Siddhartha was a gifted prince: He had everything one would want.

He married Yashodhara: She became his gentle princess

They were blessed with a baby whom they named Rahul.

One day the Prince left the palace to see how his subjects were faring.

Most were doing well,  but many were also ageing.

Some who were not that old, were poor and some were sick.

Even the happy ones, Siddhartha thought, would some day suffer and die.

This made the prince worry and  he began to wonder

About  the cause of human suffering, but he found no answer.

So one night he stealthily left the palace, leaving wife and child.

And he roamed alone in the wilderness, looking for answers to his puzzle.

It was thus that, so the narrative goes, Siddhartha found the key

To the question that was deeply bothering his mind.

While mediating under a tree he attained Enlightenment

He came to becalled the Buddha: the Awakened One.

He shared his wisdom with some, which  they spread far and wide.

This is how, in simple terms  the religion known as Buddhism,

Emerged and  spread far and wide.

The teachings of this of religion are  enshrined in a book:

Its contents enshrine the teachings of the Buddha.

Let’s now glance at this sacred work

Thie classic scripture is called Dhammapada.

It says that an Elder is a person who embodies

Not only truth, but also virtue and love.

An Elder  always shows restraint and moderation.

The truly wise must also be free of all impurities.

This sacred text is inscribed in the language of Pali.

In Pali,  Dhamma means Truth and Righteousness,

And pada is a word which in English is  path.

Truth relates to mind, society, suffering, salvation.

Dhammapada deals with psychology, ethics, sociology.

What is remarkable about this religious text

Is that God is not mentioned here even once.