The advent of the Buddha in one of the most momentous events of human history and civilization. His life and work show to what sublime heights human compassion, thoughts and feelings can rise. Here in this book is given lord Buddha’s life and gospel in a nut-shell.

GAUTAMA BUDDHA - BIOGRAPHY, CHRISTIANTY & OTHER RELIGIONS, BUDDHISM

No man has had a greater inflience on the spiritual development of his people than Siddartha Gautama. Born in India in the sixth century BC into a nation hungry for spiritual experience, he developed a religious and moral teaching that, to this day, brings comfort and peace to all who practise it. This comprehensive biography examines the social, religious and political conditions that gave rise to Buddhism as we now know it.

Nautilus Book Award Winner The first full biography of Mahaprajapati Gautami, the woman who raised the Buddha--examining her life through stories and canonical records. Mahaprajapati was the only mother the Buddha ever knew. His birth mother, Maya, died shortly after childbirth, and her sister Mahaprajapati took the infant to her breast, nurturing and raising him into adulthood. While there is a lot of ambiguity overall in the Buddha's biography, this detail remains consistent across all Buddhist traditions and literature. In this first full biography of Mahaprajapati, The Woman Who Raised the Buddha presents her life story, with attention to her early years as sister, queen, matriarch, and mother, as well as her later years as a nun. Drawing from story fragments and canonical records, Wendy Garling reveals just how exceptional Mahaprajapati's role was as leader of the first generation of Buddhist women, helping the Buddha establish an equal community of lay and monastic women and men. Mother to the Buddha, mother to early Buddhist women, mother to the Buddhist faith, Mahaprajapati's journey is finally presented as one interwoven with the founding of Buddhism.

In Gotama Buddha, Professor Hajime Nakamura embarks on a search for the details of the historical Buddha's life. He conducts an exhaustive analysis of both the oldest, most reliable texts and later biographies of the Buddha that contain mythological material. Carefully sifting these texts to separate facts from embellishments, he constructs a biography that begins with the Indian historical context at the time of Buddha's Birth and takes the reader through all the stages of his life. Professor Nakamura also compares the oldest Buddhist texts with the earliest Jain and Hindu writings and finds surprising similarities that elucidate the significance of the historical Buddha. Archeological discoveries and factual elements from Buddhist art support Professor Nakamura's fascinating story. This is the first of two volumes; The second will be printed at a later date.

Siddhartha Gautama lived 2,500 years ago, but the effects of his life are still shaping the world today. The son of a king, he left a world of wealth and privilege to seek a better life—and he found it in the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. After he had found what he was seeking, he did not retire to a quiet place where he could spend all his time in meditation. Instead, he devoted himself to sharing what he had discovered with others. His followers grew over the years, and during the centuries that have followed his death, his teachings have spread around the globe. Today, Siddhartha Gautama is known by countless millions as the Buddha. His wisdom and compassion are legendary, and many have followed the path that he identified, hoping to reach enlightenment as he did.