On Sunday May 1st, 2016, the Japanese Meditation Center, Tokyo, arranged the meditation and taught a special dharma on the topic of “The Buddha’s History” in Japanese by Most Ven. Dr. Pongsak Thaniyo.
Before listening dharma from the teaching monk, the participants meditated together for 30 minutes. Then, the teaching monk told the history the Lord Buddha from His birth to His ordination. The main idea was Buddhism was established because of the Buddha named Gautama Siddhartha. He was the son of King Suddhodana and Queen Maya. When the prince was 16 years old, he was married with Princess Pimpa or Yasodharā. Princess Pimpa gave birth to a son named Rāhula when they were 29 years old. When the prince Siddhartha saw a deceased man, a dying corpse, and an ascetic, he realized that everybody must face these conditions, no one can avoid them. Generally, there was an opposite for each thing such as hot things vs. cold things, etc. So, there must be the opposites of the universal troubles, which were birth, age, illness, and death. The way to escape from the universal troubles and the cycle of reincarnation is to be an ascetic. Then, the prince decided to ordain a few days after the birth of Rāhula.
It is about 2,500 years from that time. What truth do we get? What did the Buddha teach us? How can we apply this dharma in our lives? Please listen in the next week.
