buddha

Over the centuries there have been numerous biographies of Gautama the Buddha in various formats, from the ancient traditional biographies, to epic poems like Sir Edwin Arnold’s Light of Asia, to articles, modern biographies and documentaries. Throughout all of these we find certain keynotes, certain events and ideas that form a basis for the life of Buddha, but we also find more fantastical aspects to the stories. Modern scholars tend to dismiss the latter as merely “mythological” or exaggerated, and they seek (and fail) to find the “real Buddha” by stripping these away. In the present biography, we will attempt to trace not only the historical basis for the life of the Buddha, but to unveil, as much as is possible, some of the symbolism involved in the traditional accounts. How far we are successful in so doing is left to the reader to decide.

Preface In the following Poem I have sought, by the medium of an imaginary Buddhist votary, to depict the life… Read More »Light of Asia: The Great Renunciation (Mahabhinishkramana)