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Philosophical Haiku

Siddhartha Gautama: The Buddha (c. 563-483 BCE)

by Terence Green

All ceases to be
Suffering is eternal
Let go and be free

Throughout his youth, Siddhartha Gautama was just your typical humble North Indian prince growing up in luxury and splendour and shielded from suffering. Inevitably, given this upbringing, he was shocked to discover the suffering and death of ordinary people beyond the palace walls. So at age twenty-nine he decided to give up the trying existence of a prince in favour of the simpler life of a wandering seeker after truth. He ditched not only his wealth and the creature comforts wealth brings, but his wife and son also (incidentally, he’d named his son Rāhula, meaning fetter – make of that what you will), and took to the road as a wandering ascetic (sort of like a wandering minstrel, but not as much fun).

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