Who the Buddha is

Thangjam Sanjoo Singh *

A buddhist temple at Tamu, Myanmar :: Pix - Deepak Oinam

1. ONE WHO HAS REACHED ABOVE ALL

Show me in the history one character that has reached so high above all. The whole human has produced but one such person – The Buddha – preaching high philosophy yet having the deepest of sympathy even for the lowest animal.
By Swami Vivekananda

2. THE LIFE OF THE BUDDHA IS A POEM

The whole life story of The Buddha is a wonderful poem. It is so fascinating, attractive and artistic and I have never read such a wonderful poem. The emergence of The Buddha is the highest honour so gained in the history of humanity.
By Rabindranath Tagore

3. A TEACHER WHO NEVER HAD HUMAN FRAILTY

The Buddha was the embodiment of all the virtues he preached. His moral code is the most perfect the world has ever known. During his successful and eventful forty – five years as a supreme enlightened teacher, he translated all his work and in no place did he give vent to any human frailty or any base passion.
By Prof. Max Miller

4. PRINCE IN BEGGAR'S CLOTHING

If you desire to see the most noble of mankind, look at the prince at beggar's clothing; it is He whose sanctity is great among people – 'The Buddha'.
By Abdul Atahiya

5. EVERLASTING VALUE AND ADVANCED ETHICS
The Buddha gave expression to truths of everlasting value and advanced the ethics not of India alone but of humanity. The Buddha was one of the greatest ethical men of genius ever bestowed upon the world.
By Albert Schweitzer

6. THE GOD WHO WALKED ON EARTH

The Buddha is the only god who ever walked on this earth.
By Swami Vivekananda

7. THE BUDDHA IS NOT A MYTH

You see clearly a man, simple, devout, lonely, battling for life, a vivid human personality, and not a myth. He gave a message to mankind universal in its character. Many of our best modern ideas are in the closest harmony with it.
By H.G. Wells

8. ONE WHO KNOWS THE TRUE NATURE OF THE WORLD

Among the founders of all religions in the world, I respect only one man – The Buddha. The main was that The Buddha did not make statements regarding the origin of the world. The Buddha was the only teacher who realized the true nature of the world.

But , while many others unjustifiable claims based on rather simplistic logic on how the world originated, The Buddha did not commit himself to any statement about a beginning. This was because he knew his listeners did not have the proper intellectual training and understanding of the physical world to comprehend what he himself had discovered.
By Bertrand Russell

9. THE BUDDHA EMPHASIZED REASON, MORALS, PRINCIPLES AND EXPERIENCE

The Buddha had the courage to point out the unsatisfactoriness of popular religion, superstition, ceremony, and priest craft. He was not interested in the metaphysical and theological outlook, miracles, revelations, and dealing with the supernatural. He appeal was to reason, logic and experience; his emphasis was on ethics and his method was one of the psychological analysis, a psychology without his soul. His whole approach comes like the breath of the fresh wind from the mountain after the stain air of metaphysical speculation.
By Pandit Nehru

10. FLOWER OF MANKIND

Wisdom's scent and Love's dropped honey.
By Sir Edwin Arnold

11. HINDUISM OWES AN ETERNAL DEBT TO THE BUDDHA

It is my deliberate opinion that the essential parts of the teachings of The Buddha now forms an integral parts of The Buddha of Hinduism. It is impossible for Hindu India today to retrace her steps and go behind the great reformation that Gautama effected in Hinduism.

By the immense sacrifice, by his great renunciation, and by the immaculate purity of his life he left an indelible impression upon Hinduism, and Hinduism owes an eternal debt of gratitude to that great teacher.
By Mahatma Gandhi

12. THE GREATEST CONQUEROR OF THE WORLD

The Buddha was the greatest conqueror the world has ever seen. He conquered the world with his infallible weapons of compassion and wisdom. His teaching illuminates the way for mankind to cross from world of darkness, hatred and suffering, to a New World of light, love, happiness and security.
By Dr. Malalasekara

13. THE BUDDHA MESSAGE TO HUMANITY

The Buddha has been something greater than all doctrines and dogmas, and his eternal message has thrilled humanity through the ages. Perhaps at no time in past history was his message of peace more needed for a suffering and distracted humanity than it is today.
By Pandit Nehru

14. THE BUDDHA'S VOICE COMFORTED SUFFERING POOR

The voice of The Buddha has comforted the bereaved and helped the suffering poor. It has ennobled the lives of the deluded and purified the corrupted lives of criminals. It has encouraged the feeble, united the divided, enlightened the ignorant, elevated the base and dignified the noble.
By Prof. Max Muller

15. THE VOICE OF THE BUDDHA IS NOT A VOICE FROM HEAVEN

He belongs to the history of the world's thought, to the general inheritance of all cultivated men; for, judged by intellectual integrity, moral earnestness, and spiritual insight, he is undoubtedly the greatest human being who has ever lived.

This was not heavenly voice of a divine power, but a very human voice, which called on men to seek final emancipation through mental purification and enlightenment. Even today, this voice echoes in our ears and reminds us that we can understand the truth revealed by him, if only we exercise our will and our concentration.

The voice of The Buddha is a message of hope, confidence and courage. It tells us that hatred never ceases through hatred but only by loving- kindness. This vibrant voice emanated from a great personality, who was once a warrior, a royal prince, a yogi, a mendicant and finally a Buddha.
By Prof. Max Muller

16. BUDDHISM BEGINS WHERE SCIENCE ENDS

The Buddha is the pillar of wisdom and Buddhism begins where science ends. Buddhism is the complete conceivable victory of mankind over itself.

The Buddha ways of thinking belongs to the future.
By Julius Huxley

17. THE CALM BUDDHA IMAGE

His eyes are closed but some power of the spirit looks out of them and a vital energy fills the frame.

The ages roll by and The Buddha seems not so far away after all; his voice whispers in our ears and tells us not to run away from the struggle but calm – eyed, to face it, and to see in life even greater opportunities for growth and advancement.
By Pandit Nehru

18. WHAT THE BUDDHA IMAGE TEACHES US

It seems that the kindly, appreciative, eternally young man is seated cross – legged on the lotus of purity with his right hand raised in admonition to utter these words; " if you wish to escape from suffering, from fear, practice compassion and develop wisdom."
By Anatole France

19. THE BUDDHA TAUGHT SELF-RELIANCE

Of all the teachers of the world, The Buddha was the one who taught us to be self-reliant, who freed us not only from the bondage of our views but from the dependence on invisible beings called god or gods. He invited everyone into the state of freedom, which he called Nirvana. All must attain it one day and the attainment is the complete fulfilment of man.
By Swami Vivekananda

20. THE BUDDHA'S EARLY MORNING DUTY

May my heart lend its ear to every cry of pain,
As the lotus bares its heart to drink the morning sun,
Let not the fierce sun dry one tear one tear of pain.
Before I wipe it off from the sufferer's eyes.
But let each burning human tear drop on my heart and there remain,
Nor ever be brushed off until the pain that caused it is removed.
By Rabindranath Tagore

21. DEVOTEES GAIN THE SAME GOOD RESULTS WHETHER THE BUDDHA EXISTS OR NOT

Whether The Buddha lives or has attained Nirvana,
The fruit is the same if the mind of the giver is the same.
For giving delight in The Buddha
Beings go to heavenly birth.
By Expositor

22. SALVATION NEVER COMES FROM ANOTHER PERSON

It is not The Buddha who delivers living beings. He guides them to deliver themselves, even as he deliver himself. They accept his teaching of the truth, not because it comes from him, but because personal conviction, inspired by his words, arises by the light of their own spirit.
By Dr. Oldenburg