In Japan and other Southeast Asian countries, the months of April and May
bring celebrations of the founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha Guatama. In Japan they celebrate the Buddha¹s birth on April 8, pouring tea (often licorice tea) over the images of Buddha in temples and homes. In other countries where Buddhism is practiced, such as Sri Lanka, Laos and Tibet, the triple celebration of Buddha¹s birth, enlightenment, and death (called Parinirvana) takes place on the day of the full moon in May. Known as "Wesak Day," the holiday is celebrated with plays depicting the life of Buddha as well as colorful parades that wind around the temple and through the town.

Choose one of these days to learn about the life of Buddha and the religion
that developed from his experiences and ideas. Invite friends or family to join you as your family performs the short play below depicting the life of Buddha, from his birth to his enlightenment. After your performance, enjoy a cup of licorice tea and a sweet rice square (recipes follow).

The story of Buddha's life comes from generations of oral tradition. The
first known writing about Buddha comes five hundred years after his death. As in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, the story contains many miraculous
elements, which Buddhists accept as truth. Decide who will play which characters, including narrator. Gather props (if you want them) and make paper flowers ahead of time. As the narrator reads aloud, have each character pantomime the underlined action in each scene.

"The Story of Buddha"
compiled from Holidays and Holy Days, by Brotman Marshfield and Buddhism by Madhu Bazaz Wangu.
Characters:
Siddhartha Guatama
Queen Maya
An elephant
A charioteer (Channa)
A sick man, an old man and a dead man (one person)
A monk
Siddhartha's wife and child
A large tree
Mara, the evil spirit

Props:
an umbrella
a large tree
a belt with sword
paper flowers (see instructions on page __. )
cane
bathrobe

Scene 1: Buddha¹s birth, 563 BCE in India
Characters: Queen Maya, elephant, Siddhartha
Props: paper flowers

One night Queen Maya had a wonderful dream in which an elephant with six
tusks, carrying a lotus flower in its trunk, touched her right side. At that
moment a child was miraculously conceived. When Queen Maya told her husband of this dream he called the Brahmins (or wise men) to interpret it. They predicted that a son would be born who would become either a great king or a great religious leader. His name would be Siddhartha, which means "he whose aim is accomplished." According to legend, Siddhartha later emerged as an infant from his mother¹s right side, walked seven steps in the four directions of the compass and said, "No further births have I to endure, for this is my last body. Now shall I destroy and pluck out by the roots the
sorrow that is caused by birth and death." According to tradition, it rained flowers at the time of Siddhartha's birth.

Scene 2: Siddhartha grows up
Characters: Siddhartha
Props: umbrella

The King very much wanted Siddhartha to grow up to become a great king, not a religious leader. So he decided to give him everything he desired and
protect him from all sorrows and trouble, so he would never want to leave
the palace. The prince was never allowed to go alone outside the palace
grounds. He never saw sick, injured, or old people, and he was never told of
death. He learned all the arts of royalty: to shoot with a bow and arrow,
drive a chariot, ride a horse. He wore silk clothes and always carried an
umbrella over his head to protect him from the sun and dust. At age 16
he married a beautiful princess. In time they had a child and were very
happy together.

Scene 3: The "Four Sights" that changed Siddhartha's life
Characters: Siddhartha, Channa (charioteer), old man, monk
Props: cane, bathrobe

At age 29, Siddhartha called his faithful charioteer Channa to take him for a secret ride outside the palace grounds. As they drove through the city, Siddhartha saw three things he had never seen before. One was an old man lying on the road, groaning with pain. "What is the matter with this man?" he asked Channa. "He is sick and in pain," Channa answered. "But why should anyone have to suffer such pain?" Siddhartha asked. Channa shrugged his shoulders, "It is the way of life." And they traveled on. Soon they came to another man, all bent over and hobbling along with a cane. "What is the matter with that man?" Siddhartha again asked. "He is old" answered Channa. "It is something that comes to all people who live a long time. Bodies become tired and weak." Finally, they came on a man in rags, lying beside the road as if he were asleep. "What is wrong with this man?" asked Siddhartha. "He is dead," came the answer. "What does "dead" mean?" Channa answered, "I cannot tell you, but it happens to all people, rich or poor."

Later that same night, when Channa and Siddhartha returned to the city, they saw a man dressed in a yellow robe with a shaven head, begging for food. Siddhartha stopped the chariot and questioned the man, "I am a monk," he replied, "I have adopted a homeless life to win salvation. I search for the most blessed state in which suffering, old age, and death are unknown."

Scene 4: Siddhartha leaves the palace
Characters: Siddhartha, Channa, Siddhartha's wife and child,
Props: belt with sword, bathrobe

Shocked, Siddhartha returned to the palace and thought about what he had seen. For the first time he was aware of suffering in life, and he felt he could no longer enjoy his own life of ease and riches. That very night Siddhartha decided to leave the palace. "If I were to live like one of these monks, perhaps I could learn the truth about suffering and how to end it." Silently kissing his wife and child goodbye, he asked Channa to drive him to the outskirts of the city. There he took off his jeweled sword and cut off his hair and beard. He took off his princely clothes, put on the yellow robe of a monk, and told Channa to take his possessions back to his father.

Scene 5: Siddhartha¹s wanderings
Characters: Siddhartha

For years Siddhartha wandered throughout northeast India, seeking holy men who taught him, among other things, techniques of meditation. He studied the teachings of Hinduism, the ancient religion of India. He was most interested in Samsara, or reincarnation, the idea that after death a person¹s soul is born again in a new body. The common Hindu belief at the time was that only by leading a highly spiritual life (or several lives) could a person break the endless cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth. Siddhartha was attracted by this idea and he adopted a life of extreme self-denial, not eating or sleeping and meditating constantly. For six years he stayed along the bank of the Nairanjana River, eating and drinking only enough to stay alive. He was determined to force himself to this highest state of being through self-denial. But over time he only became extremely weak.

Scene 6: Under the Bo Tree
Characters: Siddhartha, evil spirit Mara, Siddhartha's wife and child
props: large tree

One day, Siddhartha realized that his years of denial had weakened his body to the point where he could not think clearly about the world or religion. So he started to eat normally again. Refreshed by food, he sat down under a fig tree (known to Buddhists as the Bo Tree, the Tree of Enlightenment) and entered a state of very deep meditation. Buddhist scriptures say that during this meditation an evil spirit, Mara, tempted Siddhartha with all sorts of pleasures to distract him. But he was not swayed. His deep meditation continued until he had recalled all of his previous rebirths (550 previous states of existence). He gained knowledge of his cycles of births and deaths, and was able to cast off the things that bound him to the world. He had attained enlightenment, "Nirvana," the end of suffering.

From that day on Siddhartha was known as the Buddha, "the enlightened one," or "the one who has found the light." The light that Buddha found was not the kind that you see with your eyes. It was an inward light that makes you feel peaceful and helps you to think more clearly. Tradition says that when Buddha reached Nirvana, he could have cast off his body and his existence. Instead he turned back to the world, determined to share his enlightenment with others so that all living things could end the cycles of their own rebirth and suffering.

During his lifetime Buddha institutionalized his teachings by forming Sangha, a community of monks and nuns who practiced the religion and taught it to others. Buddha's wife and son joined him in the Sangha, as well as other relatives. Today members of the Sangha continue this tradition and provide an important link with the religion's founder.

THE END

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Buddha's Teachings
Buddha taught that both good things and hard things come to every person. Both are part of life. But if you choose to follow Buddhist law (called Dharma, or the Middle Way) you will live a good life and find peace, perhaps even reach Nirvana. You don¹t need priests to pray for you, you don¹t need to make sacrifices to the Gods, and you don¹t have to be of a certain caste in society. Buddha taught that all people can avoid the extremes of behavior (selfish pleasure or self-denial) which lead to suffering, and follow the Middle Way to a good life. The Buddhist law is comprised of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.

Four Noble Truths (the causes of suffering):
1. Suffering consists of disease, old age, and death; separation from those we love; craving what we cannot obtain; hating what we cannot avoid.
2. All suffering is caused by desire and the attempt to satisfy our desires.
3. Therefore, suffering can be overcome by ceasing to desire.
4. The way to end desire is to follow the Eightfold Path.

The Eightfold Path (the solution):
This is a series of eight stages that lead to the end of desire. The first few can be achieved in everyday life, the later ones require more concentration and effort.

1. Right opinion: understanding the Four Noble Truths
2. Right intentions: a person decides to set his/her life on the right path
3. Right speech: not lying, criticizing unfairly, using harsh language, or gossiping
4. Right conduct: no killing, stealing, cruelty or lustful activities
5. Right livelihood: earn a living in a way that doesn¹t harm any living thing
6. Right effort: conquer all evil thoughts, try to have only good thoughts
7. Right mindfulness: becoming intensely aware of all states of body, mind, feelings
8. Right concentration: deep meditation that leads to higher state of consciousness

A person who practices right concentration will come to the enlightenment
that Siddhartha attained.

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Last updated May 24, 2002 by clf@uua.org