Chapter 8. The Four Sights: Sickness

The king very unwillingly allowed the prince to visit the city a second time. He thought it would do no good to try to stop him, and would only add to his confusion and unhappiness. On his second visit to the city the king did not warn the people to be ready or to prepare the streets. The prince and Channa dressed up as young men from noble families so the people would not know them.

When they arrived, the city was quite different to their last visit. No more joyous crowds of people hailed the prince. There were no flags, bunting, flowers or well-dressed people, but simple folk going about their daily work to earn a living. A blacksmith was sweating and pounding to make knives. The jewellers and goldsmiths were making necklaces, bangles, earrings and rings out of diamonds, gold and silver. The clothes-dyers were dyeing cloths of lovely colour and hanging them up to dry. The bakers were busily baking bread, cakes and sweets and selling them to the customers, who ate them still hot. The prince looked at these simple common people. Everyone was very busy, happy and pleased in their work.

As the two walked along they came across a man on the ground, twisting his body, holding his stomach with both hands and crying out in pain at the top of his voice. All over his face and body were purple patches, his eyes were rolling, and he was gasping for breath.

For the second time in his life something made the prince very sad. At once the prince, being a very kind person and not liking to see people distressed, ran forward and rested the man's head on his knee, saying, " What is wrong with you? What is wrong?" The sick man could not speak, but only cry.

"Channa, tell me why this man is like this," said the prince. "What is the matter with his breath? Why does he not talk?"

"Oh, my prince," said Channa, "do not hold this man like that. This man is sick. His blood is poisoned. He has plague fever and it is burning all over his body. That is why he is crying loudly without being able to speak."

"But are there any other men like this?" asked the prince.

"Yes, and you may be the next if you hold the man as close as that. Please put him down and do not touch him or the plague will come out of him and go to you. You will become the same as he is."

"Are there any other bad things, besides this plague, Channa?"

"Yes, my prince, there are hundreds of other sicknesses as painful as this," replied Channa.
"Can no one help it? Will everyone be sick? Can it happen at any time by surprise?" asked Siddhartha.

"Yes, my dear prince," said Channa, "everyone in this world. No one can stop it and it can happen any time. Anyone may fall ill and suffer."

The prince was even sadder as he returned to the palace the second time, dwelling on the man and his sickness.

Chapter 9. The Four Sights: Dead

On returning to the palace after seeing the sick man, Siddhartha was very dissatisfied and depressed and was often seen in deep thought. The king, seeing him so changed, became very sad. Soon enough, the prince asked again for the king's permission to leave the palace to learn more of life in the city. The king agreed, as he knew there was nothing to gain by trying to stop his son.

This time, again wearing the clothes of noblemen, Siddhartha and Channa went out from the palace and walked in many parts of Kapilavatthu. After they had journeyed a good part of the day, the prince saw a crowd of people coming along the street crying, while four men at the back were carrying a plank on which a very thin man lay flat and still. The carried man was like a stone, never saying a word. The crowd soon stopped and the plank bearers rested the person down on a pile of wood and set the wood on fire.
The man did not move as the flames were burning the plank, and then his body, from all sides.

"What is this, Channa?" asked Siddhartha. "Why does that man lie there so still, allowing these people to burn him up? It's as if he does not know anything."

"He is dead," replied Channa.

"Dead! Channa, does everyone die?"

"Yes, my dear prince, all living things must die some day. No one can stop death from coming," replied Channa.

The prince was so shocked he did not say anything more. He thought that it was terrible that such a thing called death should come to everybody, even kings and queens. Was there no way to stop it? He went home in silence. He went straight to his own room in the palace and sat deep in thought for the rest of the day. Very sadly he pondered, "Everyone in the world must die some day; no one has found out how to stop it. There must be a way to stop it. I must find it out and help the whole world."

Chapter 10. The Four Sights: a Monk

After many days of contemplation and distress, Siddhartha visited the city for the fourth time. As he was driving to the park he saw a happy man wearing an orange coloured robe. He asked Channa, "Who is this man wearing an orange robe? His hair is shaved off. Why does he look so happy? How does he live and what does he do for a living?"

"That is a monk." replied Channa, "He lives in a temple, goes from house to house for his food and goes from place to place telling people how to be peaceful and good." The prince felt very happy now. He thought, "I must become one like that," as he walked through the park.

He walked until he was tired, then sat under a tree to think some more. As he was sitting under the cool shady tree, news came that his wife had given birth to a fine baby boy. When he heard the news he said, " An impediment ("rahula") has been born to me, an obstacle to my leaving has been born," and thus his son's name became Rahula.

As he was returning to the palace he met the Princess called Kisagotami. She had been looking out of the palace window and, seeing the prince coming, was so taken by his handsome looks that she said loudly, "Oh! How happy must be the mother, and father, and the wife of such a handsome young prince!"

As he passed this woman, Siddhartha heard this and thought to himself, "In a handsome figure the mother, father and wife find happiness. But how does one escape obstacles and suffering to reach nirvana (escape from suffering, a lasting liberation which is happiness and genuine peace)?" With this question he realised what he must do. "I must quit this household life and retire from the world in quest of enlightenment. This lady has taught me a valuable lesson. I will send her a teacher's fee." Loosening a valuable pearl necklace from about his neck, Siddhartha honoured his word and sent it as payment to Kisagotami, with thanks.

Chapter 11. The Prince Leaves Home

The king, Siddhartha's father, arranged a grand dinner and dance for the prince to celebrate the birth of Rahula. Invited were the best dancers, singers and musicians in the country. It was not just out of joy that the king arranged the celebration. He could see that the prince was depressed and that his new baby son was not giving him happiness. The king was afraid Siddhartha was planning to leave the palace for good and, for the last time, did his best to distract him away from his sombre reflections and back to the abundance of palace life.

The prince attended the party just to please his father. During the dinner the most delicious food was served, the most enchanting and beautiful dancing girls in the country performed, the most sensitive musicians played and the finest puppets and magicians performed incredible feats. But Siddhartha was so tired from thinking that he soon fell asleep.

When the singers and the dancers saw this they too stopped and fell asleep. Some time later that night the prince awoke and was shocked to see these sleeping people. What a sight! All the prettiest, most charming dancing girls, the finest singers, best musicians and cleverest performers in the country, who, hours ago, were trying to make the prince so happy, were now all over the floor of the room in the most ugly, shameful and loathsome positions. Some people were snoring like pigs, with their mouths wide open, some grinding and chewing their teeth like hungry devils. This alteration in their appearance made the prince even more disgusted and unhappy. "How oppressive and stifling this all is," he thought, and his mind turned again towards leaving the palace. He got up quietly from the room and, waking Channa, asked for his horse, Kanthaka, to be saddled.

As Channa was preparing his horse, Siddhartha went quietly to see his newborn son for the first time. His wife was sleeping with the baby beside her, her hand resting on the baby's head. The prince said to himself, "If I try to move her hand so I can take the child for one last cuddle I fear I will wake her and she will prevent me from going. No! I must go, but when I have found what I am looking for, I shall come back and see him and his mother again."

Quietly then, Siddhartha left the palace. It was midnight, and the prince was on his white horse Kanthaka with Channa, his faithful servant, holding on to its tail. Nobody stopped him as he rode away from all who knew, respected and loved him. He took a last look at the city of Kapilavatthu—sleeping so quietly in the moonlight. He was going away to learn to understand old age, sickness and death. He rode to the bank of the river Anoma ("illustrious") and dismounted from his horse. He removed his jewellery and princely clothes and gave them to Channa to return to the king. Then the prince took his sword and cut his long hair, donned simple clothes, took a begging bowl and asked Channa to go back with Kanthaka.

"It is no use living in the palace without you, my master," said Channa very sadly, "I want to follow you." But Siddhartha would not allow him to stay, although Channa asked three times.
At last Channa started to go, but Kanthaka refused. The prince talked to the horse very kindly. "Please, Kanthaka, go with my friend. Don't wait for me." But Kanthaka thought, "I shall never see my master again." Tears rolled down from the horse's eyes as it kept them fixed on the prince, until he turned to go away and walked out of sight. As Siddhartha disappeared over the horizon, so Kanthaka's heart burst, and he died of sorrow.

Chapter 12. King Bimbisara's Offer

From the Anoma River, dressed as a beggar, the young prince wandered from place to place. Eventually he came to Rajagaha City, where King Bimbisara lived. With his begging bowl in his hands Siddhartha walked round the streets begging for food from door to door like any other religious monk. People began to call him "Sakyamuni" or sage of the Sakyas, others called him "Ascetic" or "Ascetic Gotama", but nobody called him Prince Siddhartha any more.

He was most handsome, young, healthy, clean and neat. He spoke very kindly and gently. He did not ask people to give him anything but people were happy and pleased to put some food into his bowl.

Some people went and told the king. "Your majesty, there is a young man. Some people call him ‘Ascetic Gotama’. He is very clean, neat, kind, polite and not like a beggar at all."

When King Bimbisara heard the name "Gotama" he knew at once that this prince was the son of King Suddhodana, his friend. He went up to him and asked him, " Why do you do this? Have you quarrelled with your father? Why do you go about like this? Stay here and I shall give you half of my kingdom."

"Thank you very much, Sir. I love my parents, my wife, my son, you and everybody. I want to find a way to stop old age, sickness, worries and death. Therefore I am going thus," said the Ascetic Gotama and off he went.

Chapter 13. The Buddha's First Teachers

At this time in India there were many religious teachers. One of the best and most well known was Alara Kalama. Ascetic Gotama went to study under him. He stayed and was taught many things, including meditation. He worked hard and eventually equalled his teacher in learning. Finally Alara Kalama could not teach Gotama any more and he said, "You are the same as I am now. There is no difference between us. Stay here and take my place and teach my students with me."

But Gotama was not interested in staying. Despite what he had learnt he could see that he was still subject to old age, sickness, and death and that his quest was not over.
Thus, Gotama left Alara Kalama and went in search of a new teacher. At last he found another great teacher, Uddaka, who was famous for his cleverness. Again, Gotama learnt very quickly and soon knew as much as his teacher.

He found that Uddaka could not teach him how to stop suffering, old age and death either, and he had never heard of anyone who could solve these problems. Once again the Ascetic Gotama was disappointed and left Uddaka, making up his mind to struggle by himself until he found the cause of all the suffering of life.

Chapter 14. Six Years of Searching

After leaving his second teacher, Uddaka, Prince Siddhartha was known as Ascetic Gotama. He met five friends—Kondanna, Bhaddiya, Vappa, Mahanama and Assaji—who had also left the palace and a life of luxury to become ascetics, or students of life, living poorly. They went to Uruvela and for six years Gotama struggled and tortured his body while his five friends supported and looked after him.

"I will carry austerity to the uttermost," thought Gotama. "This is the way to acquire wisdom." He practised fasting, which was thought to be one of the best ways to acquire wisdom. He lived on a grain of rice a day, and later, nothing at all. His body became so thin that his legs were like bamboo sticks, his backbone was like a rope, his chest was like an incomplete roof of a house, his eyes sank right inside, like stones in a deep well.

His skin lost its golden colour and became black. In fact, he looked like a living skeleton—all bones without any flesh! He suffered terrible pain and hunger, yet continued to meditate.
Another way of torturing his body was to hold his breath for a long time until he felt violent pains in his ears, head and whole body. He would then fall senseless to the ground. During the full moon and new moon he went out into the forest or to a cemetery to meditate, wearing rags from graveyards and rubbish heaps. He became frightened at first, especially when wild animals came, but he never ran away. He stayed behind bravely in these dreadful places, meditating all the time.

For six long years he did these practices and in spite of the great pain and suffering he did not find wisdom or the answers to his questions. He finally decided, "These austerities are not the way to enlightenment." He went begging through the village for food to build up his body. When his five friends saw this they felt disappointed. They took their bowls and robes and left, wanting nothing more to do with Gotama.