Jonathan Landaw - Prince Siddhartha: The Story of Buddha

Prince Siddhartha

The Story of Buddha

Written by Jonathan Landaw
Illustrated by Janet Brooke

W ISDOM P UBLICATIONS B OSTON

Wisdom Publications
199 Elm Street
Somerville MA 02144 USA
www.wisdompubs.org

Text 2011 Jonathan Landaw
Illustrations 2011 Janet Brooke
All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system or technologies now known or later developed, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Landaw, Jonathan.
Prince Siddhartha: the story of Buddha / written by Jonathan Landaw; illustrated by Janet Brooke.
2nd ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-86171-653-1 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Gautama BuddhaJuvenile literature. I. Brooke, Janet. II. Title.
BQ892.L36 2011
294.363dc22
2011007534

ISBN 978-0-86171-653-1
EBOOK ISBN 978-0-86171-988-4

Second Edition

15 14 13 12 11
5 4 3 2 1

Cover design by Phil Pascuzzo. Interior design by Gopa & Ted2, Inc.
Set in Goudy Old Style 12.25/20.

Wisdom Publications books are printed on acid-free paper and meet the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.

For all children with much love

The following names, listed in order of their appearance, are pronounced as follows:

M any, many years ago, in a small kingdom in the north of India, something was happening that would change the whole world. Queen Maya, wife of the good King Shuddhodana, lay asleep and had a wondrous dream. She dreamt she saw a brilliant white light shining down to her from the sky, and in the rays of this light was a magnificent elephant. It was pure white and had six large tusks. This elephant of light flew closer and closer to the queen and finally melted into her body. Queen Maya awoke, filled with greater happiness than she had ever felt before.

Quickly she went to the King and together they asked the wise men at the court what this strange and wonderful dream might mean. The wise men answered, O Your Majesties, this dream is a most excellent one! It means that the Queen will give birth to a son, and this prince will someday become a great man. Not only you, but the entire world is fortunate that the Queen will have such a special child. Hearing this good news, the King and Queen were overjoyed. The King was especially happy because he longed for a son who would someday rule the kingdom in his place. And now it seemed his wish was being granted.

It was the custom in those days for a woman to return to her parents home in order to give birth. And so, when the time had almost come for the baby to be born, Queen Maya and many of her friends and attendants left the palace of the King and began the journey to her childhood home.

They had not traveled far when the Queen asked that they stop and rest. She knew the baby would be born very soon. They had reached the beautiful gardens of Lumbini and the Queen went into this garden looking for a comfortable place in which she could give birth. The stories say that even the animals and plants, somehow understanding what a special child was about to be born, wanted to help. A large tree bent down one of its branches and the Queen took hold of it with her right hand. Supporting herself in this way, she gave birth to a son. The attendants cradled the baby in their arms and were amazed at how beautiful he was and how peaceful he seemed.

At that moment, throughout the land, there was a great feeling of peace and happiness. People forgot their troubles, ceased their quarrels, and felt great love and friendship for one another. Some people saw rainbows suddenly appear in the sky, and many other beautiful and unusual sights were seen.

Wise men from all over the kingdom noticed these signs of peace and joy and excitedly said to each other, Something very fortunate has just happened. Look at all these wonderful signs! It must certainly be a special day!

Queen Maya, unaware that her joy at having a son was being shared at that very moment throughout the kingdom, took the newborn baby in her arms and returned to the palace of the King. It was the beginning of the fourth Indian month (MayJune) and the moon was growing full.

W ith great rejoicing, King Shuddhodana greeted his Queen and his new son. Splendid festivals were held and the whole kingdom was decked in beautifully colored banners. It was a time of great happiness and peace. There was so much gladness everywhere that his parents decided to name the Prince Siddhartha, which means the one who has brought about all good.

Now the wise men made new predictions about the baby. O King, they said, the signs of the Princes birth are most favorable. Your son will grow up to be even greater than you are now! This news made the King very proud. If these wise men are correct, he thought, my son, Prince Siddhartha, may one day be the ruler not only of my small kingdom, but perhaps of the entire world! What a great honor for me and my family!

In the first few days after his birth, many people came to the palace to see the new baby. One of these visitors was an old man named Asita. Asita was a hermit who lived by himself in the distant forests, and he was known to be a very holy person. The King and Queen were surprised that Asita would leave his forest home and appear at their court. We are very honored that you have come to visit us, O holy teacher, they said with great respect. Please tell us the purpose of your journey and we shall serve you in any way we can.

Asita answered them, I thank you for your kind welcome. I have come a great distance to visit you because of the wonderful signs I have recently seen. They tell me that the son recently born to you will gain great knowledge for the benefit of all people. Since I have spent my entire life trying to gain such holy wisdom, I came here as quickly as possible to see him for myself.

The King was very excited and hurried to where the baby Prince lay sleeping. He carefully picked up his son and brought him to Asita. For a long time the holy man gazed at the infant, saying nothing. Finally he stepped back, looked sadly at the sky, sighed heavily, and began to cry.