Very thin Buddha

Before the Buddha became the Buddha he was a prince. He had everything that money could buy. OK, he didn't have a Playstation or any other gaming equipment. They hadn't been invented in those days. But he was rich enough that he could have anything that had been invented.

His name was Siddhattha Gotama. Sometimes you'll see that spelt differently but it is probably still the same person. Anyway, he grew up with everything his parents, the king and queen, could buy him. When he grew up he fell in love and married and his wife had a son. But there were things about life he did not understand. He knew that no matter how much people had they still experienced suffering. He knew this but he didn't know why. So he left the palace and his family and became an ascetic. An ascetic is a person who lives life with almost nothing usually for religious reasons.

Siddhattha had some teachers who taught him all they knew but he still didn't have all the answers. At one point he didn't eat anything for a long, long time and became very thin. He almost died. And it didn't work either so he started eating again.



In Asia there are many beautiful statues of the Buddha but the ones I don't see very often are the ones of Siddhattha when he was very thin. When I was in Korat I was wandering around Wat Phayup. At the back, under a Bodhi Tree there was a statue of Siddhattha when he was very thin so I took this picture for you.

There is another picture like this here.