NEWS : Full moon day of the Hindu month Vaishakha is celebrated as Buddha Poornima, which marks the birth anniversary of Gautam Buddha, founder of Buddhism.

GAUTAM BUDDHA

• Born as Siddhartha Gautama in circa 563 BCE, in a royal family in Lumbini which is situated near the Indo-Nepal border.
• His family belonged to the Sakya clan which ruled from Kapilvastu, Lumbini.
• At the age of 29, Gautama left home and rejected his life of riches and embraced a lifestyle of asceticism or extreme self-discipline.
• After 49 consecutive days of meditation, Gautam attained Bodhi (enlightenment) under a pipal tree at Bodhgaya, Bihar.
• Buddha gave his first sermon in the village of Sarnath, near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. This event is known as Dharma Chakra Pravartana (turning of the wheel of law).
• He died at the age of 80 in 483 BCE at Kushinagara, Uttar Pradesh. The event is known as Mahaparinibban or Mahaparinirvana.
• He is believed to be the eighth of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu (Dashavatar).

ALSO IN NEWS : Prime Minister launched the construction of the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture and Heritage on Monday during a day-long visit to Lumbini in Nepal.