GAUTAMA the Buddha was not a mythical figure but an
actual, historocal personality who introduced the
religion known today as Buddhism. Evidences to prove
the existence of this great Teacher are to be found in
the following facts:--
1.The testimonies of those who knew Him personally.
These testimonies were recorded in the
rock-inscriptions, pillars and pagodas made in His
Honour. These testimonies and monuments to His memory
were created by kings and others who were near enough
to His time to be able to verify the story of His
Life.
2.The discovery of places and the remains of buildings
that were mentioned in the narratives of His time.
3.The Sangha, the holy order which He founded, has had
an unbroken existence to the present day. The Sangha
possessed the facts of His life and Teaching which
have
been transmitted from generation in various parts of
the world.
4.The facts that in the very year of His death, and at
various times subsequently ,conventions and councils
of the Sangha were held for the verification of the
actual
Teachings of the Founder. These verified Teachings
have been passed on from Teacher to pupil from His
time to the present day.
5.After His passing away, His body was cremented and
the bodily relics were divided among eight kingdoms in
India. Each king built a pagoda to contain his
portion of the relics.The portion given to king Ajata
satthu was enshrined by him in a pagodas at Rajagriha.
Less than two centuries later, Emperor Asoka took the
relics and distributed them throughout his empire. The
inscriptions enshrined in this and other pagodas
confirmed that those were relics of Gautama the
Buddha.
6.'The Mahavansa', the best and authentic ancient
history known to us gives detailed particulars of life
as well as details of the life of emperor Asoka and
all other sovereigns related to Buddhists history.
Indian history has also given a prominent place to the
Buddha's life, activities, Buddhist traditions and
customs.
7.The records which we can find in the Buddhists
countries where people received Buddhism a few hundred
years after the Buddha's passing away such as Sri
Lanka, Burma, China, Tibet, Nepal, Korea, Mongolia,
Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos show
unbroken historical, cultural, religious, literary and
traditional evidence that there was a religious
Teacher in India known as Gautama the Buddha.
8.The Tripitaka, an unbroken record of His 45 years of
Teaching is more than sufficient to prove that the
Buddha really lived in this world.
9.The accuracy and authenticity of the Buddhist texts
is supported by the fact that they provide information
for historians to write Indian history during the 5th
and 6th century B.C. The texts, which represents the
earliest reliable written records in india, provide a
profound insight into socio-economic, cultural and
political environment and conditions during the
Buddha's lifetime as well as into the lives
of His contemporaries, such as King Bimbisara.
From:
What Buddhists Believe?
By Venerable Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda