Buddha's Journey to Enlightenment: After Leaving His House

According to various texts, Siddartha, later known as the Buddha, wandered as a beggar Samana from the Anoma River, where he cut off his hair and donned the soil-colored robe of a Samana, to Rajagaha (Rajgir), about 460 kilometers or a 90-hour walk away. There he was noticed by Bimbisara, the king of Magadha. Following his notice by the king, Siddhartha studied under two teachers: Alara Kalama, a Samana and meditation teacher at Vessali, possibly a proto-Samkhyan, and Uddaka Ramaputta, a sage and meditation teacher in Rajagaha, possibly a Jain. Uddaka Ramaputta was the son or disciple of the sage Rama, now deceased.

The Bodhisattva then practiced self-mortification, including self-starvation and breath control, with the Group of Five, five brahmans who followed Siddhartha into the homeless life. These individuals were Kondanna, Bhaddiya, Vappa, Mahanama, and Assaji. They practised in the vicinity of Uruvela where the Bodhisattva subsequently attained enlightenment. He lived in the forest and in cemeteries during the new and full moons, conquering fear and seeking solace in isolation.

Finally, Siddhartha rejected asceticism, and the Group of Five rejected him, travelling to the Deer Park in Sarnath, ten kilometers northeast of Benares. After a period of six years, between the ages of 29 and 35 (or 28 and 34 according to Western reckoning), Siddhartha recovered his health and begged for food in a nearby village called Senani. Seating himself beneath a banyan tree near Gaya, facing east, he swore a vow to not move from that spot until he attained enlightenment, the doctrine of the power of truth. He practised meditating on inhaling and exhaling, known as the "Tathagata's dwelling," a technique he discovered spontaneously as a young child.

Despite distracting thoughts of desire, craving, fear, and attachment, the Buddha reached a state of perfect mental concentration. In the first watch of the night, he realized the truths of rebirth and emptiness. In the second watch, he realized the truths of the law of karma and impermanence (anicca). In the third watch of the night, he realized the truths of interdependent origination (paticcasamuppada) and no-self (anatta), attaining enlightenment at 5 am at the dawn of the day of the Full Moon (uposatha): “The mind attains the unconditioned. / Achieved is the end of craving.”