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[children singing]
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[rooster crowing]
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[birds chirping]
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Once upon a time in the
happy kingdom of Kapilavatsu,
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King Suddhodana and Queen Maha
Maya found out that they were going
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to have a baby.
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[birds chirping]
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So the Queen decided to
go to her father's house.
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On the way, they came to Lumbini Gardens,
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where she gave birth to a beautiful
baby boy whom they called Siddhartha.
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[baby cooing]
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Sadly, seven days later, the Queen died.
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A wise man named
Kaundinya told the King that,
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when Siddhartha grew up, he would see
things that would make him unhappy and
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cause him to leave for the forest.
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The King therefore never allowed
Siddhartha to go outside the palace gates.
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Siddhartha was a bright and happy child
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who was very caring and gentle.
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One day, Siddhartha and his
cousin Devadatta were taking a walk.
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Devadatta suddenly spotted
a swan and shot it down.
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They then ran to see the wounded bird.
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Siddhartha was horrified
to see the wounded bird.
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He pulled out the arrow and
applied some herbs over the wound.
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Devadatta insisted on
keeping the bird for himself.
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So they went to the wise man of the court,
who declared that the swan belonged
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to the person who saved it, and not to the
person who tried to take its life away.
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Siddhartha often sat by himself.
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One day, Siddhartha accompanied his father
to watch a bullfight, but after a while
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he quickly slipped away.
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He was later found
meditating under the tree,
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quiet and happy by himself.
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[meditative music]
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The Prince grew up and became a young man.
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King Suddhodana had gotten married
to the beautiful Princess Yasodhara.
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But Siddhartha wasn't happy in the palace.
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One day he told his servant Channa,
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"Let's go for a ride outside the palace."
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On the way, the prince
saw a man bent with age.
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The Prince had never
seen an old man before.
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"What is that?" he asked Channa.
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"That is an old man," said Channa.
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"We will all grow old one day, Prince."
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The Prince was very upset
and went back to his palace.
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After a few days,
Siddhartha went out again.
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This time he saw a very sick man
who was crying out in pain.
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Siddhartha had never seen a sick
man before, and so he asked Channa,
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"Why is that man crying?"
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"He is sick and is crying
in pain," replied Channa.
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Again, Siddhartha was very upset
and went back the palace.
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The next time Siddhartha went out,
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he saw a group of people
carrying a dead body.
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Channa explained to Siddhartha
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that he was seeing a dead person
and said, "One day, we will all die."
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Siddhartha realized that his father had kept
him inside the palace to protect him
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from these things.
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He asked himself, "Must we all
become old, fall sick, and die?
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"Is there no other way?"
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Siddhartha went out again.
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This time, he saw a man
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with a shaven head wearing orange
robes and carrying a bowl in his hand.
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The man looked very content.
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Siddhartha asked Channa,
"Who is that man?"
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Channa said, "That is a wise man who has
left everything and gone to the forest
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"to seek happiness."
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Siddhartha thought over
all the things he had seen.
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He then decided to leave home
in search of happiness.
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So one night, while his wife
and son Rahula were fast asleep,
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Siddhartha, along with his faithful
servant Channa, quietly left the palace.
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They traveled together until
they crossed River Anoma.
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[horse neighs]
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There, Siddhartha took off his royal robes.
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He gave his clothes and his horse
to Channa to take back to the palace.
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He then put on an orange robe, cut off his
long hair, and set out with a bowl in hand.
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Siddhartha went from teacher to teacher,
asking "Do you know the way to happiness?"
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But nobody would tell him.
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Finally, he sat under a bodhi tree
and tried to find the answer himself.
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Many days later, his quest ended.
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[chiming]
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He had now become a wise man, and
people called him "Gautama Buddha."
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Buddha loved all animals and
treated them with compassion.
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Once, his jealous cousin Devadatta
sent wild elephants to attack Buddha.
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[elephants trumpet]
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However, on seeing Buddha, the
elephants bowed down before him.
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Gautama Buddha had many disciples.
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He went from place to place
teaching people what he had learned.
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His students lived in
groups called "sangha."
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He preached that one could attain
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happiness by being content with what one
had and showing compassion to all beings.
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When Buddha returned to Kapilavastu,
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his father, wife, and son, along with
many others, became his disciples.
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One of his relatives, called Ananda,
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became Buddha's faithful disciple and
took care of him when he grew old.
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Buddha preached for another 45 years.
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By then, he had become
an old man of 80 years.
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Finally, at a place called
Kushinagar, he laid down
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below the sala trees
and breathed his last.
