Siddhārtha Gautama (Buddha) was born as a prince in a small kingdom in the state of Kapilavastu, in what is now known as Nepal. Although intended to be a King, he ultimately abandoned a princely life to seek philosophical answers that related to human suffering. Through his quest, which took him outside of the kingdom, Siddhārtha Gautama would eventually find the answers he was seeking, transmitting his philosophical teachings to others. In time, his set of principles would become the foundations of the religion known as Buddhism. The term “Buddha” means "awakened one" or "the enlightened one”, a title earned by Siddhārtha Gautama through the denial of a physical existence, and transcendence to higher levels of consciousness and spirituality.

When Siddhārtha was born, a priest came to his father, the King, with a prediction. If Siddhartha was ever exposed to human pain and suffering, he would leave the life of the palace to become a spiritual leader, and would never become King. Siddhārtha’s father took notice to this prediction and prevented the negative aspects of natural existence from the palace. From his birth, the King created a palace life that banished old age, ugliness, sickness, pain and suffering. For much of his life, he ensured that his son was surrounded with the handsome aspects of life; youth, beauty, comfort, and luxury. Although his father ensured that Siddhārtha was provided with everything he could want or need, material wealth was not his life's ultimate goal. Although Siddhārtha spent the first 29 years of his life as a prince in Kapilavastu, he eventually left his palace to seek answers outside the palace walls.

On his first trip outside the palace, Siddhārtha witnessed an old man for the first time.  When his charioteer Channa explained to him that all people grew old, the prince went on subsequent trips to investigate further. On his second and third journeys he encountered sickness and a decaying corpse. These observations depressed him, as he wondered how he could ever again enjoy a life of pleasure when there is so much suffering in the world! On his fourth trip, he saw a wandering monk who had given up everything he owned to seek an end to suffering. He vowed to follow this path as well to find his answers.

He began to live the life of an ascetic in attempt to find answers to reasons for aging, sickness, and death. Leaving his kingdom and loved ones behind, Siddhartha became a wandering monk. He turned to Monasticism, a religious way of life characterized by the practice of renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work. He cut off his hair, wore ragged robes and wandered from place to place.

In his search for truth, he studied and practiced with the wisest teachers of his day. He became a student of two hermit teachers, Kalama and Rāmaputra. After mastering the principles of their teachings, he achieved higher levels of meditative consciousness. However, he had not found the ultimate answers to his questions, and feeling unsatisfied, he moved on with his search.

For six subsequent years he then practiced severe Self-deprivation, thinking this would lead him to enlightenment. After nearly starving himself by restricting his food intake to around a nut per day, he collapsed in a river while bathing and almost drowned. Siddhartha began to reconsider his path. He realized neither the life of luxury in the palace nor the life as an ascetic in the forest is the proper way. Living in extreme ways only leads to unhappiness and suffering. He began to eat nourishing food again and brought himself to strength. He then reached a concentrated and focused state through meditation, the jhana. From this point in his life, Siddhartha decided that he would live by the name Gautama. After realizing that meditative jhana was the right path to awakening, and that extreme asceticism didn't work, Gautama practiced what Buddhists call the Middle-Way—a path of moderation away from the extremes of self-indulgence and self-deprivation. 

Following this incident, Gautama sat and meditated under a Bodhi tree, and vowed never to arise until he had found the truth. During this time, he was visited by Mara, an evil force, who tried to tempt him away from his path of contemplation. First he sent his beautiful daughters to tempt Gautama into pleasure. Next he sent forceful bolts of lightning, wind and heavy rain. Finally, he sent his demonic armies with weapons and flames. One by one, Gautama met these forces and defeated them with his stillness, rejecting all things outside his mind and consciousness. 

After a reputed 49 days of meditation, at the age of 35, he is said to have attained Enlightenment. From that time, Gautama was known to his followers as the Buddha or "Awakened One." At the time of his awakening he realized complete insight into the cause of suffering, and the steps necessary to eliminate it. These discoveries became known as the "Four Noble Truths” which are at the heart of Buddhist teaching.

Four Noble Truths:

1. Suffering exists
2. Suffering arises from attachment to desires
3. Suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases
4. Freedom from suffering is possible by practicing the Noble Eightfold Path

The Noble Eightfold Path (divided into three basic divisions):

Through mastery of the Eightfold Path, a state of ultimate liberation, or Nirvāna, is believed to be possible for any individual. The Buddha described Nirvāna as the perfect peace of a mind that's free from ignorance, desire, greed, hatred and other afflictive states. Nirvana is also regarded as the state where no individual identity or boundaries of the mind remain. The consciousness of self becomes "one" with universal consciousness.