I really enjoy Buddhism and have been trying to learn more about it each day. I thought this thread could be used to talk about Buddha himself and his history. If you have more to share then please post it. Even questions about him or his practices. I am no Buddhist laymen, but I will work with you on trying to find the answers for it is a great learning experience.

I will start with a small history of Buddha first. I got this information from the following website http://www.e-sangha.com/

Buddhism is an ancient tradition, a spiritual path, which was discovered nearly two thousand six hundred years ago by the great sage, Buddha Shakyamuni. He was born circa 563 BC in Lumbini which is in modern-day Nepal. At the age of 29, he left his wife, child and political involvements in order to seek truth. It was an accepted practice at the time for some men to leave their family and lead the life of an ascetic. He studied Brahmanism, but ultimately rejected it. In 535 BC, he attained enlightenment and assumed the title Buddha (one who has awakened). Due to the commitment and dedication of devout Buddhists, this gentle religion has grown in the present world un-marred by any political or religious fervours which so many other traditions have suffered from in the past.

For a more explicit story of Buddha click on this link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha

hi there I'm actually trying to learn more about it myself maybe you can help me...

I go on Buddhist retreats, which are graded for beginners and advanced. Finding a local Buddhist centre could be useful.

From a Mahayana perspective, the significance of Shakymuni Buddha is revealed in the Life Span chapter of the Lotus Sutra, where he stated that he didn't attain Buddhahood in his current lifetime but in the eternal past, and that since then he has reincarnated many times on earth; the import of which is that the Buddhanature is also eternal.

This is of great significance for the common mortal as it is variously said that there is absolutely no difference between the life of the former and a Buddha. The difference is solely one of consciousness, the aggregate of that which we are aware. Because the Buddhanature as exemplified by Shakymuni's eternal enlightenment is eternal, that attainment is equally eternally within the grasp of everyone.

Theravada Buddhism, a historically earlier formulation, held that only certain people could reach enlightenment and that it took innumerable lives to do so. Modern Mahayana teachings such as that espoused by SGI, say that one can become a buddha in this lifetime.