Gotama, the Historical Buddha

Gotama, the historical Buddha, is thought to have lived in northern India in the fifth century BCE. Traditional accounts state that Gotama renounced the world at the age of twenty-nine to become a peripatetic spiritual seeker, before attaining an “awakening,” or “enlightenment” (bodhi), at the age of thirty-five. Henceforth regarded as an enlightened master, the “Sage of the Sakyas” (Pāli: sakya-muni; Sanskrit: śākya-muni), Gotama spent the remainder of his life wandering, teaching, and establishing the early Buddhist community. The problem of understanding the historical Buddha is concerned with the role Gotama played in the formation of the Buddhist movement. Was there even an historical figure who inspired the movement, or was “Gotama” a convenient fiction, a myth created to draw together and codify certain strands of ascetic thought and practice? Academic opinion ranges from complete skepticism—Gotama never existed—to a faithful acceptance of traditional beliefs. The general consensus lies somewhere in between: while Gotama’s historicity is mostly accepted, considerable skepticism exists about the possibility of knowing the exact details of his life and teaching. The problem has two central concerns: Do the oldest Buddhist sources date from a time when the memory of Gotama was still relatively fresh? And do these sources depict Gotama realistically, as a creator of a unique set of teachings?