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BUDDHA

Buddha, means 'the enlightened one'. And Gautam Buddha was one of the greatest
religious teachers that the world has seen. His teachings expounded in Buddhism, are
immensely popular in Burma, China, Japan and other South Eastern Countries.
Early Life
The Buddha was born in 563 B.C. as Siddhartha to Shuddhodana the king of Kapilavastu
in Nepal. His mother Mayadevi expired when he was just 7 days old and he was brought
up by his stepmother Gautami. Siddhartha was made to lead a very sheltered life as the
astrologers had predicted that he would give up worldly pleasures to follow a different
path. The King wanted to avoid this at all costs and so did not let him out of the palace.
He hoped that Siddhartha would one day become king.
Life Changing Experiences
When Siddhartha had grown into an intelligent young man, he ventured out of his palace
one day, and chanced on a few sights that changed the course of his life. He first saw a
very old man who could barely walk, a sick man who was in a great deal of pain, and
lastly a corpse. He had never been exposed to pain before, and so these sights had a deep
effect on him. His servant explained that pain and death were inevitable.
This made Siddhartha very sad and he started to rethink his life and began to try to
fathom the reason of existence. Seeing him so thoughtful, his father decided to get him
married and get his mind off such serious topics. He was married to a beautiful princess
called Yashodhara, who soon gave birth to a son who they called Rahul.
A Search for Light
Despite this, Siddhartha found no happiness in materialistic pleasures and so left the
palace in search of salvation - ' Moksh'. He was only 29 years old. He roamed the
country, meeting various sadhus and saints in his search for inner peace. He lived the life
of a hermit and underwent rigorous ' tapasya' to achieve his purpose, but still could not
understand the meaning of or reason for life and death.
Finally, one day he reached Bodh Gaya. He was very tired and so sat under the shade of a
tree. He shut his eyes and was blessed with a divine light. This was the turning point, as
he realized the truth is within every human being. The search outside was pointless. After
this he was known as ' Buddha' or the enlightened one.
The Right Path and Immortality
For 45 years, Buddha spread his message of a spiritual life. He did not believe in rituals
but pointed to an 8 - fold path towards salvation - that of right speech, understanding,
determination, deeds, efforts, awareness, thinking and living. According to Buddhism, by
following this path one could overcome desires, which were the root cause of grief and
misery.
The Buddha died in 483 BC at the ripe age of 80 years, after successfully spreading his
message to the world. Buddhism still lives and has a strong following in various Asian
countries.

Ashoka The Great


One of the greatest emperors known to Indian history, Ashoka, was the grandson of
Chandragupta Maurya and the son of Bindusar. The land he ruled stretched from the
Himalayas, Nepal and Kashmir to Mysore in the South. From Afghanistan in the N.E. to
the banks of the River Brahmaputra in the East. In the West his territory covered
Saurashtra and Junagarh.
Ashoka's Reign
Born in 294 BC as second son to Bindusar, the King of Patliputra, Ashoka was not heir
apparent. After his father died, his elder brother Suman was to take over the reins of the
Kingdom. But as most of the ministers found Ashoka more efficient, they helped him
attain power.
Ashoka was a good administrator and at first set about restoring peace in his kingdom.
This took about 3 years, after which he formally accepted the throne and was crowned
King in 273 BC. During his reign, the country made progress in terms of science and
technology as well as advanced in medicine and surgery. Religion was emphasized and so
the people were honest and straightforward and truthful. Stealing was unheard of.
Ashoka, himself was a great philanthropist and worked day and night for the welfare of
his people. He knew exactly what was going on in each part of his vast territory. He
would not partake any of his meals until and unless he had fed a thousand Brahmins.
The Kalinga War
This was the first and last battle that Ashoka ever fought and serves as a watermark in his
life as it changed his course forever. It was during this war that he earned the title Ashoka
the Great.
Kalinga was a prosperous little kingdom lying between the river Godavari and Mahanadi,
close to the Bay of Bengal. It had an infantry of 60,000 men, 10,000 horsemen and 600
elephants. Ashoka wanted to capture this fertile land, and so had it surrounded. But the
brave and loyal people of Kalinga did not want to lose their independence.
A fierce battle followed, in which there were too many casualties. There were more than a
lakh prisoners of war. In the midst of the battlefield, Ashoka stood with the wounded,
crippled and the dead all around him. This was the consequence of his greed. A new light
dawned on him, and he swore that he would never wage war again.
Ashoka's Conversion
Ashoka was initiated into Buddhism, after which his life was completely transformed. He
religiously followed the principles of Buddhism - that of truth, charity, kindness, purity
and goodness.
He did his bit towards the propagation of this religion by engraving it's principles on
pillars throughout his kingdom. The Ashoka pillars, as they are now called, were over 40
feet high and extremely heavy. He also attempted to spread this religion to Syria, Egypt
and Macedonia, and sent his son Mahendra and daughter Sangamitra to Sri Lanka for this
purpose.

Ashoka opened charitable hospitals and dispensaries for the welfare of the poor. He
planted trees to provide shade and opened inns for the shelter of travelers and laid out
green parks and gardens to beautify his kingdom. Wells and tanks were also constructed
for the benefit of his people. He believed in non-violence and so he banned the sacrifice
of animals. Besides this he opened clinics for birds and animals too. His good works
earned him the name of Devanamapriya Priyadarshi.
Ashoka Chakra
He died in 232 BC. After doing a great deal of good for his kingdom and the world at
large. His fame has spread far and wide. To commemorate his rule and its implications
the Government of India has adopted the Ashoka Chakra as its national symbol, which
can be seen till today on the national flag.

Subhash Chandra Bose


There were many great heroes born at the time of the freedom movement. Each with his
own method of attaining one goal - Independence for India. Some believed in non-violent
means, whereas others did not. One such hero was Subhash Chandra Bose, popularly
known as 'Netaji'.
Netaji's Background
Born on January 23, 1897 in Cuttack, Orissa, to a successful lawyer Jankinath Bose and
his wife Prabhavati, Netaji was of a unique temperament. His father was also chairman of
the Municipal Committee and encouraged education in his province. His mother was a
follower of Swami Ramakrishna Paramhansa and so inculcated spiritual values in her
son. Netaji was also influenced by Swami Vivekananda.
To please his father, Netaji went to England to appear for the Indian Civil Service (I.C.S.)
Examination, and achieved fourth place on the Merit list. But he had no intention of
serving the British. Instead he wanted to participate in the Nationalist Movement and
liberate his Motherland.
Birth of a Revolutionary
Netaji was influenced more by Lokmanya Tilak and Sri Aurobindo. He did not agree with
Gandhiji's methods of achieving Independence through non-violence. Rana Pratap and
Shivaji were Netaji's heroes and he believed that the only way to liberate his people was
by shedding blood.
At first, Netaji joined the Congress Party and was even elected President. But because he
did not agree with their views, he broke off to form the Forward Bloc. He was imprisoned
for his revolutionary activities on various occasions.
Meeting with Hitler
At the time of World War II, the British were in a tight spot due to the pressure from
Hitler. Netaji was under detention in Calcutta at that time, and decided to take advantage
of the situation. Dressed as a Pathan, he escaped to Peshawar and then moved on to
Kabul and Moscow. Next was Germany. Here he approached Hitler with his cause. Hitler
was impressed and promised to help him. He then organized all the Indian Prisoners of
War to form the Liberation Army and the Free Indian Army.
The Indian National Army (I.N.A.)
In 1941, Netaji went to Japan and formed the I.N.A. in 1943. 1945 witnessed the I.N.A.
waging a war from the North - West of our country. He inspired his army with the battle
cry 'Delhi Chalo'. Even though he did not succeed in this battle, he had driven home his
message. The Britishers realised that the Indians were serious about gaining
independence, and would assume any means towards that end.
On August 17, 1945, Bose died in a plane crash while flying from Bangkok to Tokyo. He
did not live to see the Indian Independence, but his spirit still lives through his words JAI HIND.

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