(Context: Come, See.) The final story tells us that the Buddha actually had to make up his mind whether or not to teach the Dharma. After his enlightenment, the Buddha spent a few weeks dwelling in solitude abiding in the bliss of nirvana. While sitting under a...
(Context: Come, See.) This story occurred not long after the Buddha’s enlightenment. He had no disciples at this time, and he was walking to where he knew his five former companions were so that he could teach them the Dharma. On his way, he met his first...
“I don’t think that is what the Master meant when he said, ‘Be like a buddha’.” (Context: Come, See.) This is a conversion story. During the Buddha’s time, there was a famous lay follower of the Jain religion called Upāli. (This is...
When it comes to spreading the Dharma, the Buddhist attitude can be summarized in a single Pali word: ehipassiko, which literally means “come, see”. Buddhism is not a faith tradition; it is an evidence-centric insight tradition. For that reason, the Buddha...
