Chapter III, Buddhism, "The Man Who Woke Up," Summary and Analysis

When bewildered people approached Buddha, asking him who he was, his answer was, "I am awake". The Sanskrit root of the word Buddha literally means, "to wake up and know" (p. 82). Therefore, the Buddha is the "enlightened one", or the "awakened one". He is out of the world of dreams known as the state of human life and into an awareness of enlightenment.

In 563 B.C., Siddhartha Gautama of the Sakya was born into the lap of luxury. He grew to be a handsome man with all the wealth and privilege of his station. In his twenties, however, he felt unsettled, as is expressed in the "Legend of the Four Passing Sights". His father spared no expense to try and keep his son attached to...