Who is the Buddha?

There are many misinterpretations regarding the appearance of the Buddha in this world. Many people cannot understand who the Buddha actually is because of his appearance, serenity, and towering wisdom and understanding. When they compare his rational views and his personality with other religious teachers, they find that he is unique in many ways and his teachings are different from what anyone had thought of before.Therefore, they cannot believe he was an ordinary human being. That is why people have often asked whether he is an extraordinary super-nature being, a prophet or a messenger of a god. Some believe that the Buddha,with his supreme intellect, had learnt everything he knew from the existing Indian religious systems and philosophy, refined them and presented these old thoughts as a new doctrine.

All these views are not true. The Buddha had never claimed that he was sent as a messenger of any god. Nor did he say that he had heard any divine voice which whispered into his ears to reveal certain commandments to be introduced as a religion. Furthermore, while the Buddha  had studied all the existing systems of philosophical thought under the best teachers of his days, in none of these teachings could he find the life that he was seeking for.

He declared that he did not have any teacher who could teach him how to gain Enlightenment. He endeavored to find someone who could enlighten him, but he could not find such a person. So he used his own effort, knowledge and understanding to gain this supreme wisdom. Buddhahood was the result of his own effort. Not only did he fully understand the Truth, he also taught the doctrine to enlighten others. He is, therefore, called a Samma Sambuddha or the Fully Enlightened One.