The personage Shakyamuni Buddha (Shakya Thubpa) is the historical founder of the Buddhist religion. He was born in southern Nepal of the Shakya clan roughly in the fifth century BCE. The term ‘Buddha' means ‘enlightened one' and is attributed to beings who have reached the highest level of enlightenment. When one discusses ‘the Buddha' the implied topic is Shakyamuni Buddha (Shakya Thubpa) . In this eon, the ‘Fortunate Eon', there are to be one thousand Buddhas, of which Shakyamuni is usually considered to be the seventh.
By the time Buddhism reached Tibet , the actual history of the Buddha had become an expansive mythology that is often a subject for artists. There are many different depictions of the Buddha, such as Buddha involved in the twelve great acts or scenes from his former lives (Jataka), but the seated Buddha in meditation and earth witness gesture is by far the most popular in Tibet . |
