A statue of Saint Stephen, the first king of
Hungary, overlooks the city of Budapest.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Budapest 141
later settled the town of Buda. Buda
became the capital of the kingdom of
Hungary in the 1400s. Slavic groups
established Pest. German merchants
later developed Pest into a trading town.
Both towns came under Turkish rule for
a period.
Many buildings in Budapest today date
from the 1700s and 1800s. The area was
then under Austrian rule. In 1873 Buda
and Pest joined together to form a single
city.
Fighting at the end ofWorldWar II in
1945 severely damaged Budapest. After
the war Hungary established a Communist
government centered in Budapest.
In 1956 there was an uprising in the city
against the Communist government.
That rebellion failed. In the 1980s more
protests led to the fall of Communism
in Hungary. Budapest was the center of
those protests.
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Hungary
Buddha
The founder of Buddhism was the
Buddha, a man born with the name
Siddhartha Gautama. The Buddha was
a man of great wisdom and compassion.
He taught people how to
overcome suffering.
Early Life
Siddhartha Gautama was a prince who
lived sometime in the 500s to 300s BC.
He was born near the border of what
are today Nepal and India. Little is
known for certain about his life, though
there are many stories about him. He is
said to have grown up in luxury,
shielded from aging, sickness, and
death.
The stories about him say that at age 29
Gautama saw a bent old man for the
first time. This greatly troubled
Gautama. His chariot-driver, Channa,
explained that the man was old and that
all people grow old. On another day,
Gautama saw a sick man, and later he
saw a dead body. Channa explained that
all people are subject to sickness and
death. Finally, Gautama saw a monk,
who looked peaceful. Gautama decided
to give up his wealth and become a
monk. He wanted to discover how the
Between the
later 1800s
and 1918,
Budapest was
one of the two
capital cities of
the powerful
empire of
Austria-
Hungary.
Vienna, Austria,
was the
other.
Statues of the Buddha can be found in
many Asian countries.
142 Buddha BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
monk was able to look peaceful when he
was surrounded by suffering.
Finding and Sharing the Truth
Gautama left home in search of the
truth. One day, while Gautama was sitting
and meditating under a tree, he
became enlightened, or free from both
desire and suffering. In this way, he
became the Buddha, which means
“enlightened one.”
The Buddha taught others about Four
Noble Truths he discovered. The first
truth is that life is full of suffering. The
second is that suffering is caused by
desire. The third is that humans can
free themselves from all that. The
fourth truth told the way to achieve
this freedom.
The Buddha soon attracted followers,
who formed the first Buddhist order, or
sangha. The Buddha sent them out into
the world to spread his message. The
Buddha himself set out traveling, converting
many people on the way. He is
said to have died at age 80, in a city
called Kusinara (now Kasia, India).
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Buddhism
Buddhism
The religion based on the teachings of
the Buddha is known as Buddhism.
The Buddha was born with the name
Siddhartha Gautama and lived
sometime in the 500s to 300s BC. He
became enlightened, meaning that he
found a way to free himself from the
cycle of desire and suffering. The
Buddha taught his followers how to
achieve this too.
Buddhism began in India and spread to
central and southeastern Asia, China,
Korea, and Japan. It plays a central role
in the spiritual, cultural, and social life
of Asia. Today some people in theWestern
world also follow Buddhism. At the
beginning of the 21st century Buddhism
was the fourth-largest religion in the
world, with about 360 million followers.
Some Important Buddhist Holidays
Holiday Date
Mahayana Countries
Buddha’s birthday April 8
Buddha’s enlightenment December 8
Buddha’s death February 15
Note: Different countries celebrate these holidays
on different dates.
Theravada Countries
Wesak (Buddha’s one day, usually in
birthday, enlightenment, May, when there is
and death) a full moon
A Buddhist monk beats a drum while other
monks pray.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Buddhism 143
Beliefs and Practices
Buddhism is based on the Buddha’s
teachings, which are called the Four
Noble Truths. The first truth is that life
is made up of pain and suffering. The
second is that all suffering is caused by
one’s desires. The third is that one can
be free of these desires. The freedom
from desire is called nirvana. The fourth
truth is the Eightfold Path, which
explains eight ways to achieve nirvana.
The Eightfold Path is also called the
Middle Path. It teaches that people
should not indulge in too much luxury
and pleasure. But they should also not
harshly deny themselves all worldly
comforts. Instead, people should take a
middle, or balanced, course.
Buddhism has three main parts. These
parts are called the Triratna, or “the
three jewels.” They are: the Buddha, or
the teacher; the dharma, or the teaching;
and the sangha, or the community of
believers. Buddhist monks believe that
