One day the Buddha told his disciples about the life he led as a young prince, saying,

 

The life I lived was a most elegant one.  I had the best of everything: the best incense, the best garments.  The royal gardens had lotus ponds for me to enjoy, where blue, red, and white blossoms bloomed in profusion.  There were three palaces built for me, so that I could spend the winter, summer, and rainy season in comfort.  I had not a care in the world ― ah, such was the life I led!  Then one day the thought occurred to me.

 

When a person sees another person who is old, they find the sight distressing, are repelled by it, and flee from it, telling themselves it has nothing to do with them.  However, when I became aware that I too would grow old, all my foolish pride over how youthful I was simply abandoned me. 

 

When a person sees another person who is sick, they find the sight distressing, are repelled by it, and flee from it, telling themselves it has nothing to do with them.  However, when I became aware that I too would grow old, all my foolish pride over how healthy I was simply abandoned me.

 

When a person sees another person who is dying, they find the sight distressing, are repelled by it, and flee from it, telling themselves it as nothing to do with them.  However, when I became aware that there was no way that I could escape death, all my foolish pride over how wonderful my life was simply abandoned me. [1]

 

All of us know that old age, sickness, and death are part of our human legacy.  However, we prefer not to give it serious thought.  Rather, we wish to flee from the thought of it.  Indeed, it is frightening to think it our fate to grow old, sick, and die.

 

When the Buddha was young, he noticed this, and sought a way to go beyond it. 

 

Life is such a fleeting proposition, we may not live to see tomorrow.  Thought it may seem cruel to say so, this is a truth we must accept. 

 

The uncertainties of this life being what they are, they become problems for us to decide how to get through life in the limited time that remains.

 

Buddhism teaches there is a way to solve these problems.  Through the Nembutsu we discover a way to live our life to the utmost, with the appreciation for the splendors of life.

 

Editorial note:

[1] This account appears in the Anguttara Nikaya III.38, and in the Chinese translation of the same, the Chu Agongyo, scroll 56, in Taisho volume 1, p.776.