In one last act of desperation, The Christians found Buddha on Decatur Street in New Orleans, and surrounded him. The rudest of them asked him:

"Personal Trivia: Did you really sit under that bo tree for seven full days--without ever eating any figs? Did your remarkably sensitive, compassionate, nature come more from your mother or father? How did your son, left to grow up without a father, feel about your "Great Renunciation"?


The World Honored One answered:

"Christian Friend, there have been many stories told about my awakening experience; many think that I sat for seven, eleven, thirty, or even forty days without food or drink; some say that I was awakened upon seeing the full moon rising, and others say that I was awakened upon seeing the evening star. Some say that armies of demons attacked me, and that I had to use my miraculous powers to defeat them, before I could awaken; others believe that I simply sat and came to deep profundity through techniques of meditation. I had some figs before I sat down, because it was my meal-time, but after that I didn't eat; fasting for seven days is very easy for a person who has self-discipline of a certain variety. I did sit, and meditate, and yes, after a point, I was free.

If it is true that aspects of a person's character can "be inherited" from one parent or another, my sensitive and compassionate personality was probably from my mother, for my father was a stern, quiet, and driven man. My underlying, awakened nature, like the nature of all things, is free and boundless, but my potential to express sensitivity and compassion was developed through my own efforts. All people can develop the same good potentials. I honor my parents by saying that they gave me a good, strong body through which I could find freedom in this world.

As far as my son Rahula, I left him and his mother safely in the palace of my father, where they were taken care of, fed, protected, and entertained until my return six years later. In those times, 2500 years ago, men in that part of India didn't have the same role expectations that men in nuclear families in modern America have. I was a warrior, and a prince, and all princes in my time spent most of their time away from family, roaming the land, engaging in politics, fighting, and the like. It was very similar to how princes and kings treated their own families, during the Christian ages of Europe. I do recall Jesus stating in your scriptures that he came to set family members against one another, and that he also renounced his mother in front of a lot of people. While Jesus claims to have come to bring "not peace, but a sword", my teachings are here to create peace, a lasting peace for each sentient being.

I was only gone six years, but I missed my child and wife, and had much joy to see them again. They both found awakening through my teachings, and now enjoy perpetual bliss."



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