Here you can download notes for six talks/guided discussions introducing the Buddha, provided by Achala from Wellington, New Zealand.

1. Approaching the Buddha: His youth; the ‘Four Sights’ and the Going Forth; Enlightenment and the Nature of the Buddha; faith in the Buddha.
    
2. The Buddha’s Victories: Leaving the family/group; overcoming complacency and ambition; facing existential fear; being alone; Mara.
    
3. Stories from the Buddha’s Life: The first teaching; a case of dysentery; Kisagotami; Devadatta; meeting with Bharadvaja; mediating between the Koliyans and the Shakyans; Ajatasatru and the silent assembly; Ananda’s grief; Subhadra, the last disciple.
    
4. Vignette: The Pabbajja Sutta from the Sutta Nipata
    
5. The mythical Buddha: The Buddha as a symbol for one’s spiritual goal; myths around the Buddha; the diamond throne; calling the earth goddess to witness; Brahma’s request; Mucalinda; Angulimala; the Buddha in the Lalitavistara Sutra.
    
6. Symbols of Enlightenment: Enlightened beings as symbols; Yab-yum symbolism; the archetypal realm; visualization practices; the symbolism of the three kayas.
    

Uploaded in October 2007.