Gautam Buddha was born as Prince Siddhartha around 566 BC to the King and Queen of Kapilavastu, Shuddhodana and Mayadevi. Soon after his birth an astrologer predicted that Prince Siddhartha was destined to lead the life of a sage and that he would give up his right to the throne and all worldly pleasures.
Shuddhodana and Mayadevi were shattered upon hearing the news and decided to prevent him from being exposed to the outside world, keeping a close watch on him.
A young Siddhartha never left the palace and saw nothing more than the luxuries of it. His parents hoped that he would get used to the luxurious lifestyle and never give it up.
At the age of 16, his parents got him married to Yashodhara who was a beautiful daughter of a nobleman, The King had hoped that this would be another reason for Siddhartha to not leave the palace.
However, as Siddhartha grew older he became more and more curious. On one particular day, he asked his charioteer to take him on a tour of the city. The first person they came across was a old man, weak and frail by the side of the road. Siddhartha was intrigued by him and was made to understand that with old age comes weakness and ill health.
The next person he came across was a sick man in great pain. Siddhartha was told that the man was not immune of diseases. He then saw the body of a dead person being carried to the cremation ground. The young Prince was told that everybody would die one day and leave the world. At the end of his city tour, Siddhartha came across a sage who was calm and serene. He was told that such men give up their worldly possession and desires.
Siddhartha was deeply troubled by his first experience of the outside world. Several questions crossed his mind about life and death. He then decided that to get answers to his questions, he would have to leave the palace and give up on his luxurious life. At the age of 29, Siddhartha left the palace at night while his wife and son were asleep. He wandered far and wide, trying different ways to find the path of truth. Then finally he reached the city of Bodhgaya and started meditating under a large fig tree.
After 49 days of meditation, at the age of 35, Siddhartha attained enlightenment. From that day on he was known as Buddha or the ‘Awakened One.’ He was named after the Bodhi tree under which he meditated.
Gautam Buddha shared his knowledge with five sanyansis who meditated with him. Together, they traveled across the country teaching key principles of Buddhism.
These principles were called the Noble Truths, which were: The world is full of suffering and misery. Desire is the cause for all suffering and misery. Suffering and misery can be abolished by removing desire. Desire can be overcome by following the Eight Fold Path.
The Eight Fold Path included: Right Views, Right Thoughts, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Efforts, Right Mindfulness and Right Meditation.
Buddha preached non-violence, peace and harmony. He strongly felt that people should treat one another with compassion, forgiveness and tolerance. He encouraged his followers to follow a balanced life. Buddha had a number of followers in Magadha, Kosala and other neighboring areas. He was always dressed in saffron robes and would take only his begging bowl when he traveled.
Several monuments have been built in India which were built as tributes to Buddhism- The world renowned Ajantha and Ellora caves, Kanheri and Karla caves, as well as temples and universities at Sanchi, Amaravati and other places.
Gautam Buddha passed away in 483 BC. Though he lived centuries ago, his birthday is still celebrated as Buddha Jayanti in India. The Bodhi tree is still worshipped as a symbol of Enlightenment even today.
Organized by UNESCO, World Book and Copyright Day, also known as World Book Day, is a global observance celebrated every year on April 23. The day aims to encourage the importance of reading and writing on a global scale. Moreover, it also appreciates the prolific English literature authors and their contributions who left a mark on history. Reading books is important for students as it helps them improve their vocabulary, learn moral values, connect with the past, and increase general knowledge.
History of World Book and Copyright Day
World Book and Copyright Day was officially observed in 1955.
However, the roots of this day were laid back in 1922 by Vicente Clavel Andres to honour a profound Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes.
UNESCO chose April 23 to pay tribute to the authors worldwide and encourage everyone to access books.
It is believed that the day serves as a link between the past and the future bridging the connection between generations and cultures.
UNESCO along with many international organizations come together to represent three major sectors of the book industry including Publishers, Booksellers, and Libraries to select the World Book Capital for the coming years to maintain the initiative and the impetus of the celebration.
History of Books
Books did not always have glossy covers and smooth pages like they do today. Clay tablets were used when writing systems were developed in prehistoric civilizations thousands of years ago. Papyrus was later used by humanity. The first people to create something that resembled modern books in that it was made of numerous thick, bamboo pages stitched together were the Chinese in the third century.
Then, in the middle of the 15th century, Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, ushering in an era when books were easily accessible to anyone who wanted to read them. We are all able to enjoy Shakespeare, Tolstoy, and many other authors’ works in the comfort of our own homes today because of that brilliant invention. However, the association between that day and books was first made in Spain in 1923 because it marks the passing of both William Shakespeare and renowned Spanish chronicler Inca Garcilaso de la Vega.
Why do we Celebrate World Book and Copyright Day on April 23?
Did you know that April 23 was specifically chosen to hold the celebrations of the World Book and Copyright Day? This is because it is the date on which numerous prominent authors of literature, such as William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes passed away.
Additionally, UNESCO also decided on April 23 due to its General Conference held in Paris in 1995. It paid tribute to and commemorated authors and their exemplary books.
Benefits of Reading Books
The following are the benefits of reading books:
It improves your linguistic skills including, grammar, sentence structure, usage of words and vocabulary
Some studies have shown that reading books can make you feel empathetic as we tend to develop a connection with a character
Another great benefit of reading is it reduces your stress and anxiety levels and helps you get distracted from worries to focus more on the words written in it
In this fast-paced world, everyone has compromised on their sleep schedule, reading a book at night before going to bed can inflict a positive effect on your mind as well as help you sleep faster
Ways to Support World Book Day
Here are a few ways to support this day:
Shop at independent bookstores around the world. Some of our favourites in the United States are Blue Bicycle Books in Charleston, Birchbark Books & Native Arts in Minneapolis, and Little City Books in Hoboken, all of which pay special attention to children’s books.
Donate used books to the public library in your area.
Give to book charities like Books for Africa, Libraries Without Borders, and Book Aid International, which all provide books to the underprivileged and libraries in refugee camps, hospitals, and schools. For U.S. K–5th-grade students and their classrooms, a different nonprofit organisation called Our Kids Read donates books with inspiring characters from various cultures, including Native American, Black, Hispanic, and Southeast Asian.
Invite your friends for a reading challenge, and contest with your friends as to who can read more books in a fixed duration of time. You can have book relay with yourself as well by picking up a book of a new genre every time.
NCERT in partnership with UNESCO New Delhi has developed 11 animated videos focusing on the 11 themes of the School Health programme under Ayushman Bharat. These animated videos as well as the training and resource materials developed by NCERT and UNESCO will help in raising awareness among millions of children and teachers across the country.
“Think of giving not as a duty, but as a privilege.” The main aim for organizing Pusthakopahaar in KV's is to inculcate the value of sharing and caring our environment and sensitize student about reuse of books for better environment. This initiative also gives strength to the minds who are not able to afford the cost of the new books/ study material to enhance their skills/knowledge or pursue their courses of studies. The students ,Parents and teachers of Kendriya Vidyalaya BSF Camp chhawla donated the previous years books with great zeal and enthusiasm.These books are further given to the needy students so that their learning process does not get affected due to the absence of text books and study materials. Altogether more than 200 students and teacher have donated the books and 132 students got benefited of this pustakophar scheme this year.
Besides, books donation drives various literary activities such as Poster making ,Write up, Speech, charts etc on the theme of Book Donation and Recycle of Paper have been organized to foster the positive impact of reuse of book and study material in the minds of students.
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