Death

Death The Buddha told his disciples that when he was gone they were not to look for a new leader-the Dhamma would lead them. They must rely on themselves, be their own lamps, and look for no refuge outside themselves. On the outskirts of Kusinagara (identified with Kasia village in the Deoria district in Eastern Uttar Pradesh), the Buddha lay under a sal tree, and died at the age of 80 (about 487 Be). His last words were: "All composite things decay. Strive diligently." This was his final parinirvana. His sorrowing disciples cremated his body, and hi~ ashes were divided between the representatives of various tibal peoples and King Ajatasatru of Magadha.

Symbols for the events in his life The Buddha's birth is symbolised by the lotus and the bull; his great re­nunciation by the horse; his nirvana by the Bodhi tree; his first sermon by the Dhamma Chakra or Wheel of Law; hi_s parinirvana or death by the stupa.