Buddha Shakyamuni

King Suddhodana had an old teacher, who was known to be very wise. He was called Asita Kaladevala, ^{2 p18} the Sage. Asita lived in the jungle. While sitting one day, he heard the Devas singing and saw them dancing. "Why are you so happy?" he asked. "Because the most excellent of all beings has been born at Lumbini Park to Queen Mahamaya," replied the Devas. When he heard this, Asita went quickly to see the King and Queen and their new-born son.

The King was very happy to see his wise old teacher again. In the palace, after the Sage was seated, the King brought the Prince before him and said, "Teacher, my son was born only yesterday. Here he is. Please see if his future will be good."

As the King said this, he lowered the infant Prince before the Sage, so that he might examine him properly. However, the baby turned his feet on to the Sage's head. ^{2 p18} Thus surprised, Asita took hold of the baby's feet and examined them very carefully, finding some marks on them. He got up and said, "This Prince will become a very great teacher in this world." The Sage was very pleased and, putting his palms together, paid due respect to the baby Prince. The King, seeing this, did the same. This was the first salutation of the King. ^{2 p19, 5 p16}

On the fifth day after Siddhartha's birth, King Suddhodana invited 108 priests to the palace for Prince Siddhartha's naming ceremony. Seven of the priests who attended the naming ceremony offered a prophecy that when Prince Siddhartha reached manhood, he would either become a Universal Monarch or a Buddha. The eighth Brahmin, a young priest named Kondanna, predicted accurately that Prince Siddhartha would embark on a religious path.

In Lalitavistara Sutra, Sage Asita declares that Prince Siddhartha has the Mahapurusalaksanas (Thirty-two Major Marks of Perfection), ^{1 p129} which are only found on the body of a Universal Monarch and on a Buddha:

"^〔1〕 Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddha has a crown protuberance. That, great King, is the first mark of a great being found on Prince Sarvārthasiddha.

^〔2〕 Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddhas's hair is deep blue like the neck of a peacock or kohl powder, and curls to the right.

^〔3〕 His forehead is even.

^〔4〕 Great King, at the place between Sarvārthasiddha's eyebrows, there is a ringlet of hair the color of snow or silver.

^〔5〕 Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddhas's eyelashes are like those of a bull.

^〔6〕 His eyes are of deep blue color.

^〔7〕 He has forty teeth.

^〔8〕 He has even teeth.

^〔9〕 His teeth are without gaps between them.

^〔10〕 His teeth are perfectly white.

^〔11〕 Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddha has the voice of Brahmā.

^〔12〕 His experience of taste is unexcelled.

^〔13〕 His tongue is very long and slender.

^〔14〕 His jaw is like that of a lion.

^〔15〕 His shoulders are well-rounded.

^〔16〕 Seven of his body parts are well-rounded.

^〔17〕 His chest is broad.

^〔18〕 His skin is smooth and golden.

^〔19〕 When standing up straight, his hands reach his knees.

^〔20〕 His torso is like that of a lion.

^〔21〕 Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddhas's arm span and height are identical, like the banyan tree.

^〔22〕 Each of his hairs grows individually, and their tips curl to the right and upward.

^〔23〕 His private parts are well sheathed.

^〔24〕 His thighs are well-rounded.

^〔25〕 His calves are like those of the black antelope, the King of deer.

^〔26〕 His fingers are long.

^〔27〕 His heels are broad.

^〔28〕 His arches are high.

^〔29〕 His palms and the soles of his feet are soft.

^〔30〕 His fingers and toes are webbed.

^〔31〕 Great King, on the palms of his long-fingered hands and on the soles of his long-toed feet, there are beautiful thousand-spoked wheels with both center and rim.

^〔32〕 Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddha has even and well-placed feet."

The sutra continues with Asita's description of the Anubyanjana (Eighty Secondary Marks of a Great Man), ^{1 p130} all of which were evident on Prince Siddhartha's body:

^〔1〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha's fingernails are rounded, ^〔2〕 copper-colored, and ^〔3〕 glossy.

^〔4〕 His fingers and toes are rounded, ^〔5〕 long, and ^〔6〕 well proportioned.

^〔7〕 His veins are not visible.

^〔8〕 His anklebones are not visible.

^〔9〕 His joints are not visible.

^〔10〕 His feet are even, rather than uneven.

^〔11〕 His heels are broad.

Great King, ^〔12〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha has markings on his hands that are even, ^〔13〕 clear, ^〔14〕 deep, ^〔15〕 straight, ^〔16〕 and well arranged.

^〔17〕 His lips are red like the bimba fruit.

^〔18〕 His voice is not loud.

^〔19〕 His tongue is supple, soft, and copper-colored.

^〔20〕 His voice is melodious like the trumpeting of an elephant or the roll of thunder. Moreover, ^〔21〕 his arms are long.

^〔22〕 He is excellently clean.

^〔23〕 His body is soft.

^〔24〕 His body is not subject to fear or hesitancy.

^〔25〕 His body is well proportioned, ^〔26〕 heroic, ^〔27〕 beautiful, and ^〔28〕 well composed.

^〔29〕 His kneecaps are broad, large, and well-developed.

Great King, ^〔30〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha's body is rounded, ^〔31〕 very smooth, ^〔32〕 straight, and ^〔33〕 well structured.

^〔34〕 His navel is deep, ^〔35〕 not crooked, and ^〔36〕 tapering.

^〔37〕 Like a Sage, he is very pure in his conduct.

^〔38〕 He is exceedingly attractive, ^〔39〕 of pure appearance and ^〔40〕 shines with a light that dispels all darkness.

Great King, ^〔41〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha moves with the serene gait of an elephant, ^〔42〕 the stride of a lion, ^〔43〕 the step of a great bull, ^〔44〕 the swoop of a swan.

^〔45〕 His steps always make beautiful circles to the right.

^〔46〕 His sides are rounded, ^〔47〕 well proportioned, and ^〔48〕 straight.

^〔49〕 His waist is slight like the curve of a bow.

^〔50〕 His body is free from any blemishes or dark spots.

Great King, ^〔51〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha has rounded canines.

^〔52〕 His canines are sharp and well-spaced.

^〔53〕 His nose is elegantly high.

^〔54〕 His eyes are clear, ^〔55〕 stainless, ^〔56〕 warm, ^〔57〕 elongated, ^〔58〕 large, and ^〔59〕 resemble blue lotuses.

Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddha has ^〔60〕 even eyebrows that are ^〔61〕 thick, ^〔62〕 dark, ^〔63〕 continuous, and ^〔64〕 tapered.

^〔65〕 His cheeks are plump, ^〔66〕 even, ^〔67〕 unblemished, ^〔68〕 and free from the flush of aggression.

^〔69〕 His sense organs are clearly apparent.

Great King, ^〔70〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha has a perfect tuft of hair between his brows.

^〔71〕 His face and forehead are proportional.

^〔72〕 His head is large.

^〔73〕 His hair is black, ^〔74〕 even, ^〔75〕 fragrant, ^〔76〕 soft, ^〔77〕 well-kempt, ^〔78〕 well arranged, and ^〔79〕 curly.

Great King, ^〔80〕 Prince Sarvārthasiddha has hair that curls into the forms of the endless knot, the mark of auspiciousness, the mark of eternal happiness, and the mark of prosperity.

Great King, Prince Sarvārthasiddha has all of these eighty marks.

In relation to Buddha Shakyamuni's foot as an important factor in the forecast, the foot of the Buddha continues to hold great importance till today as a highly revered symbol of the Buddha, in the form of a footprint.

The Footprints of the Buddha are classified into three different forms: an image of the soles of the Buddha's feet, an isolated object for worship, and as painted on the ceiling of the religious temples. Such representations of the Footprints of the Buddha are made from numerous materials such as stone and copper to name a few, which served as sacred objects of veneration and worship.