Why is Buddha important?
The Buddha is important because he uncovered truths about the causes of human suffering, that the causes are of our own making and therefore we can do something about the unsatisfactory nature of our daily lives. The insights he offered 2,500 years ago are not based on faith, but on evidence, and stand up to scientific scrutiny after two and a half thousand years. As a result of the validity of his teachings, they spread relatively peacefully across the world, and their stance of tolerance and compassion supported changes to governments that adopted them, fostering prosperity and peace — many of the “best of times” in human history were brought about by Buddhist rulers. So on a large scale (governments) and small (individuals) the teachings of the Buddha changed lives for the betters, and continues to do so.
