Having tried in vain to persuade him to return, his father chose five men from his clan to accompany him. They were Kau??inya, Bhadrika, Vā?pa, Mahānāma, and A?vajit (P. Ko??a??a, Bhaddiya, Vappa, Mahānāma, Assaji). Prince Siddhattha and his followers successively paid visits to three famous scholars and learned from them, but none of them could satisfy his quest. When he realized that no real path of deliverance (or absolution) was to be found in the philosophical thought of that time, he left for a forest on the banks of the Nera?jarā river, now the Lilaian, and lived there with other ascetics. In his search for emancipation, he went through suffering and pain for six years. However, since it proved fruitless, he began to understand that austerities were to no avail. So he went to take a bath in the Nera?jarā River, cleaning off all the dirt of six years. Then, after accepting the milk gruel offered by a herdswoman, his strength was restored afresh. When his five followers saw this, they thought he had abandoned his faith and spiritual efforts, so they left him for Benares City (P. Bārā?asī) to continue their ascetic practices. The Prince then went alone to a Pippala tree and made a seat with auspicious grass (ku?a) under the tree. Sitting down with his legs crossed and facing the east he vowed, "Now should I fail to attain supreme enlightenment, I would rather have my body decompose than rise from this seat." In such a manner, he commenced meditating on absolution, and finally one night defeated the moral affliction and Māra's temptations (kilesa and Māra), achieved complete enlightenment, thereby becoming a Buddha.
他父親曾盡力勸他回去無效,只好在親族中選派五個人隨從他一起,這五個人的名字是:憍陳如(Kau??inya, P. Ko??a??a),跋堤(Bhadrika, P. Bhaddiya),跋波(Vā?pa, P. Vappa),摩訶男(Mahānāma, P. Mahānāma),阿說示(A?vajit, P. Assaji)。悉達(dá)多王子和他的侍者們先后尋訪當(dāng)時三個有名的學(xué)者,從他們學(xué)道,但都不能滿足他的要求。于是他知道當(dāng)時哲學(xué)思想中沒有真正解脫之法,便離開了他們,走到尼連禪河(Naira?janā,P:Nera?jarā,現(xiàn)在叫做Lilaian)岸邊的樹林中,和那里的苦行人(極端刻苦修行的人)在一起。為了尋求解脫,他嘗夠了艱苦辛酸,堅持不懈,經(jīng)歷六年之久。但是結(jié)果徒勞無功,方才悟到苦行是無益的。他于是走到尼連禪河里去沐浴,洗去了六年的積垢,隨后受了一個牧女供養(yǎng)的牛奶,恢復(fù)了氣力。當(dāng)時隨從他的五個人見到他的情景,以為他放棄了信心和努力,便離開了他,前往波羅奈城(Benares)去繼續(xù)他們的苦行。王子于是一個人走到一棵畢缽羅(Pippala)樹下,鋪上了吉祥草,向著東方盤腿坐著,發(fā)誓說:“我今如不證到無上大覺,寧可讓此身粉碎,終不起此座?!?他便這樣在樹下思維解脫之道,終于在一個夜里,戰(zhàn)勝了最后的煩惱魔障,獲得了徹底覺悟而成了佛陀。