Siddhartha Gautama. A wise man, deeply respected and, above all, a genuine source of inspiration for millions of people around the world. And no, do not worry. I am not here to evangelize anyone or convince you to embrace a different belief system. If there is one thing I have learned, and what I would like to share with you today, it is the remarkable sense of peace that can emerge from a philosophy of life such as Buddhism. Being surrounded by practitioners of this tradition allowed me to witness firsthand just how valuable the pursuit of wisdom can truly be.
One of the ideas that fascinated me the most was the way Buddhists define intelligence. To them, it is not a destination but a search. A lifelong pursuit that, by its very nature, can never be fully completed. It reminds me of the concept of utopia described so beautifully by the Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano. Every time we move one step closer to it, it moves two steps farther away, just like the horizon. That image has stayed with me ever since. In Buddhist teachings, wisdom is not simply knowledge. It is reconciliation. Peace is not understood as the absence of conflict or mere tranquility, as we often interpret it in the West. Instead, it is the ability to become reconciled with oneself.
That is why meditation occupies such an essential place within Buddhist practice. It is not about becoming detached, cold, or indifferent. Quite the opposite. It is about learning to meet yourself honestly, without distractions or excuses. An introspective journey into your own mind. It suddenly became very easy for me to understand why Siddhartha Gautama continues to influence generations of monks and practitioners centuries after his lifetime. There are also striking similarities between Buddhist philosophy and many of the spiritual traditions more familiar to us, although that is probably a conversation for another day. What impressed me the most during my visit to the monastery was not the rituals themselves but the discipline, emotional balance, and quiet conviction reflected in the people around me.
I had the privilege of attending an important Buddhist celebration dedicated to wisdom and enlightenment. The purpose was surprisingly simple: to celebrate knowledge itself. And how do they do it? Through respect, generosity, community, and method. Their philosophy seems to suggest that genuine growth cannot be forced through fear or violence, but only through sincere questioning and the willingness to search for answers. One sentence spoken to me that day has refused to leave my mind ever since. Miss, become the path toward wisdom. It was such a simple phrase, yet it completely transformed the way I thought about learning, personal growth, and even my own purpose within this brief existence we all share.
Experiencing another philosophy from the inside changes many of the assumptions we usually carry without questioning them. It reminds us that different traditions are not inferior simply because they are different. Personally, I feel nothing but gratitude toward the people who welcomed me with extraordinary kindness, endless patience, and genuine warmth, even allowing me to photograph them during an official religious celebration. I left that monastery with something much more valuable than photographs. I left with a quieter mind. Before this experience, I often felt anxious about whether there was an end to the search for meaning. I cannot honestly say that uncertainty has disappeared, but it certainly feels less overwhelming than it once did. Perhaps that is what Siddhartha Gautama understood all along. Maybe wisdom is not reaching the destination at all. Maybe it is simply choosing to continue walking.
