There is no such person as Buddha. Buddha is simply a Sanskrit word meaning initiate. The Absolute is immanent in every man’s heart. This treasure of the heart is the only Buddha that exists. It is no use seeking Buddha outside your own nature. Prayer, scripture-reading, fasting, the observance of monastic rules all are useless. Those who seek Buddha that way do not find him. One thing alone avails, to discover the Absolute which is at the root of one’s own nature. Bodhidharma From Zen and Art, by Arthur Waley.