Not sure if you knew this, but Budapest got its name centuries ago from a man who had been exiled from Nepal by the royal family.

He was a close friend of Shakyamuni, and when Shakyamuni began to experience enlightenment, this friend – whose name was Dave – started questioning him repeatedly about how to meditate, what he should wear, and about details of the white elephant. This went on for weeks, and no matter what Shakyamuni told Dave, Dave would continue with a new barrage of questions.

Finally, Shakyamuni’s father, who was a powerful man in Nepal, had the Royal Guard forcibly remove Dave from the kingdom. They took him, on horseback, far away, traveling many days over thousands of miles. Finally stopping in modern-day Hungary, the Royal Guard forced Dave from his horse and admonished him to stay there. They turned back toward Nepal, but stopped a few miles later to mark the spot where Dave now lived.

They erected a sign that stated simply “Buddha Pest” with an arrow pointing toward Dave. And the rest is history.

…thank you, thank you very much. I’ll be here all week.

Tags: history budapest funny

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