In the spring of his twenty-ninth year, Prince Gautama Siddhartha grew troubled in spirit, and decided to leave the sheltered palace enclosure to view the flowers in bloom; instead, he came face to face with the world's pain and misery.
Departing through the eastern gate on the first day, Sakyamuni was troubled by the sight of an old, decrepit man.
On the second day, passing out through the southern gate, he came upon a man suffering from a debilitating illness.
On the third day, leaving by the western gate, he beheld a corpse surrounded by weeping mourners. Finally, travelling towards the north on the fourth day, he met a mendicant monk, and resolved to follow this holy man's example.