As a part of the ritual involved when he first became the Black Panther, T'Challa spent like, 3 days fasting and then ate some of the Heart-Shaped Herb, which is a plant that is native only to Wakanda. (Wakanda has technology, wealth, and natural resources beyond imagining. Seriously.)

The Heart-Shaped Herb (effectively) grants the Black Panther powers that are roughly equivalent to Captain America. The Black Panther is not quite as Strong, Fast, etc. as Captain America is, but he is close.

Black Panther had a power upgrade a few years back when he Bast made him King of the Dead, which also allowed him the knowledge of all of the past Panthers.

Cool.