Rāhula

Born around 534 BCE to Prince Siddhārtha and Princess Yaśodharā, Rāhula entered the world under contested circumstances. The Pāli texts say he arrived the day his father renounced the throne; the Mūlasarvāstivāda claim he was only conceived then and gestated six years, forcing his mother to prove paternity by ordeal when the Buddha finally returned. At twelve, Yaśodharā sent the boy to ask his father for his inheritance - the Śākya throne. The Buddha gave him robes instead, ordaining him as Buddhism's first novice monk. Under his father's teaching on truth and not-self, Rāhula reached enlightenment. Early accounts say he died before the Buddha; later tradition holds he outlived him, standing guard over the teachings until the next Buddha rises. He became the model for eager students, proof that even a fetter can be loosened.