Sariputta

Born Upatiṣya in the ancient kingdom of Magadha sometime in the 6th or 5th century BCE, he was a childhood friend of Maudgalyāyana; the two became spiritual wanderers together, searching with other teachers before encountering the Buddha's teachings and ordaining as monks. He attained enlightenment as an arhat two weeks after ordination, and the Buddha named him and his friend the two chief disciples. In that role he took on the operational work: looking after monks, assigning meditation objects, clarifying doctrine, and becoming the first disciple authorized to ordain others. He died shortly before the Buddha, returning to his hometown, where he was cremated; his relics were enshrined at Jetavana Monastery, then apparently redistributed across the subcontinent by later kings. Theravada Buddhism honors him with a status near that of a second Buddha, calling him "General of the Dharma" for his wisdom and his strict adherence to monastic rules.