Rāhula 羅睺羅 , the eldest son of Śākyamuni and Yaśodharā; also羅睺; 羅吼; 羅云; 羅雲; 曷怙羅 or 何怙羅 or 羅怙羅. He is supposed to have been in the womb for six years and born when his father attained buddhahood; also said to have been born during an eclipse, and thus acquired his name, though it is defined in other ways; his father did not see him till he was six years old. He became a disciple of the Hīnayāna, but is said to have become a Mahāyānist when his father preached this final perfect doctrine, a statement gainsaid by his being recognized as founder of the Vaibhāṣika school. He is to be reborn as the eldest son of every buddha, hence is sometimes called the son of Ānanda.
The Sarvāstivādaḥ 一切有部 (’Realistic School’), a branch of the Vaibhāṣika, claim Rāhula as founder, asserting the existent reality of all phenomena: past, present, and future.