The earlier Buddhist
scriptures say that the historical Buddha was born to the warrior-caste Gautama family of the Sakya clan in the state of Kosala. Gautama, meaning "most excellent cow," should be understood in the con text of cow veneration that was a custom in Indian culture. Sakya means
"one who has achieved his goal." In early texts, Gautama's father is named Suddhodana, meaning "pure rice." This seems appropriate since the Sakya clan resided between the Ganges plains and the foothills of the Himalayas, a region in which rice is cultivated. Suddhodana is referred to in