Siddhartha was now nearly thirty and the moment of his final decision was imminent. Tired of waiting, his father, King Shuddhodhana, had already begun preparations for the crowing his heir, and in seven days Siddhartha was to be enthroned. Shuddhodhana took every precaution to prevent his son's flight and even mobilized all Shakya people capable of bearing arms to guard the palace exits. At this same moment Siddhartha's son, Rahula, was born. "It is a bondage which has come to me," said Siddhartha when he heard of his first-born and only child, meaning that it was another tie added to those already holding him back. However, that night as he left his palace, he stopped and thought: "I must see my son." He went to the residence of his wife and opened the door. She was asleep on a bed, her hand on her son's head. Siddhartha, with one foot in the doorway, stopped and watched. "If I lift the Queen's hand to take my son in my arms she will awaken and thus my departure will be hampered. When I shall become Buddha I will come back and see him."
Siddhartha was now nearly thirty and the moment of his final decision was imminent. Tired of waiting, his father, King Shuddhodhana, had already begun preparations for the crowing his heir, and in seven days Siddhartha was to be enthroned. Shuddhodhana took every precaution to prevent his son's flight and even mobilized all Shakya people capable of bearing arms to guard the palace exits. At this same moment Siddhartha's son, Rahula, was born. "It is a bondage which has come to me," said Siddhartha when he heard of his first-born and only child, meaning that it was another tie added to those already holding him back. However, that night as he left his palace, he stopped and thought: "I must see my son." He went to the residence of his wife and opened the door. She was asleep on a bed, her hand on her son's head. Siddhartha, with one foot in the doorway, stopped and watched. "If I lift the Queen's hand to take my son in my arms she will awaken and thus my departure will be hampered. When I shall become Buddha I will come back and see him."
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