A name applied to the Buddha several times in the Tipiṭaka.¹ In the Commentaries three etymologies are given: Buddhaghosa says that “it means emitting rays of various hues from the body,” and that the word is therefore applicable to all Buddhas alike.² Dhammapāla adds that it signifies being possessed of attainments such as virtue, and also that according to some, Aṅgirasa was a personal name given by the Buddha’s father in addition to Siddhatha.³

It is, however, well-known that, according to Vedic tradition, the Gautamas belong to the Aṅgirasa clan;⁴ the word, as applied to the Buddha, therefore, is probably a patronymic, in which case we have another example of a Ksatriya clan laying claim to a brahmin gotra.⁵