Dramatis Personae
(in order of appearance)

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Part I: Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

• King Shuddhodana (Śuddhodana)
  = king of Kapilavastu and head of the Gautama Family (clan) of the Shakya (Śākya) tribe
• Queen Maya (Māyā)
  = his wife and queen, daughter of King Anjana (Añjana) I of Devadaha, a state near Kapilavastu
• Queen Maha-prajapati (Mahāprajāpatī)
  = Queen Maya’s sister and co-wife
• Prince Siddhartha (Siddhārtha)
  = the king’s son and future buddha
• Asita
  = an elderly sage, King Suddhodana’s former teacher
• Prince Devadatta
  = Prince Siddhartha’s cousin and rival
• Kanthaka (Kaṇṭhaka)
  = Prince Siddhartha’s horse
• Princess Yashodhara (Yaśodharā)
  = Prince Siddhartha’s bride, the daughter of King Anjana (Añjana) II of Devadaha

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Part II: Chapters 8, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.

• King Shuddhodana (Śuddhodana)
  = king of Kapilavastu
• Prince Siddhartha (Siddhārtha)
  = prince of Kapilavastu and future buddha
• Princess Yashodhara (Yaśodharā)
  = Siddhartha’s new wife
• Prince Rahula (Rāhula)
  = the son of Siddhartha and Yashodhara
• Chandaka
  = Siddhartha’s driver
• Kanthaka (Kaṇṭhaka)
  = Siddhartha’s horse

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Part III: Chapters 13, 14, 15, 16, 17.

• Prince Siddhartha (Siddhārtha)
  = prince of Kapilavastu turned mendicant
• Five Courtiers
  = courtiers of King Shuddhodana, turned mendicants:
  • Ajnata-kaundinya (Ājñātakauṇḍinya)= a courtier
  • Bhadrika = a courtier
  • Vaspa (Vāṣpa) = a courtier
  • Mahanaman (Mahānāman) = a courtier
  • Ashvajit (Aśvajit) = a courtier
• King Bimbisara (Bimbisāra)
  = king of the mighty state of Magadha
• Arada Kalama (Ārad̟a Kālāma)
  = a great sage in Magadha
• Udraka Ramaputra (Udraka Rāmaputra)
  = another one
• A Shepherd Boy
  = savior of Siddhartha’s life
• Sujata (Sujātā)
  = an elegant lady from the town of Sarnath (Sārnāth)
• Mara (Māra)
  = a demon

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Part IV: Chapters 18, 19, 20, 21

• The Buddha
  = Prince Siddhartha Gautama in his enlightened state
• A Brahman
  = a member of the highest, priestly caste
• Trapusa (Trapuṣa) and Bhallika
  = the Buddha’s first lay followers
• Ajnata-kaundinya (Ājñātakauṇḍinya)
  = the Buddha’s first clerical disciple, a former courtier in Kapilavastu (V. chapter 13.)
• Ashvajit (Aśvajit)
  = another converted courtier (V. chapter 13.)
• Yashas (Yaśas)
  = a man who led his opposing father to the Buddha
• The Kashyapa Brothers (Kaśyapa)
  = former heretics converted by the Buddha
• Sanjaya (Sañjaya)
  = a heretic ascetic teacher
• Shariputra (Śāriputra)
  = a follower of Sanjaya, convert to Buddhism
• Mùlián (Mahāmaud-galyāyana)
  = his childhood friend, also a convert
• Kalodayin (Kālodāyin)
  = a courtier, one of Prince Siddhartha’s child playmates
• Ananda (Ānanda)
  = the Buddha’s beloved cousin and disciple
• Prince Devadatta
  = another cousin of the Buddha, but a rival (V. chapter 4.)

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Part V: Chapters 22, 23, 24, 25, 26

• The Buddha
  = Prince Siddhartha Gautama in his enlightened state
• King Shuddhodana (Śuddhodana)
  = the Buddha’s dying father
• Ananda (Ānanda)
  = the Buddha’s beloved cousin and disciple
• Nanda
  = another cousin and disciple
• Shariputra (Śāriputra)
  = a follower of Sanjaya, convert to Buddhism
• Mùlián (Mahāmaud-galyāyana)
  = his childhood friend, also a convert
• Maha-prajapati (Mahāprajāpatī)
  = the Buddha’s aunt and stepmother
• Prince Devadatta
  = the Buddha’s cousin and rival
• King Bimbisara (Bimbisāra)
  = king of the mighty state of Magadha
• Prince Ajata-shatru (Ajāta-śatru)
  = the son of King Bimbisara and friend to Devadatta
• Jivaka (Jīvaka)
  = a wonderful physician
• Nalagiri (Nālāgiri)
  = a bad-tempered elephant

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Part VI: Chapters 27, 28, 29

• The Buddha
  = Prince Siddhartha Gautama in his enlightened state
• Suddata
  = a wealthy layman in the town of Shravasti (Śrāvastī)
• Jeta
  = a princeling in Shravasti
• Ananda
  = the Buddha’s favorite disciple
• Amrapali (Āmrapālī)
  = a wealthy and generous courtesan
• Junda (Cunda)
  = a goldsmith’s son
• Prince Pukkusa
  = a prince of the Malla (Mālla) clan, lords of Kushinagari
• Subhadra-the-Heretic
  = a heretic mendicant, the Buddha’s last convert
• Subhadra-the-Barber
  = a barber and doubting follower of the Buddha
• Maha-kashyapa (Mahākāśyapa)
  = a very strict follower of the Buddha

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