One time, Rahula went out with Sariputra to beg for food. A hooligan saw them and threw stones at Rahula. The ruffian even chased him around and hit him on the head with a club. Blood trickled down Rahula's head. He was enraged and glared furiously at this man. His mind was boiling and his temper was rising, but suddenly Sariputra called out to him. Like a splash of cold water, it cooled down his rage. "Rahula," Sariputra said, "the Buddha constantly remind us that whenever we are praised, we should not becme arrogant. Whenever we are humiliated, we have to control our temper. Therefore, you must control your anger. No one in the world is braver than the one who can tolerate insults, and no strength is more powerful than tolerance." Rahula quietly went to a river nearby, washed away the bloodstains and cleaned the wound.

Because of his special identity, the Buddha was especially strict to Rahula. One day the Buddha taught him to observe that all matters in the universe, including his own sensation, perception, impulse and consciousness, were impermanent, and so he shuld not become attached to any of them. The Buddha wanted him to meditate on this alone. He also taught Rahula to apply the concept of compassion so that he could be rid of anger, the concept of impurity of the human body to be rid of greed, the concept of widsdom to be rid of ignorance, and finally to count his breath to collect his distracted mind. Acting on these, Rahula advanced very quickly. When the Buddha noticed that his son was just about to attain enlightenment, he told him that his mind could be as broad as the universe if he could accommodate all living beings in his heart and show compassion even to strangers. Futhermore, he would be emancipated from his worries if he could count his breathing and calmly observe his mind.

After Rahula listened to the Buddha's explanation, he went back to his room to practice what the Buddha had said to him. A few days later, he went to see the Buddha and prostrated himself before him. "Buddha, I have now eliminated all my anxieties, and my mind can transcend my exterior circumstances and feel at ease at all times."

The Buddha was delighted to hear this."Among all my disciples, Rahula is the best in practicing Esotericism, because he can now abide by all the precepts and carry out proper Buddhist etiquette."