Most traditions relate that the Buddha then called Śāriputra and asked him to ordain Rāhula. Rāhula was ordained, becoming the first "śrāmaṇera" (novice monk), and probably the first person in the monastic order to receive ordination in a formal way. In some versions of the story, such as the 9th-century Chinese "Weicengyou Yinyuan Jing" (), a group of young boys were ordained together with him. The king discovered that his grandson, his son Nanda and a number of other young men in the royal family had then received ordination and left the palace. Seeing his daughter grieve, he asked the Buddha that from now on, he only ordain people with the consent of their parents. Śuddhodana explained that Rāhula's ordination was a great shock to him. The Buddha assented to the proposal. This rule was later expanded in the case of women ordaining, as both parents and the husband had to give permission first to allow women to join the order of monks and nuns. In some versions of the story of Rāhula's ordination, Yaśodharā also protested, but relented in the end. The Mahāvastu states, however, that Rāhula asked to ordain himself, and was eventually granted permission by Yaśodharā and Śuddhodana.