Vardhamana was born at Kundagrama, a suburb of Vaisali now known as Basukunda (modern Muzafarpur district of Bihar) in the Jnatric (known as Niya in Pali) Kshatriya clan. His father Siddhartha was a wealthy noble; mother Trishala was sister of a Lichchhavi prince Chetaka of Vaisali whose daughter was wedded to Bimbisara of Magadha.