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term Rahul means Obstacle
"Rahul" seems to be derived from Rahu, one of the nine planets (Navgraha). When Gautam Buddha saw his newly born son, he named him Rahul, meaning "Obstacle", since that was also the night when Gautama had decided to leave his princely life and go out searching for meaning of life and its sufferings, and his baby son might have caused momentary weakness in his resolve.
It is possible that "Rahul" may have other meanings as well, like many other Sanskrit terms.
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First, even if derived from rAhu, it need not mean fetters. It could also, for example, be given to someone born during an eclipse (rAhu eating the moon), or whose fate is controlled by rAhu because of astrological charts. I do not think the meaning on this site from Maneka Gandhi's book can be considered authoritative.See http://www.behindthename.com/bb/fact/229430 and http://www.behindthename.com/bb/fact/4236309 for more on my views on this name.
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