Khema (खेमा) means "safety, peace, refuge" in Pali. **Khema was the chief female disciple of the Buddha** alongside Uppalavanna — declared by the Buddha as **foremost in wisdom (paññā) among the bhikkhunīs**. Originally a beautiful queen of King Bimbisara of Magadha, she was so vain that the Buddha showed her a vision of beauty's decay; she became enlightened on the spot.
Featured in the Therigatha and Pali canon.
Khema reduces to six — the number of Buddhist wisdom-disciple.