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# Theragatha

## Verses of the Elder Monks

### (selected verses)

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See also the Therigatha (Verses of the Elder Nuns).

The Theragatha, the eighth book of the Khuddaka Nikaya, consists of 264 poems (1,291 stanzas in all) in which the early monks (bhikkhus) recount their struggles and accomplishments along the road to arahantship. Their stories are told with often heart-breaking honesty and beauty, revealing the deeply human side of these extraordinary men, and thus serve as inspiring reminders of our own potential to follow in their footsteps.

An anthology of selected suttas from the Khuddaka Nikaya (including the Theragatha), translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu, is also available in Microsoft Word 6 (Macintosh/Windows) format. See the Theravada Text Archives page for more information.

The braces {} that follow each sutta title contain the verse numbers of the corresponding Pali text of the Theragatha.

- Chapter I -- The Single Verses
  - 1. Subhuti {v. 1} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Go ahead and rain!
  - 2. Mahakotthika {v. 2} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Evil mind-states vanish with the breeze.
  - 3. Kankharevata {v. 3} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Discernment, like a fire in the night.
  - 7. Bhalliya {v. 7} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Steadfast in oneself.
  - 14. Vanavaccha's pupil {v. 14} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. There's no tying down one who knows.
  - 16. Belatthasisa {v. 16} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. A happiness not of the flesh.
  - 22. Cittaka {v. 22} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Peacocks.
  - 26. Abhaya {v. 26} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Splitting a horse's hair with an arrow.
  - 29. Harita {v. 29} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Shatter ignorance to bits!
  - 32. Suppiya {v. 32} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. A fair trade.
  - 39. Tissa {v. 39} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Practice mindfully, as if your head were on fire.
  - 41. Sirivaddha {v. 41} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Lightning can't shake one in jhana.
  - 43. Sumangala {v. 43} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Free at last from three crooked things!
  - 49. Ramaneyyaka {v. 49} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. The delight of a well-focused mind.
  - 50. Vimala {v. 50} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Where neither rain nor wind can reach.
  - 56. Kutiviharin {v. 56} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Don't waste your hut!
  - 68. Ekuddaniya {v. 68} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Free of sorrows.
  - 84. Nita {v. 84} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. When will the fool awaken?
  - 93. Eraka {v. 93} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Sensual pleasures are stressful.
  - 95. Cakkhupala {v. 95} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Shun the evil companion!
  - 104. Khitaka {v. 104} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. How light my body!
  - 111. Jenta {v. 111} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Ponder inconstancy, constantly.
  - 113. Vanavaccha {v. 113} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. The happiness of the wilderness.
  - 118. Kimbila {v. 118} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Aging drops on us like a curse.
  - 120. Isidatta {v. 120} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Cutting through the roots of suffering.

- Chapter II -- Pairs of Verses
  - 13. Heraññakani {vv. 145-146} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. The results of evil deeds will catch up with you.
  - 16. Mahakala {vv. 151-152} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. May I never lie with my head cracked open again!
  - 24. Valliya {vv. 167-168} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Through persistence I shall reach the goal!
  - 26. Punnamasa {vv. 171-172} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Shed the five hindrances, and what's left?
  - 27. Nandaka {vv. 173-174} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Like a fine thoroughbred steed.
  - 30. Kanhadinna {vv. 179-180} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. No more passion for becoming.
  - 37. Sona Potiriyaputta {vv. 193-194} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Better to die in battle than to survive, defeated.

- Chapter III -- The Threes
  - 5. Matangaputta {vv. 231-233} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. It's too hot, too cold -- what's your excuse?
  - 8. Yasoja {243-245} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Solitude in the forest: two's company, three's a hullabaloo!
  - 12. Abhibhuta {vv. 255-257} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Rouse yourself! Scatter the army of death!
  - 14. Gotama {vv. 258-260} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. After wandering relentlessly through hell, heaven, the animal world, finally: peace!
  - 15. Harita (2) {vv. 261-263} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Careful: the wise can tell when your actions don't align with your deeds.

- Chapter IV -- The Fours
  - 8. Rahula {vv. 295-298} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. The Buddha's son celebrates his own victory in the Dhamma.

- Chapter V -- The Fives
  - 1. Rajadatta {vv. 315-319} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Lusting after a corpse? That's the last straw for this monk.
  - 8. Vakkali {vv. 350-354} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. I'd rather stay in the forest.
  - 9. Vijitasena {vv. 355-359} [K.R. Norman, trans.]. I shall tame you, my mind!
  - 10. Yasadatta {vv. 360-364} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. There's no time for quibbling!

- Chapter VI -- The Sixes
  - 6. Sappadasa {vv. 405-410} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. In despair, with knife poised to cut his veins, Sappadasa at last sees the Dhamma!
  - 9. Jenta, the Royal Chaplain's Son {vv. 423-428} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Even arrogant fools can find liberation.
  - 10. Sumana the Novice {vv. 429-434} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. A seven year-old discovers arahantship.

- Chapter VII -- The Sevens
  - 1. Sundara Samudda and the Courtesan {vv. 459-465} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. While grappling with lust, this monk finally comes to his senses.

- Chapter VIII -- The Eights
  - 1. Maha-Kaccana {vv. 494-501} [Bhikkhu Bodhi, trans.]. Sound advice for householder and monk, alike.

- Chapter X -- The Tens
  - 5. Kappa {vv. 567-576} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Are you enchanted by your physical appearance? This reflection may be just the cure.

- Chapter XII -- The Twelves
  - 2. Sunita the Outcaste {vv. 620-631} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. An outcaste tells his inspiring tale of victory.

- Chapter XIV -- The Fourteens
  - 1. Revata's Farewell {vv. 645-658} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. By steadfastly maintaining his right resolve, this monk finally gains perfect release.
  - 2. Godatta {vv. 659-672} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. Criticism from the wise is better than praise from fools; the pain of meditation is better than pleasure from the senses.

- Chapter XVI -- The Twenties
  - 1. Adhimutta and the Bandits {vv. 705-725} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. A monk disarms some bandits with his talk on Dhamma.

- Chapter XVIII -- The Forties
  - Maha-Kassapa {vv. 1051-1090} [Thanissaro Bhikkhu, trans.]. In this poem -- one of the first examples of "wilderness poetry" -- an arahant monk celebrates the joys of practicing jhana in the solitude of the forest.

- Chapter XIX -- The Fifties
  - Talaputa {vv. 1091-1145} [Bhikkhu Khantipalo, trans.]. An inspiring account of one monk's frank conversations with himself before becoming a monk and after.

Revised: Tue 16 April 2002