Since I’ve gone forth from the lay life to homelessness, I’ve not been aware of any thought that is ignoble and hateful.
“May these beings be killed! May they be slaughtered! May they suffer!”—I’ve not been aware of any such thought in all this long while.
I have been aware of loving-kindness, limitless and well-developed; gradually consolidated as it was taught by the Buddha.
I’m friend and comrade to all, sympathetic for all beings! I develop a mind of love, always delighting in harmlessness.
The unfaltering, the unshakable: I gladden that mind. I develop a divine meditation, which reprobates do not cultivate.
When in a meditation free of placing the mind, a disciple of the Buddha is at that moment blessed with noble silence.
As a rocky mountain is unwavering and well grounded, so when delusion ends, a monk, like a mountain, doesn’t tremble.
To the man who has not a blemish, who is always seeking purity, even a hair-tip of evil seems as big as a stormcloud.
As a frontier city is guarded inside and out, so you should ward yourselves—don’t let the moment pass you by.
I don’t long for death; I don’t long for life; I await my time, like a worker waiting for their wages.
I don’t long for death; I don’t long for life; I await my time, aware and mindful.
I’ve served the Teacher and fulfilled the Buddha’s instructions. The heavy burden is laid down, the leash to existence is eradicated.
I’ve attained the goal for the sake of which I went forth from the lay life to homelessness—the ending of all fetters.
Persist with diligence: this is my instruction. Come, I’ll be fully quenched—I’m liberated in every way.
Revata of the Acacia Wood
Thag 14.1 · Khadiravaniyarevatattheragāthā

Connections
Collection & context
- TheragāthāThe collection containing this text
- The Pāli canonCanonical collection in which this edition is preserved
- Theravāda traditionsTransmission and study context
- The early Buddhist communityHistorical and traditional setting
Books
- Through the Doors to the Deathless: Awakening While Listening to the DhammaṬhānissaro Bhikkhu · Referenced in this book
- Handful of Leaves: an Anthology from the Sutta PiṭakaEarly Buddhist discourses; Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu (translator and compiler) · Included in anthology
About this edition
Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato and Jessica Walton · SuttaCentral · CC0
This translation is an expression of an ancient spiritual text that has been passed down by the Buddhist tradition for the benefit of all sentient beings. It is dedicated to the public domain via Creative Commons Zero (CC0). You are encouraged to copy, reproduce, adapt, alter, or otherwise make use of this translation. The translator respectfully requests that any use be in accordance with the values and principles of the Buddhist community. In particular, please do not use this work in AI training datasets, for the development of any AI model or algorithm, or in any AI-derived technologies.
Published source. Translation wording and order are preserved; source headings and notes are retained, with navigation and formatting adapted for this reader.
The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork for Buddhist Atlas, an evocative companion rather than a historical depiction.