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Therīgāthā · Poems of the Elder Nuns

Thig 6:8 Vijayā

34 selected poems · translated by Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu

Thig 6:8  Vijayā

Four times, five, I ran amok from my dwelling,

having gained no peace of awareness,

my thoughts out of control.

So, approaching a nun,

I cross-questioned her attentively.

She taught me the Dhamma:

aggregates, sense media, properties,

four noble truths,

five faculties,

seven factors for awakening,

the eightfold path

for attaining the highest goal.

Hearing her words,

I did her bidding.

In the first watch of the night,

I remembered past lives.

In the second watch of the night,

I purified the divine eye.

In the third watch of the night,

I burst the mass of darkness.

Then I stayed, suffusing1 my body

with rapture & pleasure.

On the seventh day, I stretched out my legs,

having burst the mass

of darkness.

Note

1. Reading pharitvā with the Thai edition.

See also: SN 36:31; Thig 3:2

Translations & sourcesEditions & translators
Explore poems at Dhammatalks.org ↗

Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu’s anthology of poems attributed to elder nuns. This source offers selections from the larger collection.

Edition & attribution

Translated by Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu. These 34 selected poems are reproduced from dhammatalks.org under CC BY-NC 4.0. Formatting adapted for Buddhist Atlas; wording unchanged. This is a selection, not the complete Therīgāthā.

An introduction. Follow the source link below to read the translated text.

Introductions, reflection questions and added section headings are editorial material, separate from the attributed translation.

The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork created for Buddhist Atlas. It is an evocative companion, not a depiction of the text’s historical setting.

Selected translations · free

Source link checked October 1, 2026. The linked publisher provides the text and its usage terms.

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Therīgāthā — selected poems