Thig 1:17 Dhammā
34 selected poems · translated by Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu
Wandering for alms—
weak, leaning on a staff,1
with trembling limbs—
I fell down right there on the ground.
Seeing the drawbacks of the body,
my mind was then
set free.
Note
1. Reading daṇḍamolubbha with the Burmese, Sinhalese, and PTS editions. The Thai edition has daṇḍamādāya, “holding a staff.”
Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu’s anthology of poems attributed to elder nuns. This source offers selections from the larger collection.
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.
No connected episodes found for this text.
A poem in the collection is attributed to Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī (Thig 6.6).
Poems in the collection are attributed to Khemā (Thig 6.3).
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The early community of nuns remembered in these poems.
Collection context: the poems are transmitted in the Khuddaka Nikāya.
Study context: this text is included in the Atlas guide to Theravāda.
Broader context: Pāli discourses on everyday life, renunciation and liberation, with thematic introductions.
Explore Impermanence & letting go across the Atlas.
Explore Mindfulness & awareness across the Atlas.
Explore Emptiness & not-self across the Atlas.
Explore Grief & loss across the Atlas.
Therīgāthā — selected poems