In the Minor Collection

"Sleep happily, little elder nun, wrapped in a robe you have made;

For your lust is calmed, like dried-up vegetables in a pot."

"Muttā, be freed from the mental bonds, like the moon from Rāhu's grip;

With a free mind, free of debt, enjoy your almsfood."

"Puṇṇā, be filled with qualities, like the moon on the fifteenth day;

With complete wisdom, shatter the mass of darkness."

"Tissā, train in the training, let not the mental bonds overcome you;

Unbound from all mental bonds, wander in the world without mental corruptions."

"Tissā, engage in the teachings, let not the moment pass you by;

For those who have missed the moment grieve, consigned to hell."

"Wise one, experience cessation, the happiness of the appeasement of perception;

Attain Nibbāna, the unsurpassed freedom from bondage."

"A heroine with heroic qualities, a nun with developed faculties;

Bear your final body, having conquered Māra with his army."

"Having gone forth through faith, be one delighting in friends among friends;

Develop wholesome mental states, for the attainment of freedom from bondage."

"Having gone forth through faith, be one delighting in good among the good;

Develop wholesome mental states, the unsurpassed freedom from bondage."

"Upasama, cross the flood, the realm of Death so hard to cross;

Bear your final body, having conquered Māra with his army."

"Well released, truly well released am I, freed from three crooked things;

From the mortar, from the pestle, and from my humpbacked husband;

I am freed from birth and death, the conduit to existence has been uprooted."

"One in whom desire has arisen, who has reached the conclusion, and who would be pervaded by mind;

With consciousness unbound to sensual pleasures, is called an upstream-goer."

"Practise the Buddha's teaching, which having done one does not regret;

Quickly having washed your feet, sit down on one side."

"Having seen the elements as suffering, do not come again to birth;

Having removed desire for existence, you will live at peace."

"I was restrained by body, by speech, or by mind;

Having uprooted craving with its root, I have become cool, quenched."

"Sleep happily, little elder, wrapped in a robe you have made;

For your lust is calmed, you have become cool, quenched."

"Having walked for almsfood, leaning on a staff, weak;

With trembling limbs, right there I fell to the ground;

Having seen the danger in the body, thereupon my mind was liberated."

"Having left the household, gone forth, having left son, cattle, and dear ones;

Having left lust and hate, and having become dispassionate towards ignorance;

Having uprooted craving with its root, I am at peace, quenched."

"Afflicted, impure, putrid, see, Nanda, this body;

Develop the mind towards foulness, fully focused, well concentrated.

"And develop the signless, abandon the underlying tendency to conceit;

Then through the full realization of conceit, you will live at peace."

"These seven factors of enlightenment, the path for the attainment of Nibbāna;

All of them were developed by me, as taught by the Buddha.

"For I have seen that Blessed One, this is the final body;

The cycle of birth and wandering is eliminated, there is now no more rebirth."

"Well freed, well freed, I am truly well freed from the pestle;

My shameless husband, and even my sunshade-making, my pot smells like a water-snake."

"Both lust and hate I destroy with a 'crackle crackle' sound;

Having approached the root of a tree, 'Oh happiness!' I meditate in happiness."

"As far as the Kāsi country, my toll was that much;

Having made that the price, the townspeople set me at half the price.

"Then I became wearied of material form, and being wearied I became dispassionate;

May I not transmigrate again and again through the round of rebirths;

The three true knowledges have been realized, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"Although I am thin, sick and very weak;

Leaning on a staff I go, having ascended the mountain.

"Having laid aside the double robe, and having turned over the bowl;

On the rock I steadied myself, having shattered the mass of darkness."

"Although I am afflicted, weak, with youth gone;

Leaning on a staff I go, having ascended the mountain.

"Having laid aside the double robe, and having turned over the bowl;

Seated I was on a rock, thereupon my mind was liberated;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"The fourteenth, the fifteenth, and the eighth of the fortnight;

And the extra holiday, well endowed with the eight factors.

"I undertook the Observance, delighting in the group of gods;

Today, with one meal, shaven-headed, wrapped in the double robe;

I do not aspire to the group of gods, having removed anguish from the heart."

"Upwards from the soles of the feet, mother, downwards indeed from the top of the hair;

Review this body of mine, impure, foul-smelling.

"Dwelling thus, all lust has been uprooted;

The fever has been cut off, I have become cool, quenched."

"Abhayā, the body is fragile, where worldlings are attached;

I shall lay down this body, fully aware and mindful.

"By many painful states, for me who delights in heedfulness;

The elimination of craving has been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"Four times, five times, I went out from the dwelling;

Not having gained peace of mind, not having control over my mind;

For me that was the eighth night, since when craving was uprooted.

"By many painful states, for me who delights in heedfulness;

The elimination of craving has been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"Twenty-five years, since I went forth;

I do not know of having attained tranquillity of mind at any time.

"Not having gained peace of mind, not having control over my mind;

Then I attained religious emotion, having remembered the Conqueror's Dispensation.

"By many painful states, for me who delights in heedfulness;

The elimination of craving has been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled;

Today is my seventh night, since when craving was dried up."

"Four times, five times, I went out from the dwelling;

Not having gained peace of mind, not having control over my mind.

"I approached a nun, who was trustworthy to me;

She taught me the Teaching, the aggregates, sense bases, and elements.

"Having heard the teaching from her, as she instructed me;

For seven days in a single cross-legged posture, I sat, endowed with joy and happiness;

On the eighth day I stretched out my feet, having shattered the mass of darkness."

"These seven factors of enlightenment, the path for the attainment of Nibbāna;

All of them were developed by me, as taught by the Buddha.

"Of emptiness and the signless, I am an obtainer at will;

A legitimate daughter of the Buddha, always delighting in Nibbāna.

"All sensual pleasures have been cut off, those that are divine and those that are human;

The cycle of birth and wandering is eliminated, there is now no more rebirth."

"Having come out from the day residence, on Vulture's Peak mountain;

I saw an elephant that had plunged in and emerged, on the riverbank.

"A man, having taken a goad, requests 'Give your foot';

The elephant stretched out its foot, the man mounted the elephant.

"Having seen the untamed one tamed, come under the control of human beings;

Thereupon I concentrated my mind, indeed having gone to the forest for that reason."

"Mother, 'Jīvā!' you weep in the forest, understand yourself, Ubbirī;

Eighty-four thousand, all bearing the name Jīvā;

Were cremated at this cremation ground, for which of them do you grieve?"

"He has indeed drawn out my dart, difficult to see, lodged in my heart;

He who, for me overcome with sorrow, dispelled my grief for my daughter.

"Today I have the dart pulled out, without hunger, attained final Nibbāna;

I go to the Buddha, the Teaching, and the Community for refuge, the sage."

"What have the people of Rājagaha done, that they lie as if drunk on honey;

Who do not attend upon Sukkā, teaching the Buddha's teaching.

"And that which is irresistible, full and delicious in itself, nourishing;

The wise drink it, methinks, like travellers from a rain cloud.

"Sukkā, with bright qualities, without lust, concentrated;

Bears her final body, having conquered Māra with his army."

"There is no escape in the world, what will you do with seclusion;

Enjoy sensual delights, do not be one who regrets afterwards."

"Sensual pleasures are like stakes of spears, the aggregates are their chopping block;

What you call 'sensual delight', that is now discontent for me.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death."

"That state which is to be attained by sages, difficult to reach,

That cannot be attained by a woman with her two-finger wisdom."

"What does womanhood matter to us when the mind is well concentrated,

When knowledge is progressing, rightly seeing the Teaching.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death."

"The son, the heir of the Buddha, Kassapa, well concentrated;

He who knows past lives, and sees heaven and the realms of misery.

"And also has attained the destruction of birth, the sage accomplished through direct knowledge;

By these three true knowledges, one becomes a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, a brahmin.

"Likewise Bhaddā Kāpilānī, possessing the threefold true knowledge, victorious over death;

Bears her final body, having conquered Māra with his army.

"Having seen the danger in the world, we both have gone forth;

We are ones who have eliminated the mental corruptions, tamed, become cool, quenched."

"Twenty-five years, since I went forth;

Not even for a finger-snap's moment, did I attain peace of mind.

"Not having gained peace of mind, filled with sensual lust;

Having raised my arms, crying out, I entered the dwelling.

"I approached a nun, who was trustworthy to me;

She taught me the Teaching, the aggregates, sense bases, and elements.

"Having heard the teaching from her, I sat down to one side;

I know past lives, the divine eye has been purified.

"And the knowledge of others' minds, the ear-element purified;

Supernormal power has been realized by me, the elimination of mental corruptions has been attained by me;

The six higher knowledges have been realized, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"Intoxicated by beauty and form, by splendour and fame;

And stiff with youth, I despised other women.

"Having adorned this body, well decorated, the prattle of fools;

I stood at the harlot's door, like a hunter having spread a snare.

"Displaying ornaments, revealing much that is secret and open;

I practised various deceit, laughing aloud at many people.

"Today, having walked for almsfood, shaven-headed, wrapped in the double robe;

Seated at the root of a tree, an obtainer of that without applied thought.

"All mental bonds have been cut off, those that are divine and those that are human;

Having exhausted all mental corruptions, I have become cool, quenched."

"Through unwise attention, distressed by sensual lust;

I was agitated before, not having control over my mind.

"Obsessed by mental defilements, following the perception of beauty;

I did not obtain tranquillity of mind, subjected to the control of a lustful mind.

"Emaciated, pale and faded, for seven years I wandered;

Neither by day nor by night did I find happiness, being greatly afflicted.

"Then having taken a rope, I entered into the forest;

Better for me is hanging here, than to practise what is inferior again.

"Having made a firm snare, having tied it to a tree branch;

I threw the snare around my neck, thereupon my mind was liberated."

"Afflicted, impure, putrid, see, Nanda, this body;

Develop the mind towards foulness, fully focused, well concentrated.

"Just as this is, so is that; just as that is, so is this;

Foul-smelling and putrid it blows, delighted in by the foolish.

"Thus contemplating this, unwearied night and day;

Then with my own wisdom, having broken through, I shall see.

"For me, being heedful, investigating wisely;

This body was seen as it really is, within and without.

"Then I became wearied of the body, and internally I became dispassionate;

Diligent, unbound, I am at peace, quenched."

"Fire and the moon and the sun, and deities I venerated;

Having gone to the river fords, I descended into the water.

"Having undertaken many ascetic practices, I shaved half of my head;

I make my sleeping place on the ground, at night I did not eat a meal.

"Delighting in adornment and decoration, and in bathing and rubbing;

I tended to this body, distressed by sensual lust.

"Then having gained faith, I went forth into homelessness;

Having seen the body as it really is, sensual lust was uprooted.

"All existences have been cut off, and desire and longing too;

Unbound from all mental bonds, I have attained peace of mind."

"Having gone forth through faith, from home into homelessness;

I wandered here and there, eager for material gain and honour.

"Having abandoned the supreme good, I pursued an inferior good;

Having come under the control of defilements, I did not understand the goal of asceticism.

"For me there was spiritual urgency, while sitting in the dwelling;

I had gone astray, having come under the control of craving.

"Short is my life, ageing and illness crush me;

Before this body breaks up, there is no time for me to be negligent.

"Observing as it really is, the rise and fall of the aggregates;

With liberated mind I arose, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"While I was dwelling in a house, having heard the Teaching from a monk;

I saw the stainless Teaching, Nibbāna, the imperishable state.

"I, having abandoned son and daughter, wealth and grain;

Having had my hair cut off, I went forth into homelessness.

"While I was a female trainee, developing the straight path;

I abandoned lust and hate, and the co-existent mental corruptions.

"Having attained full ordination as a nun, I recollected past births;

The divine eye has been purified, spotless, well developed.

"Having seen activities as alien, arisen from causes, disintegrating;

I abandoned all mental corruptions, I have become cool, quenched."

"Having given birth to ten sons, in this body of matter;

Then I, weak and old, approached a nun.

"She taught me the Teaching, the aggregates, sense bases, and elements;

Having heard the teaching from her, having cut off my hair, I went forth.

"For me as a female trainee, the divine eye has been purified;

I know past lives, where I dwelt before.

"And I develop the signless, fully focused, well concentrated;

I was one with immediate deliverance, quenched by non-clinging.

"The five aggregates are fully understood, they remain with their roots cut off;

Fie on you, wretched, contemptible ageing, there is now no more rebirth."

"With shorn hair, bearing filth, wearing a single robe, I wandered before;

Perceiving fault in the faultless, and seeing the faulty as faultless.

"Having come out from the day residence, on Vulture's Peak mountain;

I saw the stainless Buddha, honoured by the community of monks.

Having placed my knees down and paid homage, I made a salutation with joined palms in his presence;

'Come, Bhadda,' he said to me, that was my full ordination.

"I wandered through Aṅga and Magadha, Vajjī, Kāsī and Kosala;

Free of debt for fifty years, I have eaten food obtained from the people.

"Much merit indeed he has generated, this wise lay follower;

Who gave a robe to Bhaddā, free from all mental knots."

"Ploughing the field with ploughs, sowing seeds on the ground;

Nourishing children and wife, young men gain wealth.

"Why do I, accomplished in morality, carrying out the Teacher's instruction,

Not attain Nibbāna, being not lazy, not agitated?

"Having washed my feet, I observe the waters;

And having seen the foot-water, flowing from high ground to low.

"Thereupon I concentrated my mind, like a good thoroughbred horse;

Then having taken a lamp, I entered the dwelling;

Having looked at the sleeping place, I sat down on the small bed.

"Then having taken a needle, I drew down the wick;

Like the extinguishing of a lamp, there was deliverance of the mind."

"Having taken pestles, young men pound grain;

Nourishing children and wife, young men gain wealth.

"Practise the Buddha's teaching, which having done one does not regret;

Quickly having washed your feet, sit down on one side;

Engaged in serenity of mind, practise the Buddha's teaching."

Having heard that word of hers, Paṭācārā's teaching;

Having washed their feet, they sat down to one side;

Engaged in serenity of mind, they practised the Buddha's teaching.

"In the first watch of the night, they remembered their former births;

In the middle watch of the night, they purified the divine eye;

In the last watch of the night, they shattered the mass of darkness.

Having risen, they paid homage at her feet: "Your instruction has been fulfilled;

Like the deities of the Thirty-three honour Indra, unconquered in battle;

Having put you in front, we shall dwell, we are possessors of the threefold true knowledge, without mental corruptions."

"Formerly I was destitute, a widow and childless;

Without friends and relatives, I did not obtain food and cloth.

"Having taken bowl and staff, begging for alms from family to family;

Burning with cold and heat, for seven years I wandered.

"Then having seen a nun, an obtainer of food and drink;

Having approached, I said, 'The going forth into homelessness'.

"And she, out of compassion for me, Paṭācārā gave me the going forth;

Then having exhorted me, she urged me towards the supreme goal.

"Having heard her word, I followed the instruction;

The lady's exhortation was not futile, I am a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, without mental corruptions."

"Whose path you do not know, whether of one who has come or one who has gone;

That being who has come from somewhere, why do you weep saying 'my son'?

"But if you knew the path, whether of one who has come or one who has gone;

You would not grieve for him, for such is the nature of living beings.

"Uninvited he came from there, not permitted he went from here;

Having come from somewhere surely, having stayed for a few days;

From here too he went to another, from there he goes to yet another.

"The ghost, in human form, wandering in the round of rebirths, will go on;

As he came, so he went, what lamentation is there for that?"

"He has indeed drawn out my dart, difficult to see, lodged in my heart;

She who, for me overcome with sorrow, dispelled my grief for my son.

"Today I have the dart pulled out, without hunger, attained final Nibbāna;

I go to the Buddha, the Teaching, and the Community for refuge, the sage."

"Afflicted by sorrow for my son, mentally deranged, unconscious;

Naked and with dishevelled hair, I wandered here and there.

"On streets, on rubbish heaps, in cemeteries and on roads;

I wandered for three years, afflicted by hunger and thirst.

"Then I saw the Fortunate One, towards the city of Mithilā;

The tamer of the untamed, the self-enlightened, safe from every quarter.

"Having regained my own mind, having paid homage, I sat down;

He taught me the Teaching, Gotama, out of compassion.

"Having heard his teaching, I went forth into homelessness;

Engaging in the Teacher's word, I realized the safe state.

"All sorrows have been cut off, abandoned, at an end for me;

For the bases have been fully understood by me, from which is the origination of sorrows."

"You are young and beautiful, and I too am a young youth;

With the five-part music, come, Khemā, let us delight."

"With this foul body, sick and brittle;

I am troubled and ashamed, sensual craving has been uprooted.

"Sensual pleasures are like stakes of spears, the aggregates are their chopping block;

What you call 'sensual delight', that is now discontent for me.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death.

"Paying homage to the constellations, tending the fire in the forest;

Not knowing in conformity with the truth, fools imagined purity.

"But I, paying homage to the Self-enlightened One, the highest of men;

Freed from all suffering, carrying out the Teacher's instruction."

"Adorned, well-dressed, garlanded, anointed with sandalwood;

Covered with all ornaments, attended by a group of female slaves.

Having taken food and drink, sweets and edibles, not a little;

Having gone out from the house, I brought them to the park.

"Having delighted and played there, coming back to my own home;

I entered the dwelling to see, the Añjana forest at Sāketa.

"Having seen the light of the world, having paid homage, I sat down;

He taught me the Teaching, the one with vision, out of compassion.

"And having heard the great sage, I penetrated the truth;

Right there I experienced the stainless Teaching, the Deathless state.

"Then having cognised the Good Teaching, I went forth into homelessness;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching is not in vain."

"I was born in a high family, of much wealth and great riches;

Accomplished in beauty and form, a daughter born from Majjha himself.

"Desired by princes, longed for by merchants' sons;

They sent a messenger to my father: 'Give me Anopamā.'

"However much this one has been weighed, your incomparable daughter;

Eight times that I will give, unwrought gold and jewels too.

"I, having seen the Self-enlightened One, the elder of the world, unsurpassed;

Having paid homage to his feet, I sat down to one side.

"He taught me the Teaching, Gotama, out of compassion;

Seated on that seat, I experienced the third fruit.

"Then having cut off my hair, I went forth into homelessness;

Today is my seventh night, since when craving was dried up."

"Homage to you, O Buddha, hero, highest of all beings;

Who released me from suffering, and many other people.

"All suffering has been fully understood, craving, the cause, has been dried up;

The eightfold path has been developed, cessation has been attained by me.

"Mother, son, father, brother, and grandmother I was formerly;

Not knowing according to truth, I wandered on, not finding.

"For I have seen that Blessed One, this is the final body;

The cycle of birth and wandering is eliminated, there is now no more rebirth."

"Seeing those putting forth strenuous energy, resolute, constantly of strong effort;

Disciples in unity, this is the homage to the Buddhas.

"Indeed for the benefit of many, Māyā gave birth to Gotama;

He dispelled the mass of suffering for those afflicted by disease and death."

"Guttā, for whatever purpose the going forth was, having left son, wealth, and dear ones;

Cultivate that very thing, do not come under the control of the mind.

"Beings deceived by the mind, delighting in Māra's domain;

Through the round of many births they transmigrate, the fools.

"Sensual desire and anger, and identity view;

Adherence to moral rules and austerities, and sceptical doubt as the fifth.

"These mental fetters, having abandoned them, O nun;

The lower fetters, you will not come here again.

"Having avoided lust and conceit, and ignorance, and restlessness;

Having cut off the mental fetters, you will make an end of suffering.

"Having exhausted the round of rebirths, having fully understood rebirth;

Without hunger in this very life, at peace, she will live."

"Four times, five times, I went out from the dwelling;

Not having gained peace of mind, not having control over my mind.

"Having approached a nun, I questioned her attentively;

She taught me the Teaching, and the elements and sense bases.

"The four noble truths, the faculties and powers;

The factors of enlightenment and the eightfold path, for the attainment of the highest goal.

"Having heard her word, following the instruction;

In the first watch of the night, I recollected past births.

"In the middle watch of the night, I purified the divine eye;

In the last watch of the night, I shattered the mass of darkness.

"And having pervaded the body with rapture and happiness, I dwelt then;

On the seventh day I stretched out my feet, having shattered the mass of darkness."

"Having taken pestles, young men pound grain;

Nourishing children and wife, young men gain wealth.

"Strive in the Buddha's teaching, which having done one does not regret;

Quickly having washed your feet, sit down on one side.

"'Having established the mind, fully focused, well concentrated;

Review activities as alien and not as self.'

"Having heard her word, the instruction of Paṭācārā;

Having washed my feet, I sat down to one side.

"In the first watch of the night, I recollected past births;

In the middle watch of the night, I purified the divine eye.

"In the last watch of the night, I shattered the mass of darkness;

Possessing the threefold true knowledge, thereupon I arose, your instruction has been fulfilled.

Like the deities of the Thirty-three honour Sakka, unconquered in battle;

Having put her in front, I shall dwell, I am a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, without mental corruptions."

"Having established mindfulness, a nun with developed faculties;

She penetrated the peaceful state, the stilling of activities, happiness."

"With reference to whom are you shaven, you appear like a female ascetic;

Yet you do not approve of heresy, why do you wander about in sheer delusion?"

"Outside of this, heretics are dependent on views;

They do not cognize the Teaching, they are not skilled in the Teaching.

"There is one born in the Sakyan clan, the Buddha without equal;

He taught me the Teaching, the transcendence of views.

Suffering, the origin of suffering, and the overcoming of suffering;

The noble eightfold path, leading to the peace of suffering.

"Having heard his word, I dwelt delighted in the Dispensation;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death."

"Mindful, with vision, a nun with developed faculties;

I penetrated the peaceful state, not practised by wretched persons."

"Why do you not approve of birth? One who is born enjoys sensual pleasures;

Enjoy sensual delights, do not be one who regrets afterwards."

"For one who is born there is death, the cutting off of hands and feet;

Murder, imprisonment and hardship, one who is born undergoes suffering.

"There is one born in the Sakyan clan, the Self-enlightened One, unconquered;

He taught me the Teaching, the transcendence of birth.

Suffering, the origin of suffering, and the overcoming of suffering;

The noble eightfold path, leading to the peace of suffering.

"Having heard his word, I dwelt delighted in the Dispensation;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death."

"A nun accomplished in morality, well-restrained in the faculties;

Would attain the peaceful state, full and delicious in itself, nourishing."

"The Thirty-three and the Yāma, and the Tusita deities too;

The gods who delight in creation, those gods who wield power;

Direct your mind there, where you dwelt before."

"The Thirty-three and the Yāma, and the Tusita deities too;

The gods who delight in creation, those gods who wield power.

"From time to time, existence after existence, established in identity;

Not having transcended identity, they run on through birth and death.

"The whole world is ablaze, the whole world is burning;

The whole world is blazing, the whole world is trembling.

"Immovable, incomparable, not frequented by worldlings;

The Buddha taught the Teaching, there my mind delights.

"Having heard his word, I dwelt delighted in the Dispensation;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death."

"May there never be craving for you, Vaḍḍha, in the world;

May you not, dear son, again and again, be a partaker of suffering.

"Happily indeed, Vaḍḍha, the sages, without longing, having cut off doubt;

Having become cooled, having attained self-control, dwell without mental corruptions.

"The path practised by those seers, for the attainment of insight;

For making an end of suffering, you, Vaḍḍha, should develop."

"You speak confidently, this matter to me, mother;

I think surely towards me, craving is not found in you."

"Whatever activities there are, Vaḍḍha, inferior, superior, or middling;

Even minute, even the slightest, craving is not found in me.

"All my mental corruptions are eliminated, being diligent and meditating;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled."

"Indeed my mother bestowed upon me a lofty goad;

Verses connected with the ultimate meaning, just as one who is compassionate.

"Having heard her word, the admonition of my mother;

I attained religious emotion regarding the Dhamma, for the attainment of freedom from bondage.

"I, with self resolute in striving, unwearied day and night;

Urged on by my mother, being peaceful, I attained the highest peace."

"Good friendship was praised by the sage, having pointed out to the world;

Associating with good friends, even a fool would become wise.

"Good persons should be associated with, wisdom thus grows for those who associate with them;

Associating with good persons, one would be freed from all sufferings.

"One should cognize suffering, and the origin and cessation of suffering;

And the eightfold path, and also the four noble truths.

"Womanhood is suffering, declared by the guide of men to be tamed;

Living with a co-wife is also suffering, some women having given birth just once.

"Some even cut their throats, delicate women eat poison;

Caught in the midst of birth and death, both experience disasters.

"Going along near to giving birth, I saw my husband dead;

Having given birth on the road, not yet having reached my own home.

"Two sons have died, and my husband died on the road for the wretched woman;

Mother, father, and brother are burning on a single funeral pyre.

"O you of ruined family, O wretched one, immeasurable is the suffering experienced by you;

And tears have flowed from you, through many thousands of births.

"I dwelt in the midst of a cemetery, and also ate the flesh of my sons;

With family destroyed, blamed by all, with husband dead, I attained the Deathless.

"The path has been developed by me, the noble eightfold path leading to the Deathless;

Nibbāna has been realized, I have looked into the mirror of the Dhamma.

"I am one with the dart removed, the burden laid down, what was to be done has been done;

Kisā Gotamī, the elder nun, with liberated mind, spoke this."

"Both mother and daughter, we were co-wives;

For me there was spiritual urgency, wonderful and terrifying.

"Shame on sensual pleasures, unclean, foul-smelling, full of thorns;

Where mother and daughter, we were co-wives.

"Having seen the danger in sensual pleasures, having seen security in renunciation;

She went forth at Rājagaha, from home into homelessness.

"I know past lives, the divine eye has been purified;

And the knowledge of others' minds, the ear-element purified.

"Supernormal power has been realized by me, the elimination of mental corruptions has been attained by me;

The six higher knowledges have been realized, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Having created by supernormal power a chariot with four horses, I;

Having paid homage at the feet of the Buddha, the Protector of the World, such a one."

"Having approached the tree in full bloom at its top, you stand alone at the foot of the sal tree;

And there is no companion of yours whatsoever, do you not fear the cheats, young fool?"

"Even a hundred thousand cheats, such as these, were to come together;

I would not stir a hair nor would I tremble, what will you do to me, Māra, alone?

"I can disappear, or I can enter your belly;

I can stand between your eyebrows, and standing there you will not see me.

"I have become master over my mind, the bases for spiritual power are well developed;

The six higher knowledges have been realized, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Sensual pleasures are like stakes of spears, the aggregates are their chopping block;

What you call 'sensual delight', that is now discontent for me.

"Delight has been destroyed everywhere, the mass of darkness has been split open;

Know thus, Evil One, you are defeated, O Death."

"A water-carrier I was in the cold, always going down into the water;

Frightened by fear of punishment from my masters, afflicted by fear of verbal blame.

"Frightened of whom, brahmin, do you always descend into the water;

With trembling limbs, you feel the cold intensely."

Knowing me indeed, dear lady, Puṇṇikā, you inquire;

Doing wholesome action, preventing evil that has been done.

"Whether one is old or young, whoever commits an evil deed;

By sprinkling with water, even he is freed from evil deeds."

"Who then told you this, one not knowing to one not knowing;

By sprinkling with water, one is freed from evil deeds."

"Surely they will go to heaven, all the frogs and turtles;

Serpents and crocodiles too, and whatever others dwell in water.

"Sheep-butchers, pig-butchers, fishermen, deer-hunters;

Thieves and executioners too, and whatever others are evil-doers;

By sprinkling with water, even they would be freed from evil deeds.

"If these rivers would carry away for you the much evil done before;

They would also carry away your merit, thereby you would be an outsider.

"That of which, brahmin, you are frightened, always descending into the water;

That very thing, brahmin, do not do, let not the cold harm your skin."

"Me, who had entered the wrong path, you brought to the noble path;

By sprinkling with water, dear lady, I give you this cloth."

"Let the cloth be yours alone, I do not wish for a cloth;

If you fear suffering, if suffering is unpleasant to you.

"Do not do evil action, whether openly or in secret;

If you will do or are doing evil action.

There is no freedom from suffering for you, even if you approach and flee;

If you fear suffering, if suffering is unpleasant to you.

"Go to the Buddha, the Teaching, and such a Community for refuge;

Take upon yourself the moralities, that will be for your benefit."

"I go to the Buddha, the Teaching, and such a Community for refuge;

I take upon myself the moralities, that will be for my benefit."

"Formerly I was a kinsman of Brahma, today I am a true brahmin;

I am a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, accomplished in the Vedas, a learned one, and I am one who has bathed."

"Black, like the colour of wasps, with curly tips, my hair was;

Now through ageing, like hemp fibres, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Like a perfumed casket, fragrant, filled with flowers, was my hair on the head.

Now through ageing, it smells like animal hair, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

Like a grove, dense and well-planted, adorned with tips arranged by comb and needle;

That, through ageing, sparse here and there, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Adorned with gold upon the dark mass of hair, it shone beautifully, decorated with lovely braids;

That head, through ageing, has been made bald, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Like lines well drawn by a painter, my eyebrows were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, hanging down with wrinkles, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Bright and very beautiful like gems, my eyes were deep blue and elongated;

They, struck by ageing, are not beautiful, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"And my nose, smooth and prominent, shone beautifully towards the bloom of youth;

Now through ageing, as if shrivelled, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Like a bracelet well made, well finished, my earlobes were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, hanging down with wrinkles, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Like the colour of a plantain bud, my teeth were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, broken and discoloured, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Wandering in the jungle thicket in the forest, like a cuckoo I warbled sweetly;

That, through ageing, falters here and there, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Like a smooth conch-shell well polished, my neck was beautiful before;

Now through ageing, broken and bent, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Both like round cross-bars in comparison, my arms were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, like withered trumpet-flower branches, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Adorned with smooth signet rings of gold, my hands were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, like roots and tubers, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Both plump, round, joined together and upraised, my breasts were beautiful before;

Like water-skins they hang down, without water, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Like a polished golden plank, my body shone beautifully before;

Now it is covered with fine wrinkles, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Both like an elephant's trunk in comparison, my thighs were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, like bamboo tubes, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Adorned with smooth golden anklets, my calves were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, like sesame stalks, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Both like cotton-stuffed cushions in comparison, my feet were beautiful before;

Now through ageing, cracked and wrinkled, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise.

"Such was this body, decrepit, the abode of many sufferings;

With its plaster fallen off, a house of ageing, the word of the truth-speaker is not otherwise."

"'Ascetics,' dear lady, you sleep, 'ascetics,' you awake;

You praise only ascetics, surely you will become a female ascetic.

"Abundant food and drink you give to the ascetics;

Rohinī, now I ask you, why are the ascetics dear to you?

"Unwilling to work, lazy, living on what is given by others;

Hopeful, lovers of sweet things, why are the ascetics dear to you?"

"At long last indeed, dear father, you inquire of me about the ascetics;

I will explain to you their wisdom, morality and effort.

"Loving work, not lazy, doers of the foremost work;

They abandon lust and hate, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"The three roots of evil, those who act purely shake off;

All evil has been abandoned by them, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"Their bodily action is pure, and their verbal action is such;

Their mental action is pure, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"Spotless like a conch shell or pearl, pure within and without;

Full of bright qualities, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"Very learned, bearers of the Teaching, noble ones, living righteously by the Teaching;

They teach the meaning and the Teaching, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"Very learned, bearers of the Teaching, noble ones, living righteously by the Teaching;

With unified minds, mindful, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"Going afar, mindful, speaking with wisdom, unagitated;

They understand the end of suffering, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

From whatever village they depart, they do not look back at anything;

They go without longing, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"They do not store in granaries, nor in jars, nor in baskets;

Seeking what is already prepared, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"They do not take unwrought gold, nor gold nor money;

They sustain themselves with the present, therefore the ascetics are dear to me.

"Gone forth from various families, and from various countries;

They hold each other dear, therefore the ascetics are dear to me."

"Indeed for our benefit, dear lady, you were born in this family, Rohinī;

With faith in the Buddha and the Teaching, and with keen respect for the Community.

"For you understand this, the unsurpassed field of merit;

These ascetics accept offerings from us too."

"The sacrifice is established here, it will be fruitful for us;

If you fear suffering, if suffering is unpleasant to you.

"Go to the Buddha, the Teaching, and such a Community for refuge;

Take upon yourself the moralities, that will be for your benefit."

"I go to the Buddha, the Teaching, and such a Community for refuge;

I take upon myself the moralities, that will be for my benefit."

"Formerly I was a kinsman of Brahma, now I am a brahmin;

I am a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, a learned one, one who has attained the highest knowledge, one who has bathed."

"Before he held a staff in hand, now he is a deer-hunter;

Through hope he sank into a terrible mire, he was not able to reach the beyond.

"Thinking me well-intoxicated, Cāpā pleased the son;

Having cut the bond to Cāpā, I shall go forth again."

"Do not be angry with me, great hero, do not be angry with me, great sage;

For indeed, for one afflicted by wrath, there is no purity, how much less austere asceticism.

"I shall depart from Nāḷā, who here will remain in Nāḷā;

Binding ascetics living righteously by the Teaching with her womanly form."

"Come, Kāḷa, turn back, enjoy sensual pleasures as before;

Both I and my relatives are brought under your control."

"From here, Cāpā, a quarter part, as you speak to me;

For a man attached to you, that would indeed be lofty."

"Like a dark-limbed woman, a flowering takkāri tree on a mountain top;

Like a pomegranate sapling in full bloom, like a trumpet-flower tree within an island.

"Me, with limbs anointed with yellow sandalwood, wearing the finest Kāsi cloth;

Me, such a beautiful one, having left behind, for whose sake do you go?"

"Just as a fowler wishes to capture a bird;

With this contrived appearance, you will not ensnare me."

"And this fruit of a son, Kāḷa, produced by you for me;

Me, such a one with a son, having left behind, for whose sake do you go?"

"The wise give up sons, then relatives, then wealth;

Great heroes go forth, like an elephant having cut its bond."

"Now this son of yours, with a stick or with a dagger,

Or I will dash him to the ground; you will not go because of sorrow for your son."

"If you give the son to jackals and dogs,

You will not make me return for the sake of a child, wretched one."

"Well now, venerable one, where will you go, Kāḷa;

To which village and market town, city or royal capital?"

"We were before leaders of groups, not ascetics though thinking ourselves ascetics;

We wandered from village to village, to cities and royal capitals.

"For this Blessed One is the Buddha, towards the river Nerañjarā;

For the abandoning of all suffering, he teaches the Teaching to living beings;

I am going to his presence, he will be my Teacher."

"Now you should pay homage to the unsurpassed lord of the world;

And having circumambulated him, you should dedicate the offering."

"This indeed can be obtained by us, as you speak to me;

Now I shall pay homage for you to the unsurpassed lord of the world;

And having circumambulated him, I shall dedicate the offering."

Then Kāḷa departed, towards the river Nerañjarā;

He saw the Self-enlightened One, teaching the Deathless state.

Suffering, the origin of suffering, and the overcoming of suffering;

The noble eightfold path, leading to the peace of suffering.

Having paid homage to his feet, and having circumambulated him;

Having dedicated the offering to Cāpā, I went forth into homelessness;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Your children have died, dear lady, you who formerly devoured them;

You by day and by night, grieve exceedingly.

"Today, having consumed all your hundred sons, brahmin woman;

Vāseṭṭhi, by what reason do you not grieve excessively?"

"Many hundreds of sons, and hundreds of congregations of kinsmen;

Were consumed in the past, both mine and yours, brahmin.

"I, having known the escape from birth and from death;

I do not grieve, I do not weep, nor did I worry."

"Wonderful indeed, Vāseṭṭhi, you speak such a word;

Whose Teaching have you understood, that you speak such an utterance?"

"This one, brahmin, is the Fully Enlightened One, towards the city of Mithilā;

For the abandoning of all suffering, he taught the Teaching to living beings.

"Having heard the Teaching from that Worthy One, O brahmin, free from clinging;

There having cognised the Good Teaching, I dispelled my sorrow for my son."

"So I too shall go, towards the city of Mithilā;

Perhaps that Blessed One may release me from all suffering."

The brahmin saw the Buddha, free, without clinging;

He taught him the Teaching, the sage who has gone beyond suffering.

Suffering, the origin of suffering, and the overcoming of suffering;

The noble eightfold path, leading to the peace of suffering.

There, having cognised the Good Teaching, he delighted in the going forth;

Sujāta, within three nights, touched the three true knowledges.

"Come, charioteer, go, hand over this chariot for me;

Tell the brahmin woman of good health, 'The brahmin has now gone forth;

Sujāta, within three nights, touched the three true knowledges.'"

Then the charioteer, having taken the chariot and also the thousand,

Told the brahmin woman of good health, "The brahmin has now gone forth;

Sujāta, within three nights, touched the three true knowledges."

"This horse-carriage and also the thousand, charioteer;

Having heard of the brahmin with the threefold true knowledge, I give you a gift."

"Let the horse-carriage be yours alone, and also the thousand, brahmin woman;

I too shall go forth, in the presence of the one of excellent wisdom."

"Elephants, cattle and horses, jewelled earrings, and this prosperous household wealth having abandoned;

Your father has gone forth, enjoy the possessions, Sundarī; You are the heiress in the family."

"Elephants, cattle and horses, jewelled earrings, and this charming household wealth having abandoned;

My father has gone forth, distressed by sorrow for his son;

"May that thought of yours succeed, whatever you desire, Sundarī;

Almsfood obtained by standing up and gleaning, and a rag robe;

Accomplishing these, in the world beyond, without mental corruptions."

"For me as a female trainee, lady, the divine eye has been purified;

I know past lives, where I dwelt before.

"In dependence on you, beautiful one, elder nun, ornament of the Community;

The three true knowledges have been attained, the Buddha's teaching has been fulfilled.

"Permit me, lady, I wish to go to Sāvatthī;

I shall roar the lion's roar in the presence of the Buddha, the foremost."

"See, Sundarī, the Teacher, golden-coloured, with golden skin;

The tamer of the untamed, the self-enlightened, safe from every quarter."

"See Sundarī coming, free, without clinging;

Without lust, unbound, having performed one's obligations, without mental corruptions.

"Having departed from Benares, I have come into your presence;

Your female disciple, O Great Hero, Sundarī pays homage at your feet."

"You are the Buddha, you are the Teacher, I am your daughter, brahmin;

A legitimate one, born from your mouth, who has done what was to be done, without mental corruptions."

"Welcome to you, Bhadda, and your coming is not unwelcome;

For thus indeed the tamed ones come, to pay homage at the Teacher's feet;

Without lust, unbound, who have done what was to be done, without mental corruptions."

"When I was young, dressed in pure garments, I heard the teaching before;

For me, being heedful, there was full realization of the truths.

"Then I, in all sensual pleasures, found intense discontent;

Having seen fear in identity, I longed only for renunciation.

"Having left behind my group of relatives, and slaves and workers;

Prosperous villages and fields, delightful and joyful.

"Having abandoned no small wealth, I went forth;

Thus having left through faith, when the Good Teaching is well proclaimed.

"This would not be proper for one who aspires to nothingness;

Who, having abandoned gold and silver, would come back again.

"Silver or gold is not for enlightenment, not for peace;

This is not lawful for an ascetic, this is not noble wealth.

"This is productive of greed and intoxication, deluding, increasing defilement;

Dangerous, full of trouble, and here there is no stable duration.

"Here, men who are lustful and heedless, with defiled minds;

Mutually opposed, they make quarrels far and wide.

"Murder and imprisonment and affliction, loss and sorrow and lamentation;

For those afflicted by sensual pleasures, much disaster is seen.

"Me, such a one, relatives like enemies, why do you engage me in sensual pleasures?

Know me as one gone forth, seeing danger in sensual pleasures.

"Not by gold and money are mental corruptions eliminated;

Sensual pleasures are enemies, murderers, foes, binding darts.

"Me, such a one, relatives like enemies, why do you engage me in sensual pleasures?

Know me as one gone forth, shaven-headed, wrapped in the double robe.

"Almsfood obtained by standing up and gleaning, and a rag robe;

This indeed is suitable for me, a resource for the homeless one.

"Sensual pleasures have been vomited out by the great sages, those that are divine and those that are human;

Liberated in the secure place, they have attained unshakeable happiness.

"May I never meet with sensual pleasures, in which no shelter is found;

Sensual pleasures are enemies, murderers, like a mass of fire, painful.

"This is an obstacle, a danger, bringing vexation, thorny;

Greed, very uneven, and this is great, with delusion as its entrance.

"A danger of dreadful form, sensual pleasures are like a snake's head;

Those fools who delight in them, worldlings who have become blind.

"For beings stuck in the mire of sensual pleasure, many in the world are fools;

They do not know the limit of birth and of death.

"The path leading to an unfortunate destination, human beings, because of sensual pleasures;

Many indeed proceed along it, bringing disease upon themselves.

"Thus generating enemies, tormenting, subject to defilement;

Worldly gains are binding, sensual pleasures are bonds to death.

"Maddening, enticing, sensual pleasures crush the mind;

For the defilement of beings, quickly laid as a snare by Māra.

"Sensual pleasures have endless dangers, much suffering, great poison;

Of little enjoyment, conflict-causing, drying up the bright side.

"I, having seen such disaster, caused by sensual pleasures;

I will not return to that, always delighting in Nibbāna.

"Having made conflict with sensual pleasures, longing for coolness;

Diligent I shall dwell, at the destruction of all fetters.

"Sorrowless, stainless, secure, the Noble Eightfold, straight;

That path I follow, by which the great sages have crossed over."

See this righteous one, Subhā, the smith's daughter;

Having attained that without longing, she meditates at the root of a tree.

Today is the eighth day since going forth, endowed with faith, beautiful through the Good Teaching;

Trained by Uppalavaṇṇā, possessing the threefold true knowledge, victorious over death.

She is a freewoman, free of debt, a nun with developed faculties;

Unbound from all mental bonds, who has done what was to be done, without mental corruptions.

Sakka, with the host of gods, having approached by supernormal power,

The lord of beings pays homage to Subhā, the smith's daughter.

Going to the delightful Jīvaka's Mango Grove, the nun Subhā;

A scoundrel blocked her way, Subhā said this to him.

"What wrong have I done to you, that you stand blocking my way?

For indeed, friend, it is not allowable for a man to touch one gone forth.

"In my Teacher's instruction which is weighty, the training taught by the Fortunate One;

The state of purity, without blemish, why do you stand blocking my way?

"With a disturbed mind, you approach one undisturbed, with impurity, one free from impurity, without blemish;

With a mind liberated everywhere, why do you stand blocking my way?"

"You are young and not evil, what will going forth do for you?

Put down the ochre robe, come, let us delight in the forest covered with flowers.

"And the trees, risen with flower pollen, waft sweetness all around;

The first month of spring is a pleasant season, come, let us delight in the forest covered with flowers.

"And the trees with flowering tops, stirred by the wind, seem to roar;

What delight will there be for you, if you enter the forest alone?

"Frequented by packs of beasts of prey, disturbed by bull elephants and she-elephants;

Without a companion you wish to go, to the deserted, terrifying great forest.

"Like a doll made of gold, you wander about like a nymph in the Cittalatā garden;

In fine Kāsi cloth, soft and lovely, you shine in beautiful garments, incomparable.

"I would be obedient to you, if we were to dwell in the forest;

For indeed there is no being dearer to me than you, O round-eyed one like a kinnarī.

"If you will do my bidding, come happily and dwell in a house;

Dwelling in sheltered mansions, let women attend upon you.

"Wear fine Kāsi cloth, and adorn yourself with garlands and cosmetics;

I shall make for you abundant ornaments of gold, jewels and pearls, of various kinds.

"A beautiful bed with well-washed dust-free covering, newly spread with woollen carpet and cotton quilt;

Ascend this very precious couch, fragrant with the essence of sandalwood adorned;

"Like a waterlily risen from the water, as one frequented by non-human spirits;

So you, practitioner of the holy life, will go to old age with your hair and limbs untouched."

"What here do you consider essential, in this corpse-filled, cemetery-augmenting,

Perishable body, seeing which, displeased, you look up?"

"Your eyes are like a doe's, like a kinnara woman's in the mountain caves;

Having seen your eyes, my amorous enjoyment grows more and more.

"Your eyelashes are like the tips of blue lotuses, on your spotless face resembling gold;

Having seen your eyes, my sensual pleasure grows more and more.

"Even when gone far away, I shall remember you, O one with long eyelashes and pure vision;

For indeed there are no eyes dearer to me than yours, O round-eyed one like a kinnarī."

"You wish to travel by a wrong path, you seek the moon as a plaything;

You wish to jump over Meru, you who pursue a daughter of the Buddha.

"There is not indeed in the world with its gods, any object where lust could now arise in me;

Nor do I know what it is like, for it has been destroyed with its root by the path.

"Cast away like a charcoal pit, removed from the fire like a poison bowl;

Nor do I see what it is like, for it has been destroyed with its root by the path.

"For one whose [practice] would be unconsidered, or whose Teacher would be unattended;

You should entice such a one, but you vex yourself with this one who knows.

"For me, whether reviled or honoured, in pleasure and pain, mindfulness is established;

Knowing the conditioned as foul, my mind does not cling to anything at all.

"I am a female disciple of the Fortunate One, travelling by the vehicle of the Eightfold Path;

With the dart removed, without mental corruptions, gone to an empty dwelling, I rejoice.

"For I have seen well-painted figures, dolls or wooden puppets;

Bound with strings and pegs, dancing in various ways.

When the strings and pegs are pulled out, released, separated, scattered about;

One would not find it when made into pieces, on what there should one fix the mind?

"Such is the simile for my bodily parts, without those phenomena they do not exist;

Without phenomena it does not exist, on what there should one fix the mind?

"Just as one might see a picture on a wall, smeared with yellow orpiment;

In that your vision is distorted, the perception of a human woman is meaningless.

"Like a magical illusion made in front, like a golden tree in a dream;

You approach, blind one, what is void, like a silver figure in the midst of people.

"Like a ball of lac placed in a hollow, in the middle a water bubble with tears;

And here a boil and abscess arises, various eye components are massed together."

Having plucked out the lovely to behold, she did not fall into attachment, with unattached mind;

"Come, take this eye of yours," she gave it to that man at that very moment.

And his lust ceased at that very moment, and he asked her forgiveness there;

"May there be well-being for you, practitioner of the holy life, such a thing will not happen again."

"Having assailed such a person, like clasping a blazing fire;

Like grasping a venomous snake, could there be well-being? Forgive us."

Released from that, the nun went to the presence of the excellent Buddha;

Having seen him possessing the signs of uttermost merits, her eye became as it was before.

In the city named Kusuma, in Pāṭaliputta, the ornament of the earth;

Two nuns indeed, virtuous ones, of noble birth from the Sakyan clan.

Isidāsī was one of them there, the second was Bodhī - both accomplished in morality;

Delighted in the practice of meditative absorption, very learned, with mental defilements shaken off.

They, having walked for almsfood, having finished the meal, with washed bowls;

Comfortably seated in a secluded place, uttered these words.

"You are lovely, lady, Isidāsī, and your youth is not fallen away;

Having seen what fault, then were you engaged in renunciation?"

Being thus questioned, she, skilled in teaching the Dhamma in a secluded place;

Isidāsī spoke these words, "Listen Bodhī, how I went forth.

"In the excellent city of Ujjenī, my father was a millionaire restrained in morality;

I was his only daughter, dear, agreeable, and beloved.

Then suitors came to me from Sāketa, of the highest lineage;

A millionaire with abundant wealth, to him my father gave me as daughter-in-law.

"To my mother-in-law and father-in-law, evening and morning, having approached with salutation;

With my head I do homage at their feet, I pay respect as I have been instructed.

"Whoever were my husband's sisters, brothers or attendants;

Having seen even one of them, agitated I give a seat.

"With food and drink, with hard food and whatever is placed there;

I conceal and bring near, and I give what is suitable for whom.

"Having attended at the proper time, I approach the house at the threshold;

Washing hands and feet, with joined palms I go to my husband.

"Having taken comb, cosmetics, eye ointment, and mirror;

Like a personal attendant, I myself adorn my husband.

I myself prepare the cooked rice, I myself washing the vessel;

Like a mother her only son, so I attend to my husband.

"Though I was thus devoted, affectionate, industrious, and humble,

Active and not lazy, virtuous - my husband became angry with me.

"He speaks to mother and father, 'Having asked permission, I shall go;

With Isidāsī I shall not dwell, in one house with her I shall not live.'

"'Do not speak thus, son, Isidāsī is wise and experienced;

Industrious and not lazy, why does she not please you, son?'

"'She does not harm me in anything, yet with Isidāsī I shall not dwell;

She is disagreeable to me, enough for me, without asking I shall go.'

"Having heard his word, my mother-in-law and father-in-law asked me:

'What wrong has been done by you? Speak freely, as it really is.'

"'I do not offend in anything, nor do I harm nor speak harsh words;

What can be done, lady, when my husband feels enmity towards me?'

They led me back to my father's house, displeased and overcome by suffering;

'While protecting our son, we have lost a beautiful fortune.'

Then my father gave me to the house of a wealthy man, a second man of good family;

For half the price by which you, millionaire, obtained me.

"In his house too I lived for a month, then he too rejected me;

Though I attended on him like a slave, blameless and accomplished in morality.

"My father speaks to one wandering for alms, a tamer, tamed:

'You will be my son-in-law, put down the cloth and the bowl.'

"He too, having stayed a fortnight, then speaks to father, 'Give me my cloth;

And the bowl and the vessel, I shall walk for almsfood again.'

Then my father, mother, and all my group of relatives spoke to him:

'What is not done for you here? Speak quickly, that will be done for you.'

"Thus spoken to, he speaks, 'If my self is able, enough for me;

With Isidāsī I shall not dwell, in one house with her I shall not live.'

"Dismissed, he went, and I alone pondered;

'Having asked permission I shall go, either to die or to go forth.'

"Then the lady Jinadattā came, walking for her food resort;

To my father's family, a bearer of the discipline, very learned, accomplished in morality.

Having seen her at our home, I rose and prepared a seat for her;

And having paid homage at her feet while she was seated, I gave her food.

"With food and drink, with hard food and whatever is placed there;

Having satisfied her, I said, 'Lady, I wish to go forth.'

Then my father spoke to me: "Right here, dear son, practise the Teaching;

With food and drink, satisfy ascetics and brahmins."

"Then I speak to father, weeping, having extended joined palms in salutation;

'For evil was done by me, that action I will destroy.'

Then my father spoke to me: "Attain enlightenment and the foremost teaching;

And may you obtain Nibbāna, which the foremost of bipeds realized."

"Having paid respect to my mother and father, and to all the groups of relatives;

Seven days after going forth, I attained the three true knowledges.

"I know my own seven births, of which this is the resultant fruit;

That I shall tell you, listen to that with undivided mind.

"In the city of Erakaccha, I was a goldsmith with abundant wealth;

Intoxicated by the pride of youth, I resorted to another's wife.

"I, having passed away from there, was cooked in hell for a long time;

Having risen from there when fully cooked, I entered the womb of a female monkey.

"When I was seven days old, the great monkey, the leader of the herd, castrated me;

This is the fruit of that action, just as I had gone to another's wife.

"I, having passed away from there, having died in the Sindh forest;

I entered the womb of a she-goat, one-eyed and lame.

"For twelve years I, having been castrated, carried children on my back;

Afflicted by worms, unhealthy, just as I had gone to another's wife.

"I, having passed away from there, was born as a cow of a cattle dealer;

A calf, copper-coloured like lac, castrated at twelve months.

"Having drawn the plough, I bear the cart;

Blind and afflicted, unhealthy, just as I had gone to another's wife.

"I, having passed away from there, was born in the house of a female slave on the street;

Neither a woman nor a man, just as I had gone to another's wife.

"Having died at thirty years, I was born as a girl in a carter's family;

In a poor one with little wealth, beset by many creditors.

"Me, from there, the caravan leader, with abundant, extensive interest;

Drags away wailing, having taken by force from the family home.

Then in my sixteenth year, having seen me as a maiden who had reached youth;

The son of Orundhata, Giridāsa by name.

"He too had another wife, moral, virtuous, and famous;

Devoted to her husband - towards her I caused enmity.

"This is the fruit of that action, that having cast me aside they go;

Though I attended on him like a slave, an end to that too has been made by me."

In the city of Mantāvatī, of King Koñca's chief queen;

I was the daughter Sumedhā, gladdened by those who practise the teaching.

Virtuous, of varied discourse, very learned, disciplined in the Buddha's teaching;

Having approached her mother and father, she speaks: "Both of you, listen.

"I am fond of Nibbāna, non-eternal is existence even if divine;

How much less then hollow sensual pleasures, of little enjoyment and much vexation.

"Sensual pleasures are bitter, like venomous snakes, in which fools are infatuated;

They, consigned to hell for a long time, are afflicted and destroyed.

"Those of evil deeds grieve, in the nether world, ever increasing in evil;

Unrestrained by body and by speech, and by mind, the foolish.

"Those fools are unwise, senseless, obstructed by the origin of suffering;

Not knowing when it is being taught, they do not understand the noble truths.

"The truths, mother, taught by the Excellent Buddha, those who do not know them are the majority;

They delight in existence, they long for rebirth among the gods.

"Even rebirth among the gods is non-eternal, in existence that is impermanent;

Yet fools do not tremble, at being born again and again.

"The four nether worlds, and the two destinations are obtained with difficulty;

And for those gone to the nether worlds, there is no going forth in the hells.

"Both of you, allow me to go forth in the teaching of the Ten-Powered One;

Living at ease, I shall strive for the abandoning of birth and death.

"What is the use of rejoicing in existence, in this body, a heap of misery, without substance;

For the cessation of craving for existence, allow me, I shall go forth.

"The arising of Buddhas has been avoided, the inopportune moment, the moment has been obtained;

The moralities, the holy life, for as long as life lasts I would not corrupt."

Thus speaks Sumedhā to her mother and father: "I will not take food so long;

As a householder, I shall be one gone under the power of death."

The mother, afflicted, weeps, and the father, his face altogether stricken with tears;

They strive to convince her, fallen on the ground on the upper floor of the mansion.

"Get up, dear child, what is the use of grieving? You have been given to Vāraṇavatī;

King Anīkaratta is handsome, to him you have been given.

"You will become the chief queen, the wife of King Anikaratta;

The moralities, the holy life, going forth is difficult to do, dear son.

"In the kingdom there is command, wealth and sovereignty, pleasures are pleasant, you are young;

Enjoy sensual pleasures, let there be a proposal of marriage for you, child."

Then Sumedhā speaks to them: "Let there not be such things, existence is without substance;

Either there will be going forth, or death for me - I will certainly not accept a proposal of marriage."

"Why would I, like a worm, enter this putrid body, impure, with the odour of discharge, a frightful corpse,

A bellows, more than once trickling, full of impurity?

"Why would I, knowing this, like a worm, smeared with flesh and blood,

A dwelling for a multitude of worms, food for birds - why is this corpse given?

"It is carried to the cemetery, before long this body devoid of consciousness;

Discarded like a log, by relatives who are disgusted.

"Having thrown it away in the cemetery, food for others, they bathe in disgust;

Even one's own mother and father, how much more then the common populace.

"Attached to the unessential, to the body, a combination of bones and sinews;

Full of spittle, excrement, and urine, in the putrid body.

"Whoever, having separated it, would turn its inside outward;

Not enduring the odour, even one's own mother would be disgusted.

"Aggregates, elements, sense bases, conditioned, rooted in birth, suffering;

Wisely investigating, why should I wish for a proposal of marriage?

"Day by day three hundred spears, ever fresh, might fall upon the body;

Even a hundred years of slaughter would be better, if thus there were destruction of suffering.

"One should accept slaughter, having thus understood the Teacher's word;

'Long is the wandering in the round of rebirths for those being slain again and again.'

Among gods and human beings, in the animal realm and the titan host;

Among ghosts and in the hells, countless destructions are seen.

"Many are the destructions in the hells, for one gone to the nether worlds, being oppressed;

Even among the gods there is no protection, there is nothing beyond the happiness of Nibbāna.

"They have attained Nibbāna, those who are devoted to the teaching of the Ten-Powered One;

Living at ease, they strive for the abandoning of birth and death.

"This very day, father, I shall go forth; what use are possessions without substance?

Sensual pleasures are wearisome to me, like vomit, made like the site of a palm tree."

She thus speaks to her father, and Anīkaratta to whom she was given;

He approached Vāraṇavatī, when the time for the marriage proposal had arrived.

Then Sumedhā, having cut with a sword her hair, black, thick, and soft;

Having closed the mansion, she attained the first meditative absorption.

And while she was attained there, Anīkaratta came to the city;

And in the mansion Sumedhā well develops the perception of impermanence.

And while she attends in mind, Anīkaratta ascended quickly;

With limbs adorned with jewels and gold, with joined palms he requests Sumedhā.

"In the kingdom there is command, wealth and sovereignty, pleasures are pleasant, you are young;

Enjoy sensual pleasures, sensual happiness is rare in the world.

"The kingdom has been handed over to you, enjoy the wealth, give gifts;

Do not be unhappy, your mother and father are distressed."

To him Sumedhā speaks, not desiring sensual pleasures, with delusion gone:

"Do not delight in sensual pleasures, see the danger in sensual pleasures.

"King Mandhātā, ruler of the four continents, was the foremost among those who enjoy sensual pleasures;

Unsatisfied he died, and his desire was not fulfilled.

"Even if the seven treasures were to rain down, the rain-cloud spreading over the ten directions all around;

There is no satisfaction in sensual pleasures, men die unsatisfied.

"Sensual pleasures are like a butcher's block, sensual pleasures are like a snake's head;

Like a torch they burn, resembling a skeleton.

"Sensual pleasures are impermanent, unstable, having much suffering, great poison;

Like a heated iron ball, they are the root of misery, with suffering as their fruit.

"Sensual pleasures are like tree fruits, like a slice of flesh, painful;

Like a dream, deceptive, sensual pleasures are like borrowed goods.

"Sensual pleasures are like stakes of spears, disease, boil, misery, trouble;

Like a pit of embers, root of misery, fear, murder.

"Thus sensual pleasures have much suffering, declared as obstructive;

Go, I have no trust in existence for myself.

"What will another do for me, when my own head is burning?

When ageing and death are pursuing, one must strive for its destruction."

Having opened the door, I saw my mother and father and Anīkaratta;

Seated on the ground, weeping, I said this.

"Long is the wandering in the round of rebirths for the foolish, and for those weeping again and again;

Without discernible beginning, at the death of a father, at the murder of a brother, and at the murder of oneself.

"Tears, mother's milk, blood, the round of rebirths without discernible beginning, remember;

Of beings transmigrating, remember also the accumulation of bones.

Remember the four oceans, brought as comparison for tears, mother's milk, and blood;

Remember the accumulation of bones of one cosmic cycle, equal to Vipula.

"For one transmigrating without discernible beginning, the earth of the Indian subcontinent brought forth;

As pills the size of jujube seeds, mothers of mothers alone would not suffice.

"Grass, sticks, branches and leaves, brought as comparison from without discernible beginning, remember;

As four-finger-length pieces, fathers of fathers alone would not suffice.

Remember the blind turtle in the eastern ocean, and the yoke-hole from the west;

And its head inserted into it - this is the simile for obtaining human birth.

"Remember the materiality like a lump of foam, of the body, without substance;

See the aggregates as impermanent, remember the hells with much vexation.

Remember those increasing the cemetery, again and again in those various births;

Remember the crocodile dangers, remember the four truths.

"When the Deathless exists, what use to you is the five-fold bitter drink;

For all sensual delights are more bitter than the five-fold bitter.

"When the Deathless exists, what use to you are sensual pleasures, which are fevers;

For all sensual delights are blazing, boiling, agitating, and tormenting.

"When the state without enmity exists, what use to you are sensual pleasures, which have many enemies;

Sensual pleasures are common to kings, fire, thieves, water, and unloved heirs, having many enemies.

"When freedom exists, what use to you are sensual pleasures, in which there is murder and bondage;

For in sensual pleasures, those attached to unwholesome pleasures experience the sufferings of murder and bondage.

"A blazing grass torch burns the one who grasps it, not the one who releases it;

For sensual pleasures are like a torch, they burn those who do not release them.

"Do not, for the sake of little sensual happiness, give up abundant happiness;

Do not, like a fish swallowing a hook, afterwards suffer vexation.

"Surely, tame yourself in sensual pleasures, so long as you are like a dog bound by a chain;

Sensual pleasures will do to you what hungry outcasts do to a dog.

"Unlimited suffering and many mental displeasures;

You will experience, being attached to sensual pleasures; give up the unstable sensual pleasures.

"When the ageless exists, what use to you are sensual pleasures, in which there is ageing;

Seized by death and illness, are all births everywhere.

"This is ageless, this is deathless, this is the ageless and deathless state, free from sorrow;

Without enmity, without confinement, without stumbling, without fear, without distress.

"This has been attained by many, the Deathless, and even today this can be obtained;

By one who wisely applies oneself, but it is not possible for one not striving."

Thus speaks Sumedhā, not finding delight in what is subject to activities;

Persuading Anikaratta, Sumedhā threw her hair on the ground.

Having risen, Anīkaratta, with joined palms, requested her father;

"Give up Sumedhā, to go forth, may she see the truth of deliverance."

Released by her mother and father, she went forth, frightened by the fear of sorrow;

The six direct knowledges were realized, the highest fruition for her as a female trainee.

Wonderful and marvellous was that Nibbāna of the princess;

Her past life conduct, as she declared at the final time.

"In the time of the Blessed One Koṇāgamana, in a newly established monastery for the Community;

We three friends, women, gave the gift of a dwelling."

"Ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times, and ten thousand times;

We were reborn among the gods, what then to say of among human beings.

"Among the gods we were of great supernormal power, what then to say of in the human realm;

I was the chief queen of one with the seven treasures, I was the woman treasure.

"That is the cause, that is the production, that is the root, that same is the acceptance in the Dispensation;

That is the first combination, that is Nibbāna for one delighted in the Dhamma."

Thus do those who believe the word of the one of superior wisdom;

They become disenchanted with existence, and having become disenchanted, they become dispassionate.