Abhiṇha — Book of the Ones · Chapter Three (Kuruṅgavagga) · Poem 7 of 10
Setting
No narrative scene in the canonical verse itself
Speaker
Unspecified in the canonical verse itself, reflecting on the elephant's grief
Form
One four-line stanza
Length
Under 1 minute to read
Northern parallel
This reading guide does not assert a specific matching text for this poem in other Buddhist literatures.
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — one short, tender observation
Why this text
This brief tale offers a gentle, cross-species picture of friendship — a state elephant pining for a dog it has grown fond of, per the verse's own reasoning, simply through frequent, unremarkable proximity, not through any grand gesture or dramatic bond.
Reading guide
A friendship explained by simple frequency
The verse reflects on an unusual bond: ‘it's not enough to give him a morsel, a bite, some grass, or a rubbing-down. I think by seeing the dog often, the elephant grew fond of him.’ Per Sujato's comment, a state elephant pines when his friend, a dog, goes missing — and the verse's own explanation for the bond is disarmingly simple: not favors or care alone, but the accumulated effect of frequent, ordinary presence.
A quiet counterpoint to this chapter's more dramatic tales
Compared to the self-sacrifice, injustice, and battlefield resolve found elsewhere in this chapter, this poem's observation is small and domestic — grief for a missing companion, and an attempt to understand where that attachment actually came from.
Key terms
kabaḷaṁ / piṇḍaṁ / kuse / ghaṁsituṁ — “a morsel... a bite, some grass, or a rubbing-down” — the list of favors the verse rules out as the source of the elephant's attachment.
abhiṇhadassanā — “by seeing... often” — the verse's own proposed explanation for the bond, giving this poem its traditional title.
sneha — “fondness” — the affection the elephant developed for the dog.
Abhiṇhajātaka — the traditional title of this tale, ‘Frequent’.
nāgo — “elephant” — here, the state elephant pining for its missing friend.
The text
The text in full: a single verse. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1It’s not enough to give him a morsel, a bite, some grass, or a rubbing-down. I think by seeing the dog often, the elephant grew fond of him.
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Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 10
What does the elephant do when its friend, a dog, goes missing?
Correct: C. Per Sujato's comment, a state elephant pining for its missing companion.
Question 2 of 10
What does the verse rule out as the source of the elephant's attachment?
Correct: D. 'It's not enough to give him a morsel... a bite, some grass, or a rubbing-down.'
Question 3 of 10
What does the verse propose as the actual source of the bond?
Correct: A. Giving this poem its traditional title, 'Frequent'.
Question 4 of 10
How does this poem's tone compare to other tales in this chapter, such as Ja 22's protest or Ja 23's battlefield resolve?
Correct: B. A gentle counterpoint within this chapter's broader range of tone.
Question 5 of 10
What two species does this tale's friendship involve?
Correct: C. An unusual, tender cross-species bond.
Question 6 of 10
What is this poem's traditional title?
Correct: D. The twenty-seventh poem overall, and the seventh of the Kuruṅgavagga.
Question 7 of 10
What role did the elephant hold, per Sujato's comment?
Correct: A. Adding a note of unexpected tenderness to its bond with an ordinary dog.
Question 8 of 10
Where does this poem sit in the collection's own chapter structure?
Correct: B. Part of the same ten-poem Kuruṅgavagga.
Question 9 of 10
What quality does this verse's explanation for the bond emphasize?
Correct: C. A disarmingly simple account of how attachment forms.
Question 10 of 10
How long is this poem?
Correct: D. Consistent with this chapter's typically terse verse form.
