Sirivaḍḍha — The Book of the Ones · Chapter Five · Poem 1 of 10
Setting
The cleft between Mount Vebhāra and Mount Paṇḍava, lit by lightning
Speaker
An unnamed voice describing Sirivaḍḍha, called the son of the Buddha
Form
One four-line verse
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
★☆☆☆☆ — a storm outside, stillness within, opening a new chapter
Why this text
Chapter Five opens with weather: lightning striking down on a mountain cleft between Vebhāra and Paṇḍava. Inside that same cleft, Sirivaḍḍha sits absorbed in jhāna, called ‘the son of the Buddha, inimitable and unaffected’ — the storm outside left entirely without effect on the stillness within.
Reading guide
A storm outside, stillness inside the same space
The verse places its lightning and its meditator in exactly the same location — the mountain cleft — rather than contrasting a stormy world with a sheltered retreat elsewhere. The drama and the calm occupy the same physical spot at once.
'Son of the Buddha', a kinship title
Putta, ‘son’, echoes appattima, ‘inimitable’ — describing Sirivaḍḍha's relationship to the Buddha in familial terms, a title of spiritual lineage similar in spirit to dāyāda, ‘heir’, used for the unnamed monk in Siṅgāla's Father's poem earlier in this book.
A chapter that will close on the same image
This chapter's very last poem, Vimala's verse (Thag 1.50), returns to storm imagery — celestial rain, wind, and lightning — set against the same kind of undisturbed stillness, bookending Chapter Five with a matched pair of weather-and-calm poems.
Key terms
vijjutā — “lightning” — the verse's opening image, striking the mountain cleft.
nagavivara — “mountain cleft” — the single location shared by both the storm and Sirivaḍḍha's absorption.
jhāyati — “is absorbed in jhāna” — describing Sirivaḍḍha's meditation, undisturbed by the storm around him.
putta — “son” — the kinship title given to Sirivaḍḍha in relation to the Buddha.
appaṭima — “inimitable” or “without equal” — one of two descriptive terms closing this verse.
The text
The text in full: one verse, with no separate attribution line in this chapter. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1Lightning flashes down on the cleft of Vebhāra and Paṇḍava. But in the mountain cleft he is absorbed in jhāna—the son of the Buddha, inimitable and unaffected.
· · ·
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 this verse's opening line describe?
Correct: C. The verse's dramatic opening image.
Question 2 of 10
Where is Sirivaḍḍha absorbed in jhāna, according to the verse?
Correct: D. Storm and stillness occupying the same location at once.
Question 3 of 10
What title does the verse give Sirivaḍḍha, in relation to the Buddha?
Correct: D. A kinship title expressing spiritual lineage.
Question 4 of 10
How does this verse's structure compare to a contrast between a stormy world and a sheltered retreat elsewhere?
Correct: A. Drama and calm occupying one spot at once, not two separate scenes.
Question 5 of 10
What later poem in this chapter returns to similar storm imagery?
Correct: B. A matched pair bookending Chapter Five.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'jhāyati' mean?
Correct: C. Describing Sirivaḍḍha's undisturbed meditation.
Question 7 of 10
What does 'appaṭima' mean?
Correct: B. One of two descriptive terms closing this verse.
Question 8 of 10
How does 'son of the Buddha' compare to a title used earlier in this book?
Correct: B. Two similar kinship-based titles of spiritual lineage.
Question 9 of 10
What mountains does the verse name?
Correct: A. Named directly as the setting for the lightning.
Question 10 of 10
Where does this poem fall in the Theragātha?
Correct: A. The first of ten poems in this new chapter.
