Paccaya — The Book of the Threes · Chapter One · Poem 2 of 16
Setting
A dwelling, five days after going forth, without a translated attribution
Speaker
Paccaya, recalling a vow he made to himself
Form
Three four-line verses — an unfulfilled trainee's resolve, its extreme terms, then success
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
★★☆☆☆ — plain vocabulary, an intense, specific vow
Why this text
Five days after going forth, still a trainee with his heart's desire unfulfilled, Paccaya enters his dwelling and resolves: no eating, no drinking, no leaving, not even lying down — not until the dart of craving is plucked. The third verse reports the outcome: the three knowledges attained.
Reading guide
A vow, in absolute terms
The second verse lists the vow's terms one after another, each more absolute than the last: ‘I won't eat; I won't drink; I won't leave my dwelling; nor will I lie down on my side’ — a refusal of food, drink, movement, and rest all at once, held until ‘the dart of craving is plucked’.
Five days, one of this collection's shortest timeframes
The first verse specifies exactly how long Paccaya had been a monk when he made this vow: five days. Where this collection has occasionally marked out unusually large spans — Thag 1.96's eighty koti years, Thag 2.49's thirty-one eons — this is one of the shortest concrete timeframes this reading guide has found so far, naming not a distant past but a single recent, countable stretch of days.
Success, reported plainly
The third verse turns from vow to outcome without elaborating on the ordeal itself: ‘see my energy and vigor as I meditate like this!’, followed immediately by the three knowledges attained and the Buddha's instructions fulfilled. The poem does not say how many days the vow itself lasted, only that it succeeded.
Key terms
sekho appattamānaso — “a trainee, my heart's desire unfulfilled” — Paccaya's own description of his state five days after going forth.
cetaso paṇidhī — “resolved in my heart” — the vow made upon entering his dwelling.
taṇhāsalle — “the dart of craving” — what the vow is held until removed.
vīriyaparakkamaṁ — “energy and vigor” — what the third verse invites the reader to witness.
tisso vijjā anuppattā — “I've attained the three knowledges” — the vow's outcome, in the same formula as Thag 3.1's closing verse.
The text
The text in full: three verses, with no separate attribution line in this chapter. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1I went forth five days ago, a trainee, my heart’s desire unfulfilled. I entered my dwelling and resolved in my heart:
§2I won’t eat; I won’t drink; I won’t leave my dwelling; nor will I lie down on my side—not until the dart of craving is plucked.
§3See my energy and vigor as I meditate like this! I’ve attained the three knowledges and fulfilled the Buddha’s instructions.
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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
How long had Paccaya been a monk when he made his vow?
Correct: A. One of this collection's shortest concrete timeframes found so far.
Question 2 of 10
What four things does the vow refuse, all at once?
Correct: A. Held until the dart of craving is plucked.
Question 3 of 10
What is the vow held until?
Correct: C. Taṇhāsalle anūhate.
Question 4 of 10
What does the third verse report?
Correct: D. Success, reported without elaborating on the ordeal.
Question 5 of 10
How does Paccaya describe his own state before the vow?
Correct: B. Sekho appattamānaso — still striving.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'taṇhāsalle' mean?
Correct: C. What the vow is held until removed.
Question 7 of 10
How does this poem's closing formula compare to Thag 3.1's?
Correct: B. Tisso vijjā anuppattā, kataṁ buddhassa sāsanaṁ.
Question 8 of 10
What does the second verse's list of refusals build toward?
Correct: B. No eating, no drinking, no leaving, no lying down — each more total than the last.
Question 9 of 10
Where does the poem say Paccaya made this vow?
Correct: D. Vihāraṁ me paviṭṭhassa, cetaso paṇidhī ahu.
Question 10 of 10
Where does this poem fall in the Book of the Threes?
Correct: D. Following Aṅgaṇikabhāradvāja's opening poem.
