This reading guide does not assert a specific matching text for this poem in other Buddhist literatures.
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — simple on its own, best read alongside Thig 1.8
Why this text
This poem completes the closely matched pair begun by Thig 1.8. The structure and most of the wording repeat exactly, with two changes: the name addressed, and what she is told to appreciate — not spiritual friends this time, but her own ‘blessings’.
Reading guide
A name meaning fortunate, turned toward gratitude
‘Bhadrā’ means ‘blessed’, ‘fortunate’, or ‘auspicious’. Where Mittā's verse directed her toward appreciating her friends, Bhadrā's directs her toward appreciating her own good fortune.
The same opening line, word for word
‘Having gone forth in faith’ opens this verse exactly as it opens Thig 1.8 — the same starting condition, faith, credited for a different woman's renunciation.
One word upgraded in the closing line
Where Thig 1.8 closes on ‘sanctuary from the yoke’, this verse closes on ‘the supreme sanctuary from the yoke’ — the single addition of ‘supreme’ the clearest wording difference between the two otherwise matching poems.
A pair worth reading together, not separately
Read alone, this verse's instruction to ‘appreciate your blessings’ might seem generic. Read beside Thig 1.8, the shared template becomes visible — two women, two name-based instructions, one underlying formula.
Key terms
Bhadrā — a nun's name, also the Pali word for ‘blessed’, ‘fortunate’, or ‘auspicious’ — the verse plays directly on this meaning.
saddhā — “faith” or “confidence” — named as Bhadrā's starting point, in wording identical to Thig 1.8's opening line.
bhāgya — “fortune” or “blessing” — what Bhadrā is instructed to appreciate, the one substituted term that distinguishes this verse from Thig 1.8.
yoga-kkhema — “sanctuary from the yoke” — closing this verse as it closes Thig 1.6 and Thig 1.8, here intensified with ‘supreme’.
cariyā — not used here; another of this book's unattributed poems, closing with no formula naming a perfection.
The text
The text in full: a single four-line verse, with no attribution. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1Having gone forth in faith, appreciate your blessings, Bhadrā. Develop skillful qualities for the sake of the supreme sanctuary from the yoke.
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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 name 'Bhadrā' mean?
Correct: B. The verse's instruction plays directly on this meaning.
Question 2 of 10
What is Bhadrā specifically instructed to appreciate?
Correct: B. The one substituted object of appreciation, compared to Thig 1.8's 'friends'.
Question 3 of 10
How does this verse's opening line compare to Thig 1.8's?
Correct: B. The same starting condition credited for both women's renunciation.
Question 4 of 10
What single word distinguishes this verse's closing line from Thig 1.8's?
Correct: B. The clearest wording difference between these two otherwise matching poems.
Question 5 of 10
Why is this poem best read alongside Thig 1.8 rather than alone?
Correct: B. Two women, two name-based instructions, one underlying formula.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'bhāgya' mean?
Correct: A. The key substituted term compared to Thig 1.8.
Question 7 of 10
What position does this poem hold in the Book of the Ones?
Correct: B. Following Mittā's verse.
Question 8 of 10
Does this poem have a closing attribution?
Correct: B. Continuing the bare, unattributed pattern of several poems in this book.
Question 9 of 10
What quality does the verse instruct Bhadrā to develop?
Correct: B. Aimed at reaching the supreme sanctuary from the yoke.
Question 10 of 10
What term closes both this verse and Thig 1.6 and Thig 1.8?
Correct: B. A recurring closing phrase across several poems in this book.
