No narrative setting beyond what the verses state; no closing attribution
Speaker
The nun Aḍḍhakāsi, speaking entirely in the first person about her former livelihood
Form
A four-line verse followed by a six-line verse, nothing more
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 distinctive voice among the Therigatha's known former courtesans
Why this text
Aḍḍhakāsi's very name states her former worth in coin: it means roughly ‘half of Kāsi’, reflecting a price for her services once said to equal half the value of an entire kingdom. This verse is one of a small number in the collection spoken by a former courtesan, moving from an unusual boast about worldly value to a direct account of spiritual attainment.
Reading guide
A name that records a price, not an insult
‘Aḍḍhakāsi’ combines aḍḍha, ‘half’, with ‘Kāsi’, the kingdom — the name itself preserves a specific, extraordinary valuation of her former services, treated here as a fact stated plainly rather than a shameful secret.
Worldly value stated, then reframed
The first verse describes the price the townsfolk set for her as having made her, paradoxically, ‘priceless’ — before the second verse turns entirely away from that valuation toward disillusionment with the very form that commanded it.
A warning addressed outward, not just a personal report
‘Don't journey on and on, transmigrating through rebirths!’ briefly shifts from first-person report to direct address — advice offered to a listener, not only a statement about her own path.
The three knowledges named as the mark of completion
The verse closes by naming a specific traditional set: ‘I've realized the three knowledges, and fulfilled the Buddha's instructions’ — a standard closing formula for full attainment, appearing again in several later poems in this book.
Key terms
Aḍḍhakāsi — “half of Kāsi” — this nun's name, recording the extraordinary price once set for her services as a courtesan.
Kāsi — the kingdom whose value this verse's speaker's former price is said to have equaled half of.
nibbindā — “disillusionment” or “dispassion” — the shift the second verse describes toward her own form.
tevijjā — “the three knowledges” — a traditional mark of full attainment (recollection of past lives, the divine eye, and the ending of defilements), named directly in this verse's closing lines.
cariyā — not used here; another of this book's poems with no closing attribution, ending instead on the standard 'three knowledges' formula.
The text
The text in full: two verses, with no attribution. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1The price for my services amounted to the nation of Kāsi. By setting that price, the townsfolk made me priceless.
§2Then, growing disillusioned with my form, I became dispassionate. Don’t journey on and on, transmigrating through rebirths! I’ve realized 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
What does the name 'Aḍḍhakāsi' mean?
Correct: B. Combining 'half' with the name of a kingdom.
Question 2 of 10
How does the verse describe the effect of the price set for her services?
Correct: B. Worldly value stated plainly before being reframed entirely.
Question 3 of 10
What does the second verse describe happening to her regard for her own form?
Correct: B. A direct turn away from the very valuation described in the first verse.
Question 4 of 10
What does the verse briefly shift to, beyond first-person report?
Correct: B. Advice offered outward, not only a personal statement.
Question 5 of 10
What specific traditional set does the verse name as the mark of her completion?
Correct: B. A standard closing formula appearing again in several later poems in this book.
Question 6 of 10
What kingdom is named in this verse, whose value her former price is said to have equaled half of?
Correct: B. The second half of Aḍḍhakāsi's own name.
Question 7 of 10
What is unusual about this verse compared to most of this book's poems?
Correct: A. A distinctive voice and background among the Therigatha's speakers.
Question 8 of 10
Does this poem have a closing attribution?
Correct: B. No formal attribution note, unlike Thig 2.1 and 2.2.
Question 9 of 10
What position does this poem hold in the Book of the Twos?
Correct: B. Following Sumaṅgala's Mother's verses.
Question 10 of 10
What does 'nibbindā' mean?
Correct: A. Named as the turning point of the second verse.
