Therigatha · 6.5

Anopamā

Anopamā — The Book of the Sixes · Poem 5 of 8

Setting
A wealthy household, sought after by suitors, then an audience with the Buddha
Speaker
The nun Anopamā, narrating her own valuation by suitors, then her attainment
Form
Six four-line verses
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
★★★☆☆ — quotes a marriage proposal's exact valuation in gold

Why this text

This poem opens with Anopamā's worth quantified precisely by a suitor's own quoted words: ‘however much your daughter Anopamā weighs, I'll give you eight times that in gold coin and gems’. Against this transactional valuation, the poem sets what actually determines her path: seeing the Buddha, and attaining ‘the third fruit’ on the spot, still seated, before she has renounced anything.

Reading guide

An heiress, sought and quantified

‘Born into an eminent family, affluent and wealthy... sought by princes, coveted by sons of the wealthy’ establishes her status before any suitor speaks — setting up the specific proposal that follows.

A proposal, quoted in the suitor's own words

‘Give me Anopamā! However much your daughter Anopamā weighs, I'll give you eight times that in gold coin and gems’ is presented as direct quotation, not summary — her worth stated in a specific multiple of her own body weight in gold.

A named attainment, reached while still seated

‘While sitting in that seat, I realized the third fruit’ names a specific stage of the path, reached in the same sitting as her audience with the Buddha — before she has shaved her head or gone forth at all.

A count of days, closing the poem

‘This is the seventh day since my craving dried up’ closes the poem with the same precise-day formula used in Thig 2.9, 2.10, and 3.1 — a dated breakthrough, arriving only after she has finally gone forth.

Key terms

Anopamā — this poem's speaker, “Majjha's true-born daughter”, whose worth a suitor quantifies precisely in gold.
rājaputta — “princes” — among those named as seeking her, alongside the sons of wealthy families.
aṭṭhaguṇaṅ — “eight times that” — the specific multiple of her body weight in gold and gems offered for her.
tatiyaṅ phalaṅ — “the third fruit” — a specific named stage of the path, attained while she is still seated before the Buddha.
taṇhā visositā — “craving dried up” — the poem's closing state, dated to a specific seventh day.

The text

The text in full: six verses. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

§1I was born into an eminent family, affluent and wealthy, endowed with a beautiful complexion and figure; Majjha’s true-born daughter.

§2I was sought by princes, coveted by sons of the wealthy. One sent a messenger to my father: “Give me Anopamā!

§3However much your daughter Anopamā weighs, I’ll give you eight times that in gold coin and gems.”

§4When I saw the Awakened One, the world’s Elder, unsurpassed, I paid homage at his feet, and withdrew to one side.

§5Out of compassion, Gotama taught me the Dhamma. While sitting in that seat, I realized the third fruit.

§6Then, having shaved off my hair, I went forth to homelessness. This is the seventh day since my craving dried up.

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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 this poem's opening verse establish about Anopamā's family?
Correct: B. Setting up the specific marriage proposal that follows.
Question 2 of 10
How is the marriage proposal presented in this poem?
Correct: C. Direct quotation, not summary.
Question 3 of 10
How much gold and gems does the suitor offer for Anopamā, according to his quoted words?
Correct: C. A precise multiple of her own body weight.
Question 4 of 10
What does Anopamā attain while still seated before the Buddha?
Correct: C. Before she has shaved her head or gone forth at all.
Question 5 of 10
How does this poem's closing line date her craving's ending?
Correct: B. The same precise-day formula used in Thig 2.9, 2.10, and 3.1.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'tatiyaṁ phalaṁ' mean?
Correct: B. Attained in the same sitting as her audience with the Buddha.
Question 7 of 10
Who besides princes is named as seeking Anopamā in marriage?
Correct: A. Named alongside princes in this poem's second verse.
Question 8 of 10
What happens only after Anopamā's attainment of the third fruit?
Correct: A. Formal renunciation follows her initial attainment, not the reverse.
Question 9 of 10
What position does this poem hold in the Book of the Sixes?
Correct: D. Following Thig 6.4, continuing the Book of the Sixes.
Question 10 of 10
What does 'aṭṭhaguṇaṁ' mean?
Correct: D. Part of the suitor's precisely quantified offer.
Answered 0 of 10 · Correct 0