Words of the Buddha
Explore the Buddha’s earliest teachings through his words. Access over 978 texts with parallel Pāli-English translations and built-in study tools.
Reflection of the Day
“I do not see any other form that so completely obsesses a man’s mind as the form of a woman.”
— AN 1.1 ·
Fire: Investigating Recurrent Experience
The Buddha cast his entire framework of liberation in the language of fire and its cessation. This essay traces that structure using what we now understand about how fire actually works.
Experience is examined starting with the texture of a single moment, to the cascade of experience, across the terrain where consciousness takes root, and to the extinguishing that is Nibbāna.
Read essay
Parallel Texts
Read Pāli and English side-by-side or interleaved, with line-by-line fidelity to the source.
Contextual Tooltips
Click any Pāli word or translated term for on-the-spot explanations that deepen understanding.
Bookmarks & Highlights
Save discourses and highlight key passages to build your personal collection of insights.
Discourses by Text Collections
Access over 2,100 discourses with parallel Pāli-English translations
| Collection | |
|---|---|
| The Path of Dhamma | 423 verses 100 %
✓ |
| As It Was Said | 112 sayings 100 %
✓ |
| Middle Length Discourses | 77 discourses 51 %
|
| The Buddha's Ancient Discourses | 41 teachings 58 %
|
| Linked Discourses | 484 discourses 17 %
|
| Numerical Discourses | 916 discourses 10 %
|
| Inspired Utterances | 66 utterances 83 %
|
| Minor Passages | 4 passages 44 %
|
Latest Discourses
View all →Seeing the venerable Sāriputta sitting cross-legged and reviewing his own tranquility, the Buddha expresses an inspired utterance about the ultimate freedom of a calmed and peaceful mind.
Last updated on February 25, 2026
What determines a complete spiritual path? When the wanderer Vacchagotta asks the Buddha to explain wholesome and unwholesome actions, he discovers the remarkable spiritual success spanning the Buddha's entire fourfold assembly.
Last updated on February 25, 2026
The Buddha uses the gradual purification of gold as a metaphor for mental cultivation through meditation. Just as a goldsmith removes coarse, medium, and subtle impurities until the gold is workable and radiant, a meditator abandons defilements in stages. This gradual refinement leads to deep collectedness of mind, forming the foundation for supernormal abilities and, ultimately, liberation.
Last updated on February 25, 2026
The Buddha shares the four kinds of persons — those who cultivate the first jhāna, the second jhāna, the third jhāna, and the fourth jhāna while perceiving drawbacks — and the difference in their rebirths.
Last updated on February 25, 2026
The Buddha shares the four kinds of persons — those who cultivate loving-kindness, compassion, appreciative joy, and equanimity while perceiving drawbacks — and the difference in their rebirths.
Last updated on February 25, 2026
Anthologies
View all →
An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon
In In the Buddha’s Words, Bhikkhu Bodhi curates a rich anthology of discourses drawn from the Pali Canon that capture the full breadth of the Buddha’s teachings. Through these selected suttas, readers explore key themes such as impermanence, not-self, and the path to awakening, revealing how suffering arises and can ultimately be transcended. Each section is introduced with Bhikkhu Bodhi’s insightful commentary, which clarifies the practical application of the Dhamma in daily life. The book’s thematic structure provides a coherent roadmap to the Buddha’s profound insights, emphasizing their timeless relevance in overcoming the human predicament. In essence, In the Buddha’s Words serves as an invaluable guide for anyone seeking a clear and transformative overview of Early Buddhism.
By Bhikkhu Bodhi
The heart essence of the Buddha’s original teachings
In Noble Truths, Noble Path, Bhikkhu Bodhi brings together key suttas from the Saṃyutta Nikāya that illuminate the essence of the Buddha’s teaching - the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. Through these discourses, readers see how suffering arises, why it persists, and how it can be ended, culminating in Nibbāna. Each chapter, introduced by Ven. Bodhi, follows the structure of the Four Noble Truths, offering a clear roadmap to understand and overcome the human predicament. The book emphasizes the universal relevance of the Buddha’s radical insights and guides us toward liberation from the cycle of rebirth, making it an invaluable resource for anyone seeking a concise yet profound overview of Early Buddhism.
By Bhikkhu Bodhi
A daily learning feed of the Buddha’s teachings — learn, reflect, and apply in practice.