The Buddha describes the five powers—faith, conscience, prudence, energy, and wisdom—that support a mendicant on the path.

AN 5.11 Not Learned From Anyone Else

“Pubbāhaṁ, bhikkhave, ananussutesu dhammesu abhiññāvosānapāramippatto paṭijānāmi. Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, tathāgatassa tathāgatabalāni, yehi balehi samannāgato tathāgato āsabhaṁ ṭhānaṁ paṭijānāti, parisāsu sīhanādaṁ nadati, brahmacakkaṁ pavatteti. Katamāni pañca? Saddhābalaṁ, hirībalaṁ, ottappabalaṁ, vīriyabalaṁ, paññābalaṁ imāni kho, bhikkhave, pañca tathāgatassa tathāgatabalāni yehi balehi samannāgato tathāgato āsabhaṁ ṭhānaṁ paṭijānāti, parisāsu sīhanādaṁ nadati, brahmacakkaṁ pavattetī”ti.

Paṭhamaṁ.

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

“Pubbāhaṁ, bhikkhave, ananussutesu dhammesu abhiññāvosānapāramippatto paṭijānāmi.

“I claim to have attained perfection and consummation of insight regarding principles not learned before from another.

Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, tathāgatassa tathāgatabalāni, yehi balehi samannāgato tathāgato āsabhaṁ ṭhānaṁ paṭijānāti, parisāsu sīhanādaṁ nadati, brahmacakkaṁ pavatteti.

The Realized One has five powers of a Realized One. With these he claims the bull’s place, roars his lion’s roar in the assemblies, and turns the divine wheel.

Katamāni pañca?

What five?

Saddhābalaṁ, hirībalaṁ, ottappabalaṁ, vīriyabalaṁ, paññābalaṁ

The powers of faith, conscience, prudence, energy, and wisdom.

imāni kho, bhikkhave, pañca tathāgatassa tathāgatabalāni yehi balehi samannāgato tathāgato āsabhaṁ ṭhānaṁ paṭijānāti, parisāsu sīhanādaṁ nadati, brahmacakkaṁ pavattetī”ti.

These are the five powers of a Realized One. With these he claims the bull’s place, roars his lion’s roar in the assemblies, and turns the divine wheel.”

Paṭhamaṁ.

Qualities:

Conscience

Conscience

An inner moral sensitivity that shrinks from wrongdoing out of self-respect and personal integrity. It is the voice within that knows what is beneath one's dignity, guarding conduct through an inward standard of honor.

Also known as: with sense of right and wrong, sense of shame, modesty, (comm) originating from inside
Pāli: hirī
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Faith

Faith

Confidence in the Buddha's awakening and the efficacy of the path. It brightens and steadies the mind, removing doubt and inspiring energy toward wholesome practice. True faith rests on clarity and direct experience rather than mere belief.

Also known as: confidence, trust, belief, conviction, self-assurance
Pāli: saddha, pasanna
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Insight

Insight

Insight is deep, intuitive realization that transforms understanding and guides practice.

Also known as: having insight, with understanding, right knowledge
Pāli: ñāṇa, sammāñāṇa
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Learning

Learning

One who has broad learning and retention of the Dhamma, gained through hearing, reciting, and carefully investigating the teachings. Such learning penetrates their meaning through discernment and serves as a strong support for practice.

Also known as: having knowledge, well studied
Pāli: bahussuta, suta
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Vigour

Vigour

Energetic effort and resilience in practice. It is the refusal to shrink back, the 'uphill' force that initiates and sustains wholesome actions against the gravity of habit.

Also known as: energy, effort, enthusiasm, zeal, application of will, persistence
Pāli: vīriya
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Wisdom

Wisdom

Lived understanding and sound judgment that steers the mind away from suffering, distinct from mere accumulation of facts.

Also known as: (of a person) wise, astute, intelligent, learned, skilled, firm, stable, steadfast, an experiential understanding of the four noble truths
Pāli: paññā, medhā, dhīra, paṇḍita, asammūḷha
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Last updated on July 27, 2026