← Sutta collectionTHIG13.1Verses of the Senior Nuns 13.1SuttaCentral (Bhikkhu Sujato translation)Select any verse to keep it — saved passages go to your Dhamma Deck, the same one the app uses.Verses of the Senior Nuns 13.1The Book of the TwentiesAmbapālīMy hair was as black as bees,graced with curly tips;now old, it has become like hemp bark—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.Crowned with flowers,my head was as fragrant as a perfume box;now old, it smells like dog fur—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My hair was as thick as a well-planted forest,it shone, parted with brush and pins;now old, it’s patchy and sparse—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.With plaits of black and ribbons of gold,it was so pretty, adorned with braids;now old, my head’s gone bald—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My eyebrows used to look so nice,like crescents painted by an artist;now old, they droop with wrinkles—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My eyes shone brilliant as gems,wide and indigo;ruined by age, they shine no more—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My nose was like a perfect peak,lovely in my bloom of youth;now old, it’s shriveled like a pepper;the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My ear-lobes were so pretty,like lovingly crafted bracelets;now old, they droop with wrinkles—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My teeth used to be so pretty,bright as a jasmine flower;now old, they’re broken and yellow—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My singing was sweet as a cuckoowandering in the forest groves;now old, it’s patchy and croaking—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My neck used to be so pretty,like a polished shell of conch;now old, it’s bowed and bent—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My arms used to be so pretty,like rounded cross-bars;with age, they wrinkle and sag as a patala tree—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My hands used to be so pretty,adorned with lovely golden rings;now old, they’re like red radishes—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My breasts used to be so pretty,swelling, round, close, and high;now they droop like water bags—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My body used to be so pretty,like a polished slab of lustrous gold;now it’s covered with fine wrinkles—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.Both my thighs used to be so pretty,like an elephant’s trunk;now old, they’re like bamboo—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.My calves used to be so pretty,adorned with cute golden anklets;now old, they’re like sesame sticks—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.Both my feet used to be so pretty,plump as if with cotton-wool;now old, they’re cracked and wrinkly—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.This bag of bones once was such,but now it’s withered, home to so much pain;like a house in decay with plaster crumbling—the word of the truthful one is confirmed.