Abandoning dark states, the wise cultivate bright ones; having left home for homelessness, in solitude where delighting is difficult.

Kaṇhaṃ dhammaṃ vippahāya — abandoning dark states: kaṇha is dark, black. Dark dhammas are mental states and actions rooted in greed, aversion and ignorance. Their abandonment is the first movement.

Sukkaṃ bhāvetha — cultivate bright ones: sukka is white, bright. The wise not only abandon the dark but actively cultivate the bright. Cultivation (bhāveti) implies active effort, not mere cessation of the negative.

Okā anokamāgamma — having left home for homelessness: metaphor of the practitioner’s movement — leaving habitual mental refuges, the comfort of the known, to enter the open space of practice without supports.

Viveke yattha dūramaṃ — in solitude where delighting is difficult: contemplative solitude is neither easy nor pleasant for the untrained mind. Going there anyway is the act of courage of the practitioner.