The Therigatha is one of the oldest surviving literatures by women, composed more than two millennia ago and originally collected as part of the Pali canon of Buddhist scripture. These poems were written by some of the first Buddhist women--theris--honored for their religious achievements. Through imaginative verses about truth and freedom, the women recount their lives before ordination and their joy at attaining liberation from samsara. Poems of the First Buddhist Women offers startling insights into the experiences of women in ancient times that continue to resonate with modern readers. With a spare and elegant style, this powerful translation introduces us to a classic of world literature.

Poems of the First Buddhist Women : A Translation of the Therigatha, Translated by Charles Hallisey, Harvard University Press, Paperback, 192 pp, $19.95

Charles Hallisey is a professor at Harvard Divinity School. His research centers on Sinhala literature, Pali language and literature, Buddhist ethics, literature in Theravada Buddhist culture, and generally on Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. He is currently working on a book project entitled "Flowers on the Tree of Poetry: The Moral Economy of Literature in Buddhist Sri Lanka. He has recently completed a project, with Professor P.B. Meegaskumbura of the University of Peradeniya, on the Sandesa poetry of Sri Lanka, "Preoccupied with the Real: The Sinhala Sandesa Poetry of Sri Lanka." This project was part of the research project "Mapping the World through the Courier Poems" that was sponsored by the Institute for Advanced Studies.

CONTENTS: Poems of the First Buddhist Women
INTRODUCTION	vii
Poems with One Verse	3
Poems with Two Verses	10
Poems with Three Verses	15
A Poem with Four Verses	21
Poems with Five Verses	22
Poems with Six Verses	33
Poems with Seven Verses	42
A Poem with Eight Verses	47
A Poem with Nine Verses	49
A Poem with Eleven Verses	51
A Poem with Twelve Verses	54
A Poem with Sixteen Verses	57
Poems with about Twenty Verses	60
A Poem with about Thirty Verses	85
A Poem with about Forty Verses	92
The Great Chapter	100
ABBREVIATIONS	115
NOTES TO THE TRANSLATION	117
GLOSSARY	145
BIBLIOGRAPHY	149