- Therigatha
The Therigatha, often translated as "Verses of the Elder Nuns" (Pāli: "thera" elder (feminine) + "gatha" verse), is a Buddhist scripture, a collection of short poems supposedly recited by early members of the
Buddhist sangha . In thePali Canon ofTheravada Buddhism, the Therigatha is classified as part of theKhuddaka Nikaya , the collection of short books in theSutta Pitaka . It consists of 73 poems, organized into 16 chapters. Despite its small size, the Therigatha is a very significant document in the study of earlyBuddhism . The Therigatha contains a number of passages that re-affirm the view that women are the equal of men in terms of religious attainment, as well as a number of verses that seem to address issues that might be of particular interest to women in South Asian society. Included in the Therigatha are the verses of a mother whose child has died (Thig VI.1 and VI.2), a former prostitute who became a nun (Thig V.2), a wealthy heiress who abandoned her life of pleasure (Thig VI.5), and even of the Buddha's own stepmother,Maha Pajapati (Thig VI.6). An additional collection of scriptures concerning the role and abilities of women in the early "sangha" is found in the fifth division of theSamyutta Nikaya , known as theBhikkhuni-samyutta .A number of the nuns whose verses are found in the Therigatha also have verses in the book of the
Khuddaka Nikaya known as theApadāna , often called the "Biographical Stories" in English. The majority of these have been translated into the English language.Translations
* "Psalms of the Sisters", tr C. A. F. Rhys Davids, 1909; reprinted in "Psalms of the Early Buddhists",
Pali Text Society [http://www.palitext.com] , Bristol; verse translation
* "Elders' Verses", trK. R. Norman , volume II, 1971, Pali Text Society, BristolThe two translations have been reprinted in one paperback volume under the title "Poems of Early Buddhist Nuns", without Mr Norman's notes, but including extracts from the commentary translated by Mrs Rhys Davids.
Online in English
* [http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/thag/index.html Theragatha Verses of the Elder Monks]
* [http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/thig/index.html Therigatha Verses of the Elder Nuns]External links
* [http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/khuddaka/therigatha/index.html The Therigatha] (
Access to Insight )
* [http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/bps/wheels/wheel349.html Analysis and Discussion of Some of the Therigatha Verses]
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