Therigatha

Buddhism in India and beyond

Siddhartha Gautama gained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya and became the Buddha. Buddhism, the new religion he preached, found patrons in King Ajata Shatru, Emperor Ashoka, and many more and spread to Sihala Dipa (Sri Lanka), Burma, Siam (Thailand), Cambodia, China, Japan, Vietnam, and beyond.

Sangha

Buddha established the Sangha, the Order of Monks, and these ordained bhikkhus took it upon themselves to practise and preach the teachings of the Buddha. To begin with, the Sangha barred its doors to women. It is believed that the Buddha himself was opposed to the admittance of women into the Sangha for fear that it may weaken the resolve of the monks. However, he was persuaded to change his opinion by Maha Prajapati Gautami, his aunt and foster-mother who had looked after Siddharth after his mother Mahamaya’s death a week after his birth. Maha Prajapati became the first ordained bhikkhuni.

Therigatha: Poems of the First Buddhist Women

Included in the Pali canon of Theravada Buddhism under Sutta Pitaka of Tipitaka (Three Baskets), the Therigatha is an anthology of 525 verses in the Pali language by and about 73 Theris – Elder Buddhist bhikkhunis who had gained enlightenment through the teachings of the Buddha. Composed during 6^th century BC when Buddha lived and preached to 3^rd century BC, these poems celebrate and share the bliss of Theris upon gaining enlightenment. Dhammapala, the sixth-century Buddhist commentator, described these poems as udana or ‘inspired utterances.’ Theris are among the earliest women poets of the world, and Therigatha is most likely the first anthology of women authors.

Ever since a friend gifted me a copy of Therigatha[i] a few years ago, it sat patiently in my book rack waiting to be read someday. 

That day arrived recently when a friend mentioned Sanghamitra (Sanghamitta in Pali), Emperor Ashoka’s daughter, who became a nun, and at the request of the King of Simhala -Devanampiya Tissa - travelled there to ordain Queen Anula and several other women to the Sangha. She had carried a branch of the sacred Maha Bodhi tree (Ficus religiosa) at Gaya under which Buddha had gained enlightenment and planted it at Anuradhapura. The tree still flourishes.

Sanghamitra’s mother was from Vidisha (near the Sanchi Stupa, a UNESCO World Heritage). Sri Lanka celebrates the full moon night of December every year as Mitta Day in remembrance of her foundational contribution to spreading Buddhism in the country.

Theris, the Elder Bhikkhunis who sang these songs could scarcely have imagined that nearly two and a half millennia after articulation of their personal epiphanies and the essence of their spiritual achievement in the Pali language, a reader would read these verses through a translation and revert to the Pali text to try to savour the original speech and idiom. Many of these verses are presented as Buddha’s address to a Theri by name, after which the Theri repeats what the Buddha taught.

Each verse hopes to convey to one who listens or reads at least a bit of the epiphany which flashed enlightenment to the concerned Theri.

Does one have to be a Buddhist to appreciate and enjoy these poems? No, but most people are familiar with the basic teachings of the Buddha and the Buddhist worldview, and may relate to these poems.

How amazing that these women poets wrote wonderful poetry that still speaks to a reader, not of their religion or faith, nearly 2500 years after these were written!

Why did I like these poems? Not for the scriptural content, but for the poetry, and the nuggets of creative content embedded in these religious songs.

Yes, these are verses or songs, not poems; meant to be sung, and not merely read and appreciated. Veena was a popular musical instrument, and these and other scriptural verses were set to music to convey the thoughts and awareness of the Buddha and the Theras and Theris.

Since many readers may not be interested in reading Buddhist scripture, translations of two short verses are presented to provide a flavour of the poetry, the thoughts and feelings, and the life and times of these enlightened women poets.

Therike

Sleep well, Therike,

Curled up under the cloth you have woven,

Now that your desires are shrivelled 

Like a dead creeper in a pot.

Note: Theri is an Elder bhikkhuni, a nun who has attained enlightenment; Therika may be a proper name or may mean ‘little theri.’

Mukta (Meaning ‘Free’ and/or ‘Pearl’)

FREE at last,

Blissfully free am I

Unbound from the three afflictions –

Implements to thrash and grind, and

My crooked husband, too.

Free from the endless grind

Of birth and death.

 

If the Pali words पतिना खुज्जकंन are meant to be a pun, the translation would be as follows:

 

FREE at last,

Blissfully free am I

Saved from the three afflictions –

Implements to thrash and grind, and

Husband’s crooked instrument, too.

Free from the endless grind

Of birth and death.

***

Hindi & Sambalpuri Translation

For readers who may be interested, translations of these two verses into Hindi[ii] and Sambalpuri[iii] (my mother tongue) are also given.

Sanchi Mahotsava

The 71^st Bouddha Mahotsava commenced at Chetiyagiri Vihara, Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh on 25^th November, 2023. The relics of Buddha’s chief disciples, Sariputta and Maha Moggallan, were brought out of the sanctum sanctorum, placed in a new urn provided by the Buddhist Society, Sri Lanka, and venerated through a ceremonial procession.

These relics, returned by the British in 1947 to Ceylon, were distributed by the Maha Bodhi Society in 1952 to be kept at stupas in Rangoon, Colombo, and Sanchi.

***

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[i] Therigatha: Poems of the First Buddhist Women, Translated by Charles Hallisey, Murty Classical Library of India, Harvard University Press, 2015.

 

[ii] Hindi Translation

थेरिके

अब चैन की नींद सोना थेरिके

खुद का बुना चादर ओढ़ कर

कामवासना जो मर चुकी है

गमले की सूखी वेल की तरह ।

 

मुक्ता

मुक्ता कहते हैं मुझे

वाकई मुक्त हूँ अब मैं

मुक्त तीनों कष्टों से

कूटने पीसने की औजारों

और पति के टेढा औजार से भी

मुक्त हूँ जन्म मरण से

और पुनर्जन्म के जंजाल से ।

 

[iii] Sambalpuri Translation

ଥେରିକେ

ବନେ ନିଦେଁ ଏତ୍‌କେ ଶୁଇବୁ ଥେରିକେ

ନିଜେଁ ବୁନ୍‌ଲା ଚାଦର୍‌ ଉଢ଼ି କରି

ଦିହି ମନର୍‌ ଭୋକ୍‌ ତ ମରିଗଲାନ

ଗମ୍‌ଲାର ସୁଖା ଖଡ୍‌ଖଡ୍‌ ଲହ ବାଗିର୍‌।

 

ମୁକ୍‌ତା

ମୁକ୍‌ତା ମୁଇଁ

ମୁକ୍‌ତି ପାଇଛେଁ ତିନ୍‌ହି ଜଂଜାଲୁଁ

ଢ଼େଁକି, ମୁଷଲ୍‌, ଆଉର୍‌ ଘଏତାର୍‌ ଟେଢ଼ା ଠେଂଗା ନୁ

ମୁକ୍‌ତି ପାଇଛେଁ ଜନମ୍‌ ମରନୁଁ

ଫେର୍‌ ଜନମ୍‌ ର ଜଂଜାଲୁଁ।