Poetry, Buddhism 

A paperback edition of two different translations of the Therigatha. Mrs. C.A.F. Rhys Davids' classic translation in verse, first published in 1909 as Psalms of the Sisters, is interspersed with notes from the Pali commentary which gives the verses a narrative context. K.R. Norman's more modern translation, Elders' Verses II, first published in 1971, follows the longer work of Mrs. Rhys Davids. Norman's translation was based on an original Pali edition that was more accurately transcribed. His purpose was to produce a literal prose translation that could be read alongside the Pali text. Together the two versions, published here under one cover, give a very thorough and balanced perspective on this oldest extant report of women's experience of the Path of Dhamma. These poems of exquisite beauty are the utterances of enlightened nuns embodying their varied experiences. Literary critics rank them among the best lyrics in Indian literature. They remain unrivalled in the literary history of the world as creative writing issuing forth from the undefiled purity of the human heart and the nobility of human wisdom. They are ever-fresh fountains of inspiration to the truth-seeker and lasting monuments to the creative genius of liberated beings. - from Amzon